Staff Picks: All the Stuff Our Editors Fell in Love With This Week

Noise-canceling headphones, Leathermans and smoky tequila

By The Editors
July 27, 2018 9:00 am

Welcome to InsideHook’s Staff Picks, a compendium of all the stuff our editors have been digging on recently.

Muir Way Hydrology Series
Know what’s a great thing to put on your wall if you don’t know a damn thing about art and don’t quite care to learn? Maps. Like these ones from Muir Way, a company that frames with reclaimed wood and donates to the Sierra Club with every purchase. Their latest collection, the Hydrology Series, features every state’s waterways in exhaustive detail. DC is kinda boring; Florida and Minnesota are expectedly ornate. — Walker Loetscher, Editor in Chief

Huckberry X Mikkeller Blue Hour Tee
Everything the Danish brewgods over at Mikkeller touch turns to pilsner gold. Their taproom at Citi Field is the only bright spot in a woeful season for the Mets, and they recently teamed with Huckberry on a Gose-style ale called “Blue Hour” with elements of pineapple, tart cherry and Yerba Buena. The best part about that collab, though? An excuse for Mikkeller Art Director Keith Shore to go wild in the studio, transporting beloved characters Henry and Sally to the sea at dusk. We like the tee, but be sure to check out the growler, too. Tanner Garrity, Associate Editor

Leatherman Skeletool KB Pocket Knife
I’m not really much of a knife guy. I live in New York and work in marketing; they’re just not that essential to my daily routine. But Huckberry sent me this exclusive collaboration they did with Leatherman in a ultra-sleek, lightweight blackout colorway. It’s the kind of knife I picture myself using when I’m a grouchy 70-year-old peeling an apple and transferring the slices directly from the blade to my mouth. — Eli London, Director of Partnerships and User Acquisition

Universal Travel Adapter
I have the good fortune to travel abroad fairly frequently, and this baby is my JAM — every foreign plug you could ever need, plus four USB slots so that you can (game changer alert) charge multiple devices on the same outlet. Super light/compact and comes in black and blue as well, but I’ve found that the electric green is a key eye-catcher to avoid leaving the handy lil’ sucker behind. — Danny Agnew, Creative Director

Eddie Bauer Highland Sneakerboot
Mine are the ladies’ version, but these have to be the comfiest hiking shoe I have ever worn (and being from Oregon, I have opinions about outdoor footwear). I dared to break them in while tackling a moderately rocky climb in the Catskills last weekend — and despite that clearly rookie move, I had zero problems. They’re really lightweight and have just enough ankle support to be a sensible choice. Plus EB remain lifetime guarantors of their products (unlike some people). — Athena Wisotsky, Senior Editor

Decommissioned Fire Hose Wallet
Looking for a way to supplement his meager firefighter salary, Jake Starr saved some old fire hose from the trash bin and sewed it into wallets. His company Recycled Firefighter has since branched out into backpacks and duffels, but the original EDC wallet is unbeatable for utility and uniqueness. The use of real fire hose means no two are the same, but all hold eight cards and cash, and fit in the front pocket. — Alex Lauer, Senior Editor

Anker Soundcore Space NC Headphones
So, I was going to recommend the brand new Anker PowerLine II — a 3-in-1 cable that means you never have to carry separate Lightning, Micro USB and USB-C cords ever again. But they sold out in, like, a day. But credit Anker on another new well-designed product that’s still available: the Soundcore Space is a perfectly decent set of wireless noise-cancelers that look and feel pretty solid, offer extremely intuitive touch controls and retail for just $99 … or about a third of what you’d pay for something comparable. — Kirk Miller, Nation Editor/Managing Editor

THE BEST THING WE DRANK THIS WEEK

Don Julio was my gateway to great tequila (and great spirits in general). I’m much more of a whiskey fan these days, but I was still excited to host DJ’s Master Distiller Enrique de Colsa this week (on National Tequila Day, no less) for a test of his latest creation: Don Julio Reposado, Double Cask. Finished for 30 days in casks used in the making of Buchanan’s Blended Scotch, this repo is still a sippable, agave-forward spirit that juuuust hints at the smokiness and chocolate/malt notes of a whiskey on the finish. It’s kind of the best of both worlds.

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