UNSUNG ICONS: THE BOOZE CUPBOARD

ew countries have a history more steeped in booze than Australia. Early convicts were partly paid in rum and by the 1830s we were knocking back an annual 13.6 litres of pure alcohol per head. Lest you think that level of consumption stemmed from an era where there was pretty much nothing else to do, by 1974 we were still accounting for 13.1 litres each. Again, that’s not ale or chardy, that’s