The Pride of Nova Scotia

We caused a bit of a brouhaha amongst our Nova Scotian readers (all three of them) with that post about the Halifax Explosion. Nobody took issue with our concerns about the naming of the football team.

What caught their attention was buried in a link that mentioned another Canadian pastime—beer drinking. Apparently, someone had posted in the Urban Dictionary: "A true Haligonian drinks Keith's."

Advertised as "The Pride of Nova Scotia," Keith's name got dragged through the dirt recently, when the beer's pitchman got arrested on charges related to child pornography.

Alexander Keith's is a Canadian brewery founded in 1820 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, by Alexander Keith, who emigrated from Scotland in 1817, where it is still the only location of an Alexander Keith's brewery. Today, the brewery is under the control of Labatt, a subsidiary of Interbrew. The brewery also produces Oland beers, distributed in Eastern Canada.

When ordering in Canada, one simply asks for a Keith's (pronouned 'keets').

As of 2004-2005, Keith's is well known for their TV commercials, where a strongly patriotic Haligonian (with a Scottish kilt and accent) makes a big fuss about any perceived insult about Keith's brew, including spillages and shortages. On 15 February 2006, the actor (Robert Norman Smith), in these ads was arrested on child pornography charges. Labatt has since pulled the ads.

Ironically, one of these ads is titled "Beer Funeral". Maritimers say the Keith's brand is alive and well, and insist that the pride of Nova Scotia remains untarnished; they're quick to point out that this guy is an actor from Toronto!

Down-East'ers, who know strange brew better than Bob and Doug MacKenzie, say that Alexander Keith's isn't the only beer drunk in the Maritimes, although "those who like it, like it a lot."

Moosehead is another popular Canadian beer with a history that began in Halifax. The original Moosehead Brewery was built in 1867 in Halifax.

The history of the Moosehead Breweries, located in Saint John, New Brunswick, is a remarkable and unique testament to the power of family and tradition. The Moosehead saga began in 1867, when Susannah Oland first brewed a solitary batch of brown October ale in her backyard in Nova Scotia. Encouraged by the welcome reception her beer received from friends and family members, Susannah and her husband, John James Dunn Oland, began to market the beer.

The first Oland family brewery was named the "Army & Navy Brewery," and thrived for several years. Tragically, John Oland was killed in a riding accident just a few years thereafter, and Susannah was left with seven children to support.

Susannah courageously continued, renaming the brewery "S. Oland Sons & Co.," an endeavor that prospered until her death in 1886. It was after Susannah's death that the Oland family sons set out to carry on the family tradition.

Since that time, the Olands and Moosehead Breweries have flourished, surviving inimitable hardships through prohibition, the Depression and the 1917 Halifax explosion.

Moosehead features an entertaining flash site that increases brand awareness, separate from its corporate website.

Haligonians who really know a good brew insist on Propeller, a craft ale brewed right in Halifax. This is the story behind their name.

We figured Propeller would be a playful celebration of Nova Scotia’s rich sea faring tradition, while avoiding some of the over-worked symbols from the age of sail.

To our surprise, we discovered that an inventive fishing captain named John Patch from Yarmouth, Nova Scotia actually invented the marine screw propellor in the 1830s.

Demonstrations of his magical new technology, powered by an on-board handcrank, astounded onlookers in Yarmouth and Saint John in 1834.

The screw propeller would soon revolutionize steam-powered shipping by eliminating the need for large, inefficient paddle wheels.

Sadly, however, John Patch was thwarted in his attempt to patent his invention in Washington, possibly due to corruption. Moreover, the Nova Scotia House of Assembly later rejected a petition to aid Patch, who had fallen on hard times.

He died a penniless inmate of the poorhouse in Yarmouth. To paraphrase a beer ad. . .

He was a Nova Scotian.