“Stoic” is the house brand of Backcountry.com. I can’t say I frequently buy house brands for
a variety of reasons, but I’m learning Stoic is one brand I can have faith in.
As with a lot of online retailers in the middle of summer,
Backcountry.com is making room for their new fall lines of merchandise. This means 2011/2012 gear can be purchased
far less expensively. One of
Backcountry.com’s sister sites, which often has better selection and cheaper
prices, is DepartmentofGoods.com. In mid-May, I noticed several pieces of down
gear were on sale and thought I’d take a look.
What I found were three very nice garments made of 850-fill goose down
with a Pertex shell. If you’re a
lightweight backpacker, these materials should immediately draw your attention
as often they are only used by those willing to charge you a premium price.
Hadron
Down Vest (6.8oz/$45)
Hadron
Down Anorak (8oz/$69)
Hadron
Down Cardigan (7oz/$55)
Taking a hard look at them, it was clear designers thought long and
hard about making a good product. Design
is roomier, like most American products (and unlike European products…Montbell,
Westcomb, Rab, etc.). Each features a
nice waist drawstring and a slight drop tail which I’ve always found
worthwhile. Stitching is tight and down
is consistently filled throughout. Materials
are extremely appealing and superfluous features are kept to a minimum. For example, only the vest has a full
zipper. I think my only gripe is that
the cuffs on the Anorak and Cardigan are gigantic and unnecessary, although no
doubt would aid in keeping the user warm.
Because this is a year-end sale, colors aren’t great, but I don’t find
them to be bad either. I had ordered all
three garments in a green color. I ended up with two which were green and the vest was an eggplant color. It was discouraging to not get exactly what I
wanted, but the eggplant isn’t bad enough to remotely care. Besides, I’ve never been a leader in fashion
and thus far the trees haven’t complained.
I’m really quite happy with these purchases because each item is really
top notch for a great price. When I compared the
weights, materials and fill to other major brands, I noted that these items were comparable or arguably better. I also like the fact that Backcountry.com
sends each item in its own biodegradable bag with drawstring. It’s a nice touch.
Consequently, if you’re in the market for a Pertex/down sleeping bag,
check out the Stoic
Somous 30 (19oz/$224). The Stoic
Merino 150 Bliss ($34) is also a nice lightweight merino wool summer shirt
with a great deep zippered collar for venting and chest pocket.
This sale won’t last forever and colors and sizes are limiting with
each day, but take a look.
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