I was very fortunate to be invited by the Yukon Department of Tourism to go on a trip to Whitehorse during the Olympic Games on February 20th, 2010. It was an absolutely amazing day! We left Vancouver on an 8:30am flight, spent the day in and around Whitehorse and were back in Vancouver just after midnight the same day. Awesome!

One of the crazy experiences of the day was drinking Captain Dick’s Sourtoe Cocktail from Dawson City.

What is a Sourtoe Cocktail you ask? You may be sorry that you asked. I tried not to think too much about it  too much when I swigged the cocktail and you will understand why in a moment…

A Sourtoe Cocktail is your choice of either Yukon Jack Whiskey or Klondike Vodka, both distilled in Yukon. Then the Captain drops a mummified human toe (toe nail and all!) into the drink!

Before you drink it, the Captain recites,

“The toe goes into your drink. You can drink it fast, or you can drink it slow. But the toe must touch your lips, and I must witness that.”

Once you’ve swallowed the liquor and it has touched your lips (do NOT swallow the toe), you sign the book and the Captain signs your certificate and wallet card and BAM! You’re a member of the Sourtoe Cocktail Club!

As you will see in the video below, I became a member of the Sourtoe Cocktail Club that day. I received a certificate and wallet card to prove it! In fact, I am member number 34,958! (That’s a lot of toe kissers!)

For more photos of the cocktail and the rest of my Yukon trip, please visit my Flickr page.

For more information about the Sourtoe Cocktail, see the Sourtoe Cocktail Club website.