---bannner---
I live in a household with a wife and two daughters who share a love for indoor plants, drinking hot beverages in handmade cups when they are home and carrying a drink bottle or travel cup with them whenever they go out.
I get the indoor plant thing – I love living in a forest as it feels very calming. I’m a bit neutral on the cupboard full of odd cups and mugs for beverages at home; they take up so much space, but they support the “handmade” movement, which I like. But the travel cup or water bottle thing… that’s something that I’ve always found very annoying and have never understood why people would want to take a drink with them everywhere they go.
I’ve definitely been in the “I’ll get a drink when I get there or go thirsty” camp because, if I’m perfectly honest, I could never be bothered with the irritation of leaking cups or bottles. Whenever I’ve taken a drink with me in the car, I’ve always found myself frustrated by how the liquid often leaks into the car’s cupholder, or tips over as I take corners or go through roundabouts. I also get frustrated at how such care has to be taken to keep the cup upright while trying to lug a picnic chair and other bits and pieces courtside to watch one of the kid’s play netball on a Saturday morning. These feelings about the travel cups have been further reinforced by more than one trip to the computer repair shop, having to fix a laptop damaged by a drink that leaked from the travel cup into one of my daughters uni bags. If only there was a travel cup actually designed for travelling!
Then at the 2019 Specialty Coffee Association Expo in Boston, I discovered a MiiR Travel Tumbler. I didn’t just stumble on MiiR; I knew a little bit about them as they were B Corp certified, and they were getting some favourable mentions by people that I trusted and respected. MiiR are a company whose values very much align with Five Senses, so I sought them out, got to chatting at their booth, and ended up walking away with one of their travel tumblers as a sample. As someone who just didn’t do portable drinks, I planned to put it in the hands of a test subject who could give me some decent feedback.
Once I’d got back home the MiiR Travel Tumbler languished on my desk, and just served to remind me that I’d need to get someone to try it out. My family all had their favourites and were reluctant to make changes from their go-to vessel, so I decided to take the plunge and use it myself. I remember the first time I used it. It was a sunny but cold winters morning and, as per one of my frequent morning routines, I headed out on my bike along the coast for a bit of quiet time. Filled with a fresh brew, I tucked the MiiR Travel Tumbler in the bottle holder on my bike and set off. I think it’s fair to say this precipitated the moment of my conversion experience. After bumping along the road and footpaths for half an hour, I found a nice place to stop and enjoy my solitude. I pulled the MiiR travel tumbler from the bike, mused that it hadn’t leaked, popped the lid and took a swig through the drinking hole. WOW, SOOOO HOT! Actually burned my mouth. In that moment I discovered that a) my MiiR Travel Tumbler didn’t leak and b) its contents remained as hot as when they were poured in.
This was the beginning of my love affair with the MiiR Travel Tumbler. I started to use it most days, and I think it’s fair to say I couldn’t stop going on about it how well it worked. It wasn’t long before the rest of the household wanted to see what the fuss was all about, and started to reach for my MiiR tumbler as an alternative to their usual portable cup choices. Soon the cup moved from being “my travel cup” to the “family travel cup” and competition to get it first became increasingly fierce. To solve this problem, I got my hands on more and gifted them to my family; one was not enough.
I’ve now started to use the MiiR Travel Tumbler for much more than originally intended. For example, on my last overland trip into the Australian outback, my day would start with a normal coffee cup for my first brew. I’d then make another brew and use the MiiR tumbler like a thermos, allowing me to have piping hot coffee later in the day. When I got to camp in the hot afternoon, I’d give it a rinse and pour in a beer – better than any stubbie holder to keep the beer chilled right to the last drop! Later in the night, I’d do the same thing with chilled white wine. Possibilities are endless – I’ve even been known to use mine at home as a cocktail shaker!
Aside from how robust, insulating and leakproof the MiiR Travel Tumbler is, there is something else that makes me feel good each time I use it. Like Five Senses, MiiR are purposeful in their efforts to impact people positively. Every time you buy a MiiR product it comes with a Give Code™ that links directly back to a project that you have supported through the purchase of their product. But be warned, in my opinion one is not enough.
Bonus tip: pop an ice-cube in to a hot filter brew to instantly bring it to the perfect drinking temperature!
