A guide to backcountry beverages

Staying hydrated is an all-important step when travelling in the mountains. Heading into the backcountry without water or a means to melt snow isn’t just irresponsible, it’s dangerous.
But when planning to spend the night in either a comfortable hut, a single-walled tent or a personal bivvy, enjoying an alcoholic beverage with your party can be one of the most rewarding experiences of setting foot into the wilderness. In moderation, of course.

Responsible consumption in the backcountry usually comes in the form of whisky in a hip flask, which is perfect for those cold winter nights. Lightweight flasks come in plastic, but for extra class and long term durability it’s worth shelling out a little extra for a stainless steel flask.
Bottles of wine are an obvious no-no, but you can still have a sophisticated sip without resorting to questionable varieties of box wines. With a seal-able, polyethylene carafe, transporting wine has never been easier and the carafe can double as air-less storage to help preserve half-full bottles at home. Plastic wine glasses are a must and weigh little, so there’s no reason to be sipping straight from the bladder.

Beer cans aren’t the most practical to bring all the way out there, but pulling one out of your pack for when you make the summit or return to camp – that’s simply bliss. With the obvious necessity of cans over bottles, your choice of beers dwindles rapidly but there are more and more craft breweries shifting to aluminium packaging so you can leave those Coors Light cans that your friend left in the fridge behind. Camping out in the boonies doesn’t mean one has to compromise on taste.

One of the coolest new inventions is the “portable pint” by Pat’s Backcountry Beverages. The Colorado company had a stellar launch in 2013 with their portable brewing system going viral over social media. Basically the geniuses down at Pat’s have invented a portable carbonator that can function as an everyday water bottle. When you get to that special spot during your backcountry mission you mix in the package of “brew concentrate,” add the “activator” (to promote carbonation) then shake the bottle sideways for about two minutes. Release the pressure valve on the bottle and presto… you’ve got craft beer in the backcountry, and all you really had to carry was the water.

Pat’s Backcountry Beverages currently have limited shipping options to outside the US but is currently working on shipping to more countries.
Whatever your choice of backcountry beverage, stay safe and enjoy responsibly.