Drifter is a rod company that many anglers likely haven't heard of. A small, boutique rod building company out of Denver, Drifter likes to make it known that they build hundreds of fly rods per year, not thousands. Their latest offering, the Drifter Covert, is described as a rod that is "ideally tuned to the needs of trout fishermen."

Of course, you'll find few fly rod manufacturers that will claim their rods are "kinda sort of okay for" the anglers their targeting, so defining what Drifter considers the ideal rod for a trout fisherman is important. According to Drifter, it means designing a rod for technical and precise presentations, a common requirement for most trout anglers, whether they find themselves on a small spring creek, fishing to the Missouri's rising trout on glass still water or targeting pocket water on a tumbling mountain stream.

The Covert is a mid-flex, moderately slow action rod with a focus on providing the angler feedback through the rod. As Drifter puts it, they "simply thought it more important to prioritize rod feel over recovery speed or stiffness."

Like other custom rods available from Drifter, the Covert isn't a bargain rod. But, Drifter describes their materials as some of the best in the business, noting "our blanks are constructed using some of the highest quality carbon fiber available in the world today, sourced from a handful of small providers and we spare no expense on components."

The Drifter Covert is a 4-piece rod available in weights 2 through 5, with lengths ranging from 7'6" to 9'. Available immediately from $785.