A Canadian bar is missing its famous toe

For more than four decades, the Sourdough Saloon in Dawson, Yukon, about 65 miles east of the Canada-Alaska border, has been known for its Sourtoe Cocktail.

What constitutes this legendary concoction, you ask? It’s simple: The bartender pours a shot of whiskey and drops in a mummified toe as a garnish.

The Downtown Hotel saloon’s Twitter bio describes the requirements to join the coveted Sourtoe Cocktail club: “You can drink it fast, or you can drink it slow, but your lips MUST touch the toe!”

But Dawson locals are stomping their feet over reports that the famous toe has gone missing, according to the Alaska Dispatch News.

It didn’t walk out on its own, though. It was stolen.

Terry Lee, the “toe master” of the Sourdough Saloon, told the Alaska Dispatch News a man ordered a Sourtoe Cocktail, and he walked off with the toe after the bartender had turned her back.

The Global News reports that the man left behind his “Sourtoe Cocktail club” membership certificate, which had his name on it.

“We have a name. We have two witnesses,” Lee told the Dispatch News. “This guy is in deep trouble.”

According to the Global News, the saloon said the man who stole the toe had a French accent and hinted that he might steal it prior to quaffing his drink.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police are investigating the incident. As of Tuesday, no arrests had been made, according to the Dispatch News.

Downtown Hotel manager Geri Colbourne said the missing toe was donated by a man who had it surgically removed, then cured in salt for six months, according to a CBC report.

“This was our new toe, and it was a really good one. We just started using it this weekend,” she said.

However, the bar isn’t toe-tally out of luck. Lee said the bar has received plenty of donations over the years.

“We have one other toe that we can serve,” Lee told the Dispatch News. “The others are too small, they’d be a choking hazard.”

This isn’t the first time the bar has lost a toe. In 2013, a man swallowed a toe. The penalty was a $500 fine.

According to legend, a rum runner in the 1920s preserved his toe, amputated from frostbite, in a jar of alcohol. The jar was found years later in a Yukon cabin, and in 1973, the Sourtoe Cocktail was born.

Lee said over 71,000 Sourtoe Cocktails have been served over the drink’s history, according to the Alaska News Dispatch.

This story was originally published June 21, 2017 at 8:39 PM with the headline "A Canadian bar is missing its famous toe."