Bizarre Tradition Of Taking A Shot With A Human Toe In The Glass Ends With A Predictable Gulp

The next time someone tells you it’s a tradition to let a preserved human toe touch your lips while you take a shot, just take a moment to consider the highly probable outcome. One customer at a Canadian bar legendary for offering the Sourtoe Cocktail — which yes, involves a real human toe in a shot of whisky — ended with a new bit of anatomy in his stomach.

Usually, daredevil drinkers are just supposed to be daring enough to let the thing tickle their lips, reports CBC News. And while there have been several other customers who have accidentally swallowed the toe (which has had many replacements), the bartender says he thinks this is the first time someone did it (gulp) deliberately.

[Take a shudder break here]

It all started in 1973 when a local found a severed toe preserved in a jar. Since then, more than eight toes have either been lost to the darkness of customers’ stomachs or stolen, but a new replacement has been found every time.

Although this customer — reportedly an American in town for the summer — slapped the $500 fine for swallowing the toe up on the bar afterward, the new fee has been raised to $2,500. The bar has a replacement toe at the ready, but apparently a good toe is hard to find these days.

It’s been said that more than 60,000 people have paid real, actual money for the experience of drinking the shot of Yukon Gold whiskey with a human toe swimming in it. Because… there is no because. At least not one I can fathom.

Customer swallows human toe in Dawson City bar [CBC News]

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