Doot-doot-doot doo-doo-doot! (Telegraph noises)
I love being able to update old posts with new information. And there is no story that begs more for an update than this article I wrote several years ago about the Sourtoe, which is a cocktail they serve at a bar in Dawson City.
The Sourtoe is comprised of a shot of the beverage of your choosing, plus a mummified toe. The only rule is, the toe has to touch your lips when you drink. If you successfully complete your revolting mission, you get a signed certificate, and the toe goes back on the shelf to await the next customer.
BUT!
Last Saturday night a man known only as "Josh," who apparently hails from New Orleans, bellied up to the bar at the Downtown Hotel in Dawson City, Canada. He ordered the Sourtoe. When it arrived, he knocked back the entire thing - toe and all - then slapped $500 on the bar, and walked out.
The $500 was to pay the fine for swallowing the toe. Apparently this has happened in the past, but only by accident. As far as anyone in Dawson City knows, this is the first time anyone has swallowed the toe deliberately. As a result of the man's shenanigans, the toe-swallowing fine has been raised to $2,500.
The original toe was discovered in a cabin in 1973 by the cabin's new owner. The cabin's previous owner had lost the toe to frostbite and, for reasons unknown, decided to keep the toe pickled and on a shelf as a memorial. The bar has gone through eight toes over the years. This article describes the toes as having "gone missing or been stolen or destroyed." If you ask me, that is eight fascinating untold stories right there.
Apparently up to a dozen people a night order the Sourtoe, with the total estimated number of Sourtoe customers somewhere north of 60,000.
The bar has opened the floor for toe donations. They have gone through eight toes so far in about 40 years, that's one toe every five years. If you ask me, maybe they need to keep a tighter lock on that thing. Tie a string to it or something? I mean, where do you get all those toes?
That being said, if you have a spare mummified toe lying around, the Downtown Hotel would be much obliged if you sent it their way.