It’s hot in Austin and I ride my bike everywhere. I have to stay hydrated. You should too. Hydration is wildly beneficial. Being well hydrated helps cut down on stress, speeds up metabolism, increases energy levels, suppresses hunger, and gives muscles more definition, among other incredible performance benefits. It’s like a superpower.

Unfortunately, it’s really difficult to drink as much water as you should. It may sound silly, but the first step to increasing your water intake is making sure you always have water. The best way to do that is to keep it with you everywhere; by your bed, on your bike, in your car, and on your desk. To do this, you’re going to need a water container you love - a container you’re happy to carry with you every day.

When beginning my daily carry water container search, I knew I needed a container I would want to carry, not just one that I loved. Much like your favorite shoes, I needed a container that made me feel good. A container that in itself would make me more confident, positive, and healthy. My container would have to become part of me. Otherwise, I’d never carry it.

The container I’ve carried every day for the past year and a half is a 27oz Klean Kanteen. It fits my personality, my tastes, and my lifestyle. The Klean Kanteen is beautifully designed. Crafted of stainless steel, it leaves no taste or odor. It’s fairly lightweight, yet incredibly rugged and durable. Perhaps best, the perfect sheen attracts only the good scratches and nicks - those with stories to tell. 

I chose stainless for 3 reasons. It looks great, it feels good to the touch, and it’s highly functional. Plastic looks horrible, feels horrible, and is only moderately functional. Aluminum looks great, is nicer to the touch than stainless, and is actually quite functional. 

So why stainless? Unfortunately, aluminum has one major flaw. Odors tend to stick to the metal. For this reason, manufacturers of aluminum bottles line them with materials that don’t hold odor. This works great for most folks. You get a great looking, nice to the touch, lightweight and durable bottle that is also odorless. Win-win, right? Not for me. 

One of the factors my container needed to meet was the ability to act as a boiling container. My intention wasn’t for backpacking, as you might think. No, I have more appropriate containers for that use case. In my daily carry water container I wanted this feature because I tend to make spur of the moment decisions that sometimes lead to nights spent sleeping outdoors. Whether for purification, a bit of rice, or a cup of coffee to go with the brilliant view I may have, I needed to know I could trust my container to boil water. Lined aluminum bottles couldn’t meet this demand, so stainless was the only way to go.

Fortunately, stainless is also about as light as aluminum since it doesn’t need to be lined. It’s also just as durable and looks great. Once I determined I needed stainless, my choice was simply to find a brand and the appropriate size for my needs. Klean Kanteen made this choice easy. Their bottles have classic good looks and they’re a great company - I’m a sucker for the “1% for the Planet” badge. I went with the 27oz wide mouth classic because it’s just the right volume for daily carry in an urban environment and the wide mouth allows it be used as a cooking pot over open flame for those last minute urban escapes.

If you don’t have a bottle you love to carry every day, get one. Your superpowers are only a few sips away.

Klean Kanteen