The History of Kentucky’s Favorite Tumbler Might Make You Gag

I can't usually open Facebook anymore without seeing at least one comment about a product with which I was unfamiliar until just a week ago.

To be fair, the comments are split between fawning praise and comic consternation about a water bottle that can keep ice frozen for 24 to 36 hours and keep coffee hot until--oh, I don't know--your grandchildren are grown. Yes, I'm joking, but the excitement surrounding the Stanley tumbler is real, folks.

The Stanley Tumbler Is Suddenly the Hottest Tumbler on the Planet

To be fair, the Stanley tumbler image I saw this morning--the one that set me off on this particular journey--was from an unknown, second-hand e-commerce site that's charging a whopping NINETY DOLLARS for the Quencher H2.0 Flowstate Tumbler. And I've actually seen one for...wait for it...$150.

You know, I don't really need to keep ice around for a day and a half. And I'd finish off a LOT of coffee in that time, too. But that's me.

Why the Stanley Tumbler's Popularity Exploded

Objectively, my hat is off to Stanley for its intuition. It reminds me of that classic Field of Dreams quote, "If you build it, he will come." Alter the pronouns, and you have this:

But are you familiar with the HISTORY of the Stanley tumbler? While the narrator touched on its origins and usage over the years, it goes deeper than that.

The History of the Stanley Tumbler

It seems these sturdy vessels have quite the resume. They have been used in deep sea explorations. How cool is that? Stanley products have been used to transport human organs--quite the valiant enterprise. And then there's this...the cattle industry has used them to transport bull semen. I am not IN that industry, but I do understand that that endeavor is a very important one in that business.

You know, after doing my research, I am not unfamiliar with the Stanley thermos, after all. In fact, I remember this commercial:

But I never knew until this week that its popularity had exploded for very different reasons than those originally intended.

Enjoy your tumblers folks, and get back to me in a couple of days and let me know how that ice is doing.