Drinking Culture

Anyone drinking with others in Lithuania rarely raises a glass alone. Before the first sip, someone says "Į sveikatą," to your health, or more briefly "Būk sveikas," stay healthy. Everyone at the table raises their glass together before setting it back down on the table.

Traditionally, the host or the oldest person at the table gives the first toast. After that, everyone else may follow in turn. When clinking glasses, people seek eye contact and clink softly rather than loudly, especially with their immediate neighbors.

Many Lithuanians like to point out that their country is actually a beer nation with one of Europe's oldest brewing traditions. Vodka came into the country mainly through Russian and later Soviet rule, becoming part of everyday celebrations. Yet it never displaced beer, which still leads in volume in pubs and at festivals today.

Clear vodka is typically drunk ice-cold and neat, in small glasses and in one go, not in small sips. Something to eat is served alongside, often a piece of black bread or pickled vegetables—never just the alcohol on its own.

In the cold season, Lithuanians reach for Krupnikas, the honey liqueur with herbs, more than in summer. It's drunk in small glasses after meals or on winter evenings, sweet and warming. It thus stands as a clear counterpart to sharp, clear vodka.

Trejos Devynerios also has its place in this order, though a modest one. A small glass serves as a nightcap or against an oncoming cold, a remnant from the days when pharmacists still sold it as medicine.