This summer will marked a uniquely Yukon milestone, with the serving of the 100,000th Sourtoe Cocktail at the Downtown Hotel, a Coast Hotel, in Dawson City.
Just in case you’re unfamiliar with this famously grisly tipple, it all began in 1973 when a local – Captain Dick Stevenson – discovered a preserved toe in an old prospecting cabin. Turns out the former owner of the toe was a gold miner/bootlegger named Louie Liken who had parted company with his big toe sometime during Prohibition. Stevenson’s inspiration for the drink came from the “The Ballad of the Ice-Worm Cocktail” by Robert Service.
Doing “the Toe” involves drinking a shot of your favourite spirit with a mummified human toe in it. Once the Toe touches your lips, you have officially joined the club and get a certificate to commemorate the prestigious occasion. Yukon Premier, Sandy Silver, became the 100,000th member of this one-of-a-kind club when he was served the historic tipple on July 19.