review by Tony Lourens
I remember that day, about 30 years ago. A group of us were going down the Riviersonderend Canyon, a famous Western Cape kloofing trip. I had packed my trusty flask of hot coffee along with all my other stuff. Anyway, at the top of the ‘big’ jump, we all threw our packs down the 12-metre-high waterfall to splash into the dark water below, then leapt off the top into a screaming arc to plunge into the waiting pool, grabbing our respective bags and swimming to the opposite bank. On donning my pack, I felt a nice warm sensation down my back. Nooit, I thought. On inspection, my fears were proved right. I shook my lovely thermos flask and heard a thousand glass shards rattling around inside. Those were the days when flasks had glass insulation.
Today of course, the modern flasks are glass free and super durable, and you can happily throw them off ferocious waterfalls with nary a flinch nor flurry.
At the end of the day, a flask has two important tasks:
One, to keep the contents hot or cold for a decent amount of time and two, to be strong and durable.
The GSI Outdoors Microlite 1000 fulfils both of those tasks admirably, and what’s more, for its performance levels, it is remarkably light – only 369 grams.
As a standard test, I warmed the flask up with a splash of boiling water, then filled it, sealed it and let it stand. Six hours later, the liquid inside was still way too hot to drink, and 17 hours later was still warm enough to enjoy a decent cup of the old Darjeeling. Considering that the walls of the Microlite are only 2 millimetres thick, that is super impressive.
The pure stainless steel used does not taint the flavour of the contents in any way and is easy to keep clean. And the other really cool thing is the screw-top cap includes a leverage enhancing lobe, which makes opening frozen bottles easy – even with mittens or gloves.
Available in a range of sexy colours, the Microlite also features a very functional flat rubber base, which prevents it from skidding on rocky surfaces.
This new GSI addition to the family is the perfect bottle to keep your tea steaming hot, your water ice cold and your soup that perfect, piping hot temperature.
Specifications
Volume: 1 l
Weight: 368 g / 13 oz.
Dimensions: 218 mm x 91 mm
Material: Stainless steel
