Vapur Vintage Wine Carrier

Convenient, light, and flexible way to carry drinks into the backcountry. Recommended for anyone looking to bring some of the comforts of home into the woods.

I have used Vapur bottles in the past and enjoyed the opportunity to test a version of the bottles designed for adult beverages.

Features:

I received two different Vapur bottles to test. One was this Vintage Flexible Wine Carrier and the other was the Incognito Flexible Flask. Both bottles came with a bottle pourer to help transfer wine or liquor from store bought bottles to the Vapur bottle. 

Also both bottles are freezable, BPA-free, and stand when filled. I really liked the freezable feature of traditional Vapur bottles and am glad these versions are capable of freezing as well with breaking.

The flexible wine carrier has 350ml and 750ml measurements on the side that coordinate with half size and full size wine bottles. Additionally, there is a clear section of the graphics that allows you to see how much liquid is left in the bottle.

Another feature that these vapor bottles share with the rest of the vapor line is the ability to stand when full. It is great to be able to fill the bottles and leave them standing if you would like.

Testing:

I found that the provided pourer worked well to transfer wine from the traditional glass bottle to the flexible Vapur bottle.

The wine carrier held a full wine bottle with a little room to spare. However, because the cap is on the corner of the bottle, if you overfill the carrier it will spill.

During my testing I checked to see if the wine carrier lived up to its description, kept the wine at an enjoyable temperature, kept the flavor of the wine over time, packed/carried easily, was durable, and if it transferred flavor to different beverages.

As mentioned previously, I was able to fit a full bottle of wine in the carrier. This is great and allowed my wife and me the opportunity to take a bottle of wine with us on an evening sunset hike. This really added to the enjoyment of a hike we had done many times, occasionally while carrying either a glass bottle of wine (protected in a carrier) or wine in a stainless steel water bottle.

The Vapur carrier is so light that you are practically only carrying the weight of the liquid. This leads to the added bonus of as you drink more, the less weight you carry. The slim profile of the carrier allowed for easy transport either in the water bottle holder on my pack or in the pack itself.

Storing wine in the carrier and placing it in the fridge allowed it to chill very quickly because of the thin layer of plastic between the liquid and the cool air. This has the inverse effect once you take the carrier out of the fridge and on your hike. It will warm up to the air temperature relatively quickly. This is not a big issue for red wines but if you like a chilled white wine you will want to sit the carrier in a stream or other cooling source for a few minutes before enjoying.

I intentionally left a bottle of Chardonnay in the carrier for about a week to see how well the wine kept its flavor. I was surprised with the result, which was that there was a little flavor loss but no more than if I would have left the wine in a bottle re-corked. I think is because of the plastic construction and twist cap which helps seal out the air. I continued the test for a few more days and did begin to notice a “flat” taste as if the wine had lost some of its fuller flavors. Again, though, this will happen with a traditional glass bottle that has been re-corked.

Whether the carrier was full or empty, it packed easily. It fit well inside of my water bottle carrier on my pack and when it was empty it rolled up and disappeared into my top lid. This is another feature that I love with Vapur bottles.

I found the Vapur carrier to be very durable for a soft sided plastic bottle. One of my tests was to fill the wine carrier, close it, and then step on it applying about half my weight. Everything held together well.

My dog decided to replicate the test at a later date by stepping on it with his full weight (75 lbs) and sharp toenails. He conducted this test while we were on a rough granite overlook. Once again, the bottle held and was not punctured or broken.

I did find that some flavor from wine transferred to different liquids. After each use I would clean the bottle but did notice a mild wine flavor when testing the carrier with water. This is not a big deal, since the intent of this bottle is for wine and I have other bottles I use solely for water.

Summary:

Having dedicated adult beverage carries may not seem necessary and I don’t know if I would have purchased them on my own. However, now that I have tested out this system I would absolutely pick up a set of these carriers. Their lightweight construction means I am only adding the weight of the liquid, they are durable, they roll up tightly when not in use, and they allow me to separate bottles for different uses to limit flavor contamination.

These are a useful and well-made system to bring some creature comforts into the backcountry.

(Cheers!)