The Sourtoe Cocktail Club

The rules for joining the Sourtoe Cocktail Club are simple. Go to the Downtown Hotel in Dawson City, Yukon. While there consume any drink that has floating in it a severed human toe that has been dehydrated and preserved in salt. The bar conveniently keeps a supply of such toes. While consuming the drink, your lips must touch the toe. And that's it. You're a member of the club.

The rules used to be a bit more strict. Namely, that the toe had to be floating in a beer glass full of champagne. But over the years they've relaxed that requirement.

If you're really brave, you can order a Five Toe Sourtoe Cocktail.

The tradition dates from 1973 when a dried up toe was discovered that, legend had it, belonged to a 1920s rum-smuggler named Louie Liken. What better use for the toe, the hotel figured, than to put it in a drink. Over the years the original toe was lost, but apparently it hasn't been hard to find replacements.

Who We Are
Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: Alex - Fri Apr 03, 2009
Category: Body | Food | Inebriation and Intoxicants

Comments

I guess they removed the requirement to drink a beer glass full of champagne when the new laws made it harder for drivers to toe the line.

Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 04/03/09 at 07:57 AM

Uh, hello? Health Canada? I think you may want to take a look at this one place in Dawson City...

Posted by kingmonkey in Athens, Ontario on 04/03/09 at 08:48 AM

"Over the years the original toe was lost, but apparently it hasn't been hard to find replacements"
Yeah, they just keep washing up on Vancouver Beach.

Posted by Matt in Florida on 04/03/09 at 09:50 AM

I'll have a corn whiskey, no corns on the toe

Posted by Matt in Florida on 04/03/09 at 09:51 AM

:lol: @ "extra cuticle"

Posted by Nethie on 04/03/09 at 10:42 AM

7 foot man from S.C. helps initiate 10 new members in the Sourtoe Club shortly after his burial. (Connect the dots WU style)

On a side note I had a friend that worked in a very large morgue in San Diego and from his stories procuring toes would have been a fairly easy process.

Posted by Pablo on 04/03/09 at 11:12 AM

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