Santini Colore Pure Men’s Long Sleeve Jersey

The Santini Colore Pure Men's Long Sleeve Jersey is good looking, impressively warm and breathable, though the arms are a bit on the tight side and it lacks a valuables pocket.

The Colore Pure can be worn either as an outer layer on milder days or a mid-layer on the coldest rides. I used it as an outer down to around 8°C and as a mid-layer down to near freezing.

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Its cold weather credentials come from its fleece-lined sleeves and warm thermofleece torso, which keeps the heat in well while still being breathable and moving excess hot moist air away.

The material choice throughout the jersey is generally impressive, with different areas using noticeably different materials. The more shiny fabric on the sleeves, for example, offers a little more wind protection (although it is not windproof) while the torso feels almost as soft as cotton and offers more stretch.

Breathability and wicking are good for a winter jersey – I didn't find myself overheating or becoming excessively sweaty while wearing it, even when it was being used as a mid-layer. As an external layer it also kept my temperature well regulated, and its ability to dry quickly meant I stayed warm and dry too.

Santini has included some useful features, including a stripe of reflective dots up the centre of the back, as well as two tabs on either side of the rear pockets, and a small reflective Santini logo on the front of the jersey. One thing I particularly like about the strip of reflective dots is that at night these shine out clearly, but during the day they're subtle enough that you barely notice them unless you're looking really hard.

I think it's a good looking jersey, with the differing materials between the torso and the arms made into a nice feature, and the subtle branding combined with minimal panels gives it a clean cut and classic design.

The fit is generally good, too, especially with the amount of stretch in the torso, meaning it can mould around most body shapes and sizes. The only thing that's a little annoying is that the sleeves are quite tight, so wearing arm warmers or a thicker baselayer underneath them is a bit of a squeeze. There is still a fair amount of stretch in the fabric, but definitely not as much as in the torso.

The good quality full-length zip has a nice big pull-tag that's simple to find and use with full-finger gloves, handy for quickly releasing any excess heat built up during a climb or big effort.

On the back there are three good size pockets offering enough space for all your ride essentials. I went on several rides where I ended up stripping off gloves and outer layers and putting them in these pockets without wishing I had more storage space. It would be nice to have a zip pocket for valuables, though.

Silicone grippers around the bottom edge of the jersey keep everything in place regardless of whether there is weight in the pockets or not.

The jersey has a price tag of £99, although if you shop around you can find it for around 30 per cent less. It's about what I would expect for a jersey of this quality, given the technical characteristics of the fabric combined with the fit and style. The Shutt VR Tourmalet Jersey that Stu tested recently is £120 at rrp and similarly doesn't have a valuables pocket, although that is made with recycled materials.

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It's £20 more than the Altura Endurance long sleeve jersey that Shaun reviewed recently, which offers some (if not a lot) rain protection, although the Colore would seem to be better insulated.

> Buyer’s Guide: 19 of the best winter cycling jerseys

Overall I was impressed by this jersey. It's stylish, warm, and breathable. The sleeves could be a little wider to allow for thicker baselayers or arm warmers, and I'd like a zipped valuables pocket, but aside from that there is very little not to like.

Verdict

Good looking, warm, and comfortable jersey for cool and cold conditions