What is "shoey"

A shoey is the act of drinking an alcoholic beverage from a shoe. The shoey gained wide spread popularity in Australia in 2015 and is often a ritual undertaken at birthdays and other special events.

In order to perform a shoey, the drinker either removes their own shoe, or nominates a friend's shoe to be used as the vessel. The shoe is tilted and the entire contents of a can of beer are poured into the shoe's opening. Once the beverage has settled, the beer is drunk by tipping the shoe up to the mouth and chugging it. The drink most commonly used for a shoey is beer, however, other alcoholic beverages may be used.

The origins of a shoey date back to the early 1800s in Germany. It is believed to arise around the same time the glass beer boot ( Bierstiefeln) started being used in Germany. As the glass beer boot gained popularity the peasants and lower classes looked to other cheaper ways to imitate this cultural trend and so the shoey was born.