Alcohol Stoves

Featured review by Peter Himmelman

These stoves are easy to use and maintain. They are incredibly durable and work in all weather conditions.

I have been using Trangia stoves in my Duke of Edinburgh programme for over 10 years. The stoves are easy to use and the learning curve is very short for those who are new to camping. All of the parts of the stoves pack down into a nested set consisting of a stand, a wind shield, two pots, and a frying pan. The actual "stove" or burner is basically a brass cup that holds methylated-spirits.  The Trangia burners are very easy to light. I generally use a a ferro rod which gives immediate results.

Read more: Trangia 25-3 UL reviews (5)

Featured review by G00se

An ideal, reasonably lightweight cooking system for those who are willing to carry a bit of extra weight in order to have everything, but the kitchen sink! Well-suited for back country individuals focused more on comfort camping than long-distance backpacking.

BACKGROUND OF REVIEW: On a 7-day September backpacking trip to Isle Royale National Park, three adult males used the Trangia 27-8 UL/HA as their sole cooking system. Our focus was more camping than hiking. We only averaged 6-8 miles per day, and our 45-50lb packs carried nearly all the comforts of home (including, books to read, cameras, and one guy had an 8lb tent!). Food was a significant focus on our trip. We had a hot breakfast every morning and a hot dinner every night. Lunch was on the trail, snacking along the way.

Read more: Trangia 27-8 UL/HA reviews (3)

Featured review by Strika62

A complete cook system that is quiet and efficient. Always a pleasure to be around.

I'm an "Outdoor Professional" having worked as an Outward Bound instructor, Park Service Backcountry Ranger and program logistician since 1985. I've been using the Trangia Stove System as my only backpacking and expedition sea kayaking now for more than six years. In other words, this is NOT a "I just unpacked the product and it rocks!" type of review.Pros: Very easy to use. No pumping, no toxic fuel spills, no clogging. The most quiet stove system I've ever used. I really appreciate being able to hear the sounds of the beautiful places I get to visit and work in.

Read more: Trangia 27-5 UL reviews (5)

Featured review by Brent Mills

The Esbit Spirit Burner (Alcohol Burner) is a nice alcohol stove with simmer control. It is lighter than the comparable Trangia and comes with a handle on the simmer-control-plate / snuffer.

I picked up the Esbit Spirit Burner (alcohol burner) as an add-on when I got my Emberlit FireAnt wood-burning stove. In my mind, it was (and still is) more of a novelty item. My thinking here had been that it's a pain to go hunting for dry fuel on a wet day. Why not simply pick up an alcohol stove for those rainy-day (or post rainy-day) hikes? While I'm still not likely to give up my wood-burning stove in favor of an alcohol stove, this little Esbit stove has performed admirably both in tests and on the trail.

Read more: Esbit Alchohol Burner reviews (5)

Featured review by Hypocaffeinic

Best for solo hikers and shorter trips. Having said that, I use it for every trip because I abhor the container and fuel waste of canister stoves and am sure I'll blow myself up with one anyway. Yes, alcohol fuel is heavy for long through-hikes, but the ease of obtaining same at supply points is gold. This is a stove that will outlast me: phenomenal build quality, always reliable, and a well designed set. Have used it in conditions ranging from tropical summers through to -6'C mornings (must warm stove and fuel in hands first for five mins, but thereafter lights in 1-2 ferro rod strikes). You will prise this from my cold, dead hands... but only if you get to me before rigor mortis does.

The stove is very simple to fuel, and volume markings internally embossed within the stove mean that I never over- nor under-fill. The embossing also means that these markings will never disappear over time. The entire system is in itself a thing of beauty, and I am always happy to use it. It's just lovely to look at, and I deeply appreciate good quality and considered design. The pot stand assembly took a bit of playing to initially determine the setup options and intentions for each fuel type, but I could set it up in a flash after a bit of reading and a play.

Read more: Evernew Ti Alcohol Stove DX Set reviews (8)

Featured review by John261

Esbit cs985h-ex cookset, very well made hard anodised with a 930 mil pot and lid.

Here is a photo of the esbit cookset in its stuffsack next to my Optimus Heat Pouch (a perfect partnership!). The cookset weighs 430grams with out the Optimus Heat Pouch. It is a very durable well made cookset and the heat exchanger fitted to the 930mil pot is a very nice touch. As you can see in the picture the cookset is really quite compact and if you use the Optimus Heat Pouch it fits in with room to spare. I did two boil tests, each with 500 mil of cold water. The first test was without a windscreen.

Read more: Esbit Alcohol Stove & Trekking Cookset CS985HA reviews (3)

Reviewed by John261

Very lightweight and small (about 4 cm high) and 44 grams (that's the weight of the stove and the steel mesh pot stand).

This photo shows the actual weight of the Toaks stove and the other photo shows the stove with a 10 cm windscreen and the Toaks storage bag. So the Toaks stove is 44 grams with steel pot stand and storage bag, put a 10 cm windscreen and the total weight is 70 grams. The pot I did my first boil test with was a 400 mil titanium mug/pot with lid. I filled it with 350 mil of cold water (enough for a freeze-dried meal or a nice cup of coffee or loose leaf tea). This is the setup I used for the first boil test, an Alpkit 400 mil pot/mug with lid.

Read more: Toaks Titanium Siphon Alcohol Stove review (1)

Reviewed by Lewis Bagwell

This stove does not put itself at the top of the alcohol burner class unless you combine it with the Evernew Titanium wind stand. It does not have a screw cap, is difficult to put out, and it throws a very hot flame mainly straight up (instead of out the sides like a white box side burner). It does cool much quicker than a heavy Trangia and is miserly on fuel if you simmer a pot directly on top only using the side burners. Now when you combine it with the Evernew Titantium DX stand, then this little burner really starts to shine. If you need a lot of heat the DX stand uses a power plate to reflect heat back toward the burner and superheat the fuel. This should never be attempted with any other stove that is not designed for it. Reflected heat is extremely dangerous and will lead to fuel boil over with heavier metal stoves like the Trangia. This comment is for use of the power plate use only. In summary, the Evernew Ti stove works great. I recommend the use of a heat exchanger pot to cut fuel consumption by 30 percent and the use of the DX stand to go along with it.

Have used this stove alone and with the DX stand. As stated above, alone it does not shine and I could not see spending the money if you are using a cat can stove now and it fits your pot exactly. In that case, this stove would not offer any advantage. If you have varying needs like boiling a lot of water faster than most stoves out there and simmering a very small pot or espresso maker, then I recommend this stove with the DX stand. To me that combination can not be beat by any system I have test. The main objective is to get out and go camping, not sit home and obsess about our gear. Let's go backpacking!

Read more: Evernew Ti Alcohol Stove review (1)

Featured review by PhilNC

The 2017 Vargo Triad is a very sturdy and functional alcohol/solid fuel stove that I will continue to use due to its bomb proof design and consistent alcohol burn times. It has some inconveniences with the need to use at least 1.5 ounces of fuel and difficulty in recovering leftover alcohol, so may not be the best option for boil in bag solo hikers, but works well for two people and other cooking styles who want the flexibility of using multiple fuel types depending on conditions.

Note that this is a review of the 2017 Vargo Triad model, which is a multi-fuel (alcohol and solid tab/gel) stove - please refer to the 2003 model for the previous alcohol only version of this stove. I think any review needs context of the use and testing the gear was put through, and this is especially true of stoves due to the variety of approaches one can take to preparing meals on the trail. For the last few years, I have enjoyed the flexibility of my Trail Designs Sidewinder Ti Tri with Inferno for wood, alcohol, and solid tab fuel options.

Read more: Vargo Triad Multi-Fuel Stove reviews (3)

Featured review by Oliver Brotherton

Simple, reliable and lightweight, this is an excellent choice for lightweight backpacking if all you want to do is boil water.

I've noticed there are a few reviews on this stove and they are quite mixed in their opinions. However, unless the guidance on the Vargo website is followed then it will not perform as well as it could. The two most common mistakes people make when using it is to under fill it. You HAVE to fill it up for it to come to a bloom efficiently. The second is using the wrong fuel. Not all meths, alcohol, ethanol, whatever you want to call it, is the same. Use the best you can get it, it is more cost effective in the long run.

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