There's a new contender in the merino wool baselayer market
and maybe not one you'd expect - Craghoppers has a whole range
of men's and women's merino in a range of styles for this winter.
Craghoppers
is using '70s' graded merino wool. The '70s' bit is a measure of wool
fineness and means, roughly speaking, pretty fine. That's
important because it's the fineness of merino wool fibres that means
they aren't scratchy like conventional wool, which is far coarser.
Merino's also capable of absorbing significantly more moisture
than synthetic baselayer fabrics, while still remaining comfortable
against the skin and has natural anti-odour properties that make it a
good choice for multi-day use - when trekking for example.
The Crag's merino range includes a women's vee-neck, striped,
long-sleeved crew-neck tops for both men and women and plain crews.
The most practical and interesting variant though is the Men's Merino
Zip-Neck, a classic mid-weight technical baselayer with a collar and
zip.
We've already got one here for test and it looks and feels like
it'll make a good winter baselayer. If you were expecting super cheap
prices though, think again; the Merino Zip-Neck retails at
£55 and the Crew Neck versions are £50
apiece. Then again, you're getting a premium fabric and we've seen it
signifcantly cheaper on the web.
You can see the new merino stuff along with the rest of the
Craghoppers range under 'fleece and down' at www.craghoppers.com
or using the online
catalogue option, you'll find the merino on pages 26 and
27.
Kelvin
