Best Thermos

I'm trying to get used to calling it a vacuum bottle. To me it'll always be a thermos, but the one that outperforms all others in the backcountry happens to be a Nissan.

The Backpack Bottle:
hot grog by Nissan

A Nissan? As in the auto maker? Yep.

On countless winter trips, the Backpack Bottle has stood out as the lightest, most compact way to carry 16 oz of hot drinks. It'll keep your coffee, tea or broth hot all morning in below zero temperatures, and on most days you'll still find it pleasantly warm in late afternoon. Plus, no leaks. It locks.

The beautiful, cupless design is where the thermal efficiency and the weight savings come from. If you plan to share your hot grog, you'll want the Compact Beverage Bottle shown at right.

Don't drink and drive

Carrying a thermos in the backcountry is a luxury many people foolishly forego. I say "foolishly" because I've seen hot drinks revive crap days, injured people and lost travelers better than anything else. But people weigh the thermos, shake their heads and say, "too heavy. Too bulky." Now that there's a Nissan, their excuses are running thin.