Lamenting that the gorgeous stainless-steel ice chests of midcentury have been cost-engineered nearly out of existence, the team at Texas-based YETI decided to build their own, sparing no expense: the stainless-steel-clad YETI V Series, an $800 hard-sided cooler that weighs 35 lb. empty and can keep 46 cans of beer chilly for many, many days after your last tailgate guests have left. Its secret is vacuum-insulated panels, which keep the internal temperature lower for longer, yet allow for more space inside. “Over the course of several engineering builds, we probably destroyed over a hundred samples,” says YETI manager Evan Goldberg. The result might just last for decades.—Jesse Will
Buy now: YETI V Series
