Hip Flask

Shape, Size and Steel

The curve is the design: a flask is shaped to lie flat against the body inside a coat. Ours holds 150ml, and Urban Bar’s own flask 20cl. A 500ml flask holds far more and no longer sits flat in a pocket, so it suits a bag better than a coat.

Food-grade stainless steel, usually sold as 304 or 18/8, is the usual choice: it is tough, does not rust and gives nothing to the spirit. Pewter is traditional and softer, and old pewter can contain lead, so keep old pieces for display. Silver plate wears through to the base metal in time.

A cap hinged to the body is worth having, because a loose cap is easy to drop and lose outdoors.

Spirits Only

A flask is for spirits of around 40% ABV. That is a practical limit as much as a preference.

In our experience anything with sugar, such as a liqueur, vermouth or a premixed cocktail, turns stale and sticky in a narrow neck you cannot scrub. Anything with citrus, cream or egg should not sit unrefrigerated in a pocket at all.

Wine oxidises quickly in a part-empty flask, and beer has nowhere for its gas to go.

Fill It for the Day

High-strength spirit will not spoil in clean steel, but it does change. Once you have taken a few sips, the spirit shares the flask with air, and left for weeks it can taste dull.

So fill it the morning you need it and empty it that night, back into the bottle if any is left. Treat it as a carrying vessel, not as storage.

Carry It Responsibly

A full 150ml flask of spirit at 40% ABV holds six UK units. The Chief Medical Officers’ guideline is no more than 14 units a week, spread over three or more days, so a full flask is close to half of it.

Never drink from a flask if you are driving or will be, and keep it away from anyone under 18.

Some places do not allow one at all. In England and Wales, section 2 of the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc.) Act 1985 makes it an offence to have alcohol with you at a designated sporting event when you are entering the ground or in any part of it from which the event can be directly viewed; Scotland has similar rules. Stadiums and festivals often refuse flasks at the gate.

Cleaning It

Rinse with hot water as soon as it is empty. For a stale smell, shake a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda in warm water inside it, then rinse well.

Avoid washing-up liquid. The neck is too narrow to rinse it out, and trapped detergent is why so many second-hand flasks taste of soap.

Dry it completely, open and upside down overnight, and store it with the cap off. In our experience a flask put away damp turns stale and, on pewter or plate, starts to corrode.

Common Questions