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stubby
DCHP-2 (Oct 2016)
n. — now rare, Food & Drink
a short, squat bottle of beer (see Image 1).
Type: 4. Culturally Significant — The stubby beer bottle was introduced in select areas of Canada in 1961 (see the quotation) and became the industry standard in Canada for beer bottles from the early 1960s to the early 1980s (see the 2012 quotation). In 1983, companies switched to American long-necked bottles and each brand had its own bottle shape. In 1992, long-necked bottles became standardized so the bottles could be used by other companies after being cleaned and sterilized (see the first 1992 quotation and the 2012 quotation). Stubbies were fondly remembered as distinctly Canadian (see the 1998 quotation) and in 2002, one brewery in Waterloo, ON, revived the stubby bottles (see the 2002 quotation). Stubbies are still used by some smaller craft breweries. These bottles are also used in Australia.
See also COD-2, s.v. "stubby" (n.), which is marked "Cdn hist. & Austral. informal", and OED-2, s.v. "stubby", which is marked "Austral. slang", AND, s.v. "stubby" (1a).
See also COD-2, s.v. "stubby" (n.), which is marked "Cdn hist. & Austral. informal", and OED-2, s.v. "stubby", which is marked "Austral. slang", AND, s.v. "stubby" (1a).
Quotations
1961
A stubby beer bottle, lighter in weight but holding the same 12 ounces, will be introduced in pilot areas in Ontario and Quebec in April, the Dominion Brewers Association announced yesterday.
The new bottle, which in Ontario will be introduced in the Peterborough area, has a neck three inches shorter than the present type, making it easier to store. In a 24-bottle case the difference in weight is almost five pounds. In addition, the new bottle is amber in colour, providing more protection from light, which can spoil beer flavour.
The new bottle, which in Ontario will be introduced in the Peterborough area, has a neck three inches shorter than the present type, making it easier to store. In a 24-bottle case the difference in weight is almost five pounds. In addition, the new bottle is amber in colour, providing more protection from light, which can spoil beer flavour.
1979
At about the same time, the Canadian brewing industry decided to get together to produce a standard bottle for the entire industry, the brown, stubby beer bottle that has become so familiar.
1984
British Columbia this month will be the battleground for a crucial campaign in the Great Canadian Beer War, and beer here will never again look the same.
In the most intensive facelift ever undertaken by the brewing industry, the three major breweries in British Columbia will spend millions of dollars to ditch millions of their stubby, brown bottles. They'll replace them with taller, more slender, long-necked versions which beer buyers have lately signalled they prefer.
In the most intensive facelift ever undertaken by the brewing industry, the three major breweries in British Columbia will spend millions of dollars to ditch millions of their stubby, brown bottles. They'll replace them with taller, more slender, long-necked versions which beer buyers have lately signalled they prefer.
1992
Nobody's talking about bringing back the stubby, but Canada's brewers are thinking seriously about returning to a standard industry bottle.
Since the early 1980s, the number of beer bottles has blossomed from the single stubby to about 50 different designs, said Sandy Morrison, president of the Brewers Association of Canada.
1998
However, with apologies to the old man, I think the real moment of truth came several years later, with the introduction of the long-necked beer bottle. Thus began our long descent from happy, unified mediocrity into squabbling tribalism, for this was the beginning of the end of our national brew dispenser -- the stubby beer bottle.
For those readers too young to remember this precious symbol of our national character, an explanation: The stubby was for many years the only acceptable container for our national drink. Taking a leaf from Henry Ford, who once said you could have your car in any colour you wanted, so long as it was black, our major brewers (Molson's, Labatt and Carling O'Keefe) decreed that all beers would be sold in the same interchangeable package.
For those readers too young to remember this precious symbol of our national character, an explanation: The stubby was for many years the only acceptable container for our national drink. Taking a leaf from Henry Ford, who once said you could have your car in any colour you wanted, so long as it was black, our major brewers (Molson's, Labatt and Carling O'Keefe) decreed that all beers would be sold in the same interchangeable package.
2002
The venerable brown stubby is coming back this spring, 19 years after the famous Canadian beer bottles were sent to the scrapyard. "These were really popular bottles," said Joe Romagnolo, spokesman for Brick Brewing Co. Ltd., the tiny craft brewery that is resurrecting the short, squat bottle that made Canadian beer unique around the world. "We're expecting quite a reaction."
2012
. The stubby was the industry standard across the board from 1962 to 1983. Because of its uniform size, different breweries could easily interchange and recycle bottles. Small but strong, the stubby could be washed and reused an average of 20 times. By comparison, the modern longneck can only be reused an average of 16 times.
. When Canadian breweries made the switch from stubby to longneck in 1983, each company had its own distinctive bottle. The decision to switch was made for marketing reasons. Sales were flat, and the major brewers thought a new bottle shape could give sales the boost they needed.
. Molson shelled out a whopping $18 million to convert its bottling machines.
. Reaction to the longneck was mixed. Some beer drinkers liked the new bottle for its style and feel. Others, however, resisted the Americanization of the beer bottle and lamented the loss of the little stubby.
. In a Food in Canada article titled "Bring back the stubby!" writer David Menzies reveals that the stubby was almost resurrected in 1992 when Canadian brewing companies met to re-set the standard dimensions of the longneck. The stubby was passed over, however, when focus groups showed that women preferred the longneck to the stubby.
. The "longneck" is also known as the industry standard bottle (ISB). As of 1992, all longnecks became uniform in height, weight and width dimensions and could thus be interchanged between breweries. For example, Molson's can now receive a Labatt bottle and wash, fill and re-label it for market.
. In a 1998 Globe and Mail column titled "Lament for the short and stubby," P.T. Jensen eulogized the compact beer bottle. He wrote, "Stubby was unpretentious. No glamour, all function. Stubby was egalitarian. Millionaire or mooch, you got your brew in a stubby."
. In May 2002, the Brick Brewing Company re-introduced the stubby to the Canadian market. Jim Brickman, president of The Brick Brewing Co., brought back the stubby as a nostalgia novelty gimmick to be distributed throughout Ontario.
. When Canadian breweries made the switch from stubby to longneck in 1983, each company had its own distinctive bottle. The decision to switch was made for marketing reasons. Sales were flat, and the major brewers thought a new bottle shape could give sales the boost they needed.
. Molson shelled out a whopping $18 million to convert its bottling machines.
. Reaction to the longneck was mixed. Some beer drinkers liked the new bottle for its style and feel. Others, however, resisted the Americanization of the beer bottle and lamented the loss of the little stubby.
. In a Food in Canada article titled "Bring back the stubby!" writer David Menzies reveals that the stubby was almost resurrected in 1992 when Canadian brewing companies met to re-set the standard dimensions of the longneck. The stubby was passed over, however, when focus groups showed that women preferred the longneck to the stubby.
. The "longneck" is also known as the industry standard bottle (ISB). As of 1992, all longnecks became uniform in height, weight and width dimensions and could thus be interchanged between breweries. For example, Molson's can now receive a Labatt bottle and wash, fill and re-label it for market.
. In a 1998 Globe and Mail column titled "Lament for the short and stubby," P.T. Jensen eulogized the compact beer bottle. He wrote, "Stubby was unpretentious. No glamour, all function. Stubby was egalitarian. Millionaire or mooch, you got your brew in a stubby."
. In May 2002, the Brick Brewing Company re-introduced the stubby to the Canadian market. Jim Brickman, president of The Brick Brewing Co., brought back the stubby as a nostalgia novelty gimmick to be distributed throughout Ontario.
References
- COD-2
- OED-3
- AND
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