Who Actually Invented the Shotski?

To the average Bravoholic, the shotski has a hell of a lot more to do with mazels, jackholes, and Lady Gaga's pee perfume than actual snow, slopes and lifts. But believe it or not, the height-differential-challenging group drinking vessel that requires the steadiest of hands did exist before that fateful day Jimmy Fallon bestowed it upon the world's luckiest clubhouse. Its official origins are actually shrouded in a bit of mystery (much like your evening might be if you tip the shotski a bit too often)...

The creation rumors and emphatic claims abound — Munich! Mount Hood! Sun Valley! — but the intrepid sleuthing done by Punch has narrowed the wild speculation down to a couple more likely theories. One is that the shotski was invented by the party-hardy University of British Columbia ski team. That story has officially been neither confirmed nor denied, but we're guessing that a bunch of Canadians will drink to it no matter what. 

Potential origin story number two with some legit cred is that the tiltable drinking tool was born out of an excess of après-ski revelry in Austria, where the shotski is known as a schnappski (and the shot glasses are simply placed on the ski, requiring teamwork to truly make the dream work). Unfortunately, there's no sage shot-glass-obsessed record keeper tucked away in a cave in the Alps to unequivocally confirm that rumor either, so it's just another best guess at this integral part of our storied global imbibing history.

Of course, the beauty of the shotski is that it knows no borders and will be only too happy to deliver that sweet, sweet booze to three to five friends (standard vs. cross country) in one fell swoop. Obviously, it's not only heaps and heaps of celebrities who’ve been known to knock them back these days. An attention-grabbing shotski experience has become a whole production at ubiquitous American “breastaurants” like Twin Peaks and Hooters. And the January 2017 Ullr Fest in Breckenridge, CO, saw 420 skis combined to form the world's longest shotski at 1,997 feet — with 1,234 drinkers consuming 1,234 ounces of cinnamon whiskey with one single, big-ass flip. That historic record held strong all of nine months, until Park City, UT, hosted 1,250 people tossing back beer from a 2,225-foot shotski forming an epic "U" down Main Street. 

But you certainly don't need to wait til you find yourself at a bro-centric chain restaurant, a winter festival celebrating the Norse god of snow, or chatting with Andy Cohen about your new streaming show to embrace the awesomeness of the shotski. We live in magical times that let you create your own version anywhere in mere seconds, or order a custom ski designed to inspire much jealousy (and drunkenness). Even the most craft-averse thirsty person can fashion one out of stuff that's basically lying around their garage. (All hail the mighty power of duct tape.) Never has DIY felt more legendarily rewarding. Bottoms up!