Rapha Women's Core Winter Jacket

With the British weather turning rapidly, the Rapha Women's Core Winter Jacket earned numerous compliments from my riding mates every time I headed out to test it, and they were certainly well deserved.

• Pros: Fleecy, warm and comfortable
• Cons: Only the front is water resistant, the rear pockets are awkward to reach

Inside, the jacket is lovely and fleecy. It lost a little of its softness after a few washes, which isn't hugely surprising, but remains very comfortable. On warmer days (up to around 10 degrees), the fleece lining means the jacket is soft against the skin and comfortable to wear with nothing underneath. With a couple of layers underneath, I was still toasty warm on frosty early morning rides and commutes.

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Three-layer laminate front panels keep out the wind and rain while the back and underside of the arm panels are made from a stretchy fabric offering excellent fit and comfort. Rapha says that the front panels offer both wind and water resistance; I'd say they do more than this and are fairly waterproof in all but heavy rain. However, the back of the jacket, while highly breathable, won't keep out anything more than a light shower.

I found the jacket to be true to the Rapha size guide, not at all restrictive and a nicely cut, feminine fit. The ribbed cuffs around the wrists and collar are particularly comfortable and the wrist cuffs stay in place well without being too tight.

The jacket features the standard three rear pockets you'd expect, along with a fourth zipped valuables pocket. The main pockets are particularly large, leaving room to carry plenty of food and spares on long rides. I did find that because they're quite deep, the pockets sit fairly high on my back and are more difficult to reach into than most jerseys or jackets. Not a major issue, but if you already struggle to reach into your pockets while riding, you might have trouble with this one. The zipped pocket is really well sized, large enough for my smartphone, a small purse and keys.

The jacket is available in three colours: black, pink, or the light blue I tested. Although I like the colour, I thought it was a bit pale for a winter jacket which is bound to get splattered with mud on winter rides. However, since I enjoyed testing it so much that I am now considering buying the jacket in pink, it isn't really much of an issue...

Rapha has added a handful of extra details to help set the Core jacket apart. It features a couple of subtle Rapha logos on the sleeve and rear pockets, and reflective strips on the sleeves. The base hem has a wide rubber gripper around the rear which keeps the jacket securely in place when riding.

As part of Rapha's considerably more affordable Core collection, the jacket has an RRP of £120 – a whopping £140 cheaper than Rapha's Classic Winter jacket (review to come). I'd say it's a very reasonable price for a really good quality and extremely comfortable winter jacket. If that still sounds a bit pricey, the dhb Aeron range is worth checking out, in particular the Rain Defence Long Sleeved Jersey which isn't quite as warm but reviewed very well.

> Buyer's Guide: 14 of the best winter cycling jackets

On the whole, though, there is little not to love about this fleecy, warm winter jacket from Rapha's more affordable Core range.

Verdict

A warm, good looking jacket, great for riding in single figure temperatures