The Zebru Responsive Half Zip Tee is a soft, luxurious mix of merino wool and polyamide that manages moisture much better than pure merino and has all the lightweight warmth, and antimicrobial properties of wool.
Lucy Wallace’s Best in Test
I’ve found it perfect for everything from winter mountaineering to soggy back packing. It is soft enough that even those who generally can’t wear wool, may find themselves converted.- Warm
- Good moisture management
- Incredibly soft
- Price
| Quick specs | |
|---|---|
| Price: £90 Weight: 155g (size L) Materials: 64% merino wool 36% polyamide Features: body mapped knit, seamless torso, long sleeves, zip neck, Sizes: XS-XL Men’s version: yes https://www.salewa.com/ |
The body has been knitted in a tubular form, to minimise seams, and has zones in the knit mapped to areas of the body. The zip neck is deep enough for effective venting and is protected by a generous knitted skin guard.
The polyamide yarn has been impregnated with “natural minerals” (Salewa don’t say which) that convert the body’s heat into FAR infrared light (FIR)- something they say than can aid performance and recovery. All this may quite sound over-engineered for a zipped tee, but the Zebru Responsive Half Zip Tee is comfortable to wear in cool and even damp conditions and makes a great cold weather active base layer. I wore it in atrocious storm condition over three days and two nights out, and even though my outer layers were soaked through, it provided impressively dry, next to skin comfort. The fabric handles body odours well, and it can be used for several days on the trot if necessary.
All this built in tech leads inevitably to a hefty price tag, and it’s by far the most expensive base layer I tested for this review. It wins the Best Buy badge here though because it is so comfortable in such a wide range of mountain conditions. I’ve found it perfect for everything from winter mountaineering to soggy back packing. It is soft enough that even those who generally can’t wear wool, may find themselves converted.
