A toast to friendship

Present in all homes of Aosta Valley and often found in the suitcases of visitors leaving the area, and symbol of friendship and the festive nature of the inhabitants, the tradition of the “Friendship Cup” is so famous that it has even gained a place of honour in a gigantic version on the one of the roundabouts n the centre of Aosta.

The cup is a wide, wooden low cup, and features either four or six drinking spouts depending on its size, closed by an engraved cover. Only from this cup, authentic Aosta Valley coffee is drunk, sometimes with a little liqueur added to warm up the atmosphere.

To toast to friendship the ritual begins by preparing the coffee which should be plentiful and boiling hot, then friends sit around a table and pour in the coffee, grappa, sugar and orange and lemon peel. A little more sugar is then added to the rim of the cup, then a little more grappa, again to the rim, and then set alight. Everything is mixed with a spoon and left to burn until the sugar caramelises. Once the fire is put out with the cover, friends gather around the cup and drink from the spouts “à la ronde”.

The cup is passed from hand to hand, without touching the table until the cup is finished. The ease in which the spouts are passed to each friend symbolises sharing and moments of joy, giving meaning to the “friendship cup” which is never to be drunk alone as a local saying stays that “those who drink alone will choke”.

Valdostana Coffee
(for 4 people)

4 cups of coffee
2 cups of grappa
8 spoons of sugar
Orange peel
Lemon peel