The Stubby

If you’re looking for something that truly defines the Canadian psyche, consider this: until 1984, pretty much all the beer sold in this country, regardless of the brewer or brand, came packaged in a single, standardized bottle—stubby and brown—designed to efficiently hold the requisite twelve Imperial fluid ounces and to protect the product from the negative effects that can result from exposure to light. Carling O’Keefe changed all this when they started selling Miller High Life here in a clear, long-necked bottle. It was sexy but frivolous, carefree but reckless; and worst of all, the beer was American.