18th Century Drinking Game

Allright, I know this is the third post I’ve done about booze. But recently, my friend Tom played the game “Snap Dragon” at a party:


“You just pour a bunch of brandy in a pan, throw some raisins in there and light everything on fire. Then you stick your hand in the pan to eat the raisins. Because the brandy's burning it looks like you're throwing flaming raisins in your mouth. Its pretty awesome, and not nearly as painful as one might imagine. Oh, and turn off the lights [when you’re playing].

“We used a whole bag of raisins. Most people were afraid to do it at all; however, you can play with the fire and swirl the brandy around and stuff. If you have open cuts on your hands, the brandy/fire combo does sting, plus it's gross for other raisin eaters.”


There are literary references to Snap Dragon as far back at the 15th century. Shakespeare mentioned it, as did Lewis Carol. Prior to the 19th century, it was considered a drinking game, in which a drinker skillfully downed a glass of blazing liquor. By the 19th century, it had developed into the parluor game of snatching flaming raisons out of a bowl, a game tame enough for the entire family.

Snap Dragon was played particularly on Christmas Eve, and on Halloween in the US.

Source: Wikipedia
Image: A Dragon playing Snap Dragon, from Robert Chambers' Book of Days