When you drink, the blood flows from your core to the surface of the skin making you flush and feeling warm. This gives the impression that a "little sip to warm up" is true... which is probably why they carried alcohol.  Unfortunately modern research shows that since your core gets colder when drinking you are at greater risk of hypothermia. Combined with the fact that your natural reflex to shiver when you get cold is slowed by alcohol, you put yourself at real risk if the temperature is really cold.

I thought the St Bernards with Alcohol was more of a last meal type gesture... "If your lost in the cold and a dog offers you a drink, take it, cause your a goner anyway" type of thing...

As far as the rationality of alcohol making you colder,.. Hmmnnn, stone cold sober or not sober cold? The truck has a heater,.. pass the margaritas... WooHoo! 

That's why you bring a 0deg bag when you probably only need a 20deg one, isn't it?

Ok that makes sense, and I learned something new.

I just picked up a 0 degree Columbia bag, "The Zone"  from the employee store.  I got the standard size, thinking my 5'10", 185 lb arse would be fine in that size.  It's great in length, but as I feared, a mummy style bag makes me feel like I'm, well, a mummy.  I'm a sprawler, having my legs bound together  and my arms pinned in is a guarantee of no sleep.  The problem is not that it;s smaller than other bags; it's that it's the same, and that's why I've never bought a mummy bag.

Unfortunately, I can't order bags through the store because it's a licensed product, we don't manufacture them ourselves.  I can only choose from what the store stocks.  They have the oversize version of this bag, but I doubt that is going to make much difference in silhouette, only length.

If anyone is interested, I'd be happy to pass on this bag at my cost, which is about $50.  Otherwise I'll return it.