No self-respecting alco would go thru life without some cold-retaining gear, specifically to store drinks / ice.

Such equipment are necessities, especially for house parties / road trips. Coz warm booze sucks. If d beer/booze aint cold due to bad storage / lack of ice, dont bother serving. Its an insult to guests. Even while travelling.

Unless its hot Irish Coffee.

There are various insulated gear out there, some for adventure, some for sports, some for picnics, some for booze. Almost all are suitable for alcos. The kick-ass backpack-drinking gear (hydration packs), which is great as it goes wherever u go has already been featured here.

However, for less mobile needs, there’s plasticware known as eskies, igloos, ice-boxes or coolers. Those ozone-depleting styrofoam ones dont last, and they aint serious.

Coleman is a familiar American brand, and the most widely available here.

This one’s got a decent size and will hold quite a bit of shit. It’s normally sold as a set of 3 units – the main box above, a six-pack box, and a jug – all for under 200 bucks.

The Coleman set is extremely suitable for amateur alcos.

For the pros, there’s the top-notch Ultra Cold 50 (by Igloo).

This baby has kept ice for five days! It’s pretty tough too. It’s lasted me 7 years now.

This model costs more than 200 bucks.

Besides the hard coolers, for easy-packing when travelling, nothing beats the soft coolers. These are foldable and pretty decent in cold-retention. Much cheaper too.

A medium-sized one is perfect as it can hold loads of ice & large bottles too.

Then there’re those bottle condoms, made of sponge which would fit a bottle of white wine snugly to retain the cold. Had a few, dunno where they gone!

For when u chillin w yor homies / bitchis by d poolside/riverside/beach, there are the insulated jugs and flasks which would work. I’ve a little dispenser unit.

I’ve hardly used dis one coz i always tot it was too small, when in fact it’s got a 3.8-liter capacity, meaning i could unload one bottle of liquor into the mix. Will use it more often now!

It can also hold a six-pack.

Unlike most brands, all Igloo products are made in USA. S0 a better option for amateur alcos would be Igloo’s three-piece combo (below).

Unlike Coleman, it’s not available at super/hypermarkets, but at angling stores. However u can get it direct from the dealer (in PJ), Adventure & Leisure, for $199 (Tel: 7956-0908).

They’ve gotta whole range of outdoor shit & scuba gear. And wine.

There are also other drinking accessories out there like ice-substitutes, such as Ice Pak. Put these in d freezer and use them again and again. They contain a special gel that stays cold for a long time.

For the state-of-the-art, top-of-the-line, high-dollar daddy, there’s Coleman’s Xtreme Six-Wheel Cooler (below). This is supposed to keep ice for six days at 32C.

I’m impressed.

Igloo has a similar one for $492.

There’s also Igloo’s Seat Top series, which doubles as a stool.

It’s $202 for the 5-gallon (19 liters) and $400 for d 10-gallon (38 liters).

On d related issue of containers, i stopped using punch bowls for punch a coupla years ago. They go too fast and i need to keep re-making thru d nite. During one of my birthdays i did it 9 times! Still werent enaf.

So after observing how sirap was dispensed at Hari Raya open houses, i bought this 12-liter mama from Tesco, and it solved d problem. I can pour 4 bottles of liquor into da mix, which means i dont need to make it as often.

I wuz also gifted a big-ass Starbucks ‘punch bowl’. Dis one has yet to see action.

But it will be easy. Dump in five bottles of liquor, add mixers, & suck thru a hose. And watch d fun.