Dec 31

Dec 31 Aether Apparel Barrow Jacket (2019)

Alex Rakestraw

Review, Parka, Lifestyle

Aether Barrow Jacket

Techwear for techdads.

Aether Barrow Jacket (2019)

Type: Parka / Use: Lifestyle / Face: Nylon / Insulation: 800 fill down

Technologies: stretch fabric, 2L polyurethane membrane

Price: $795.00

Aether Apparel’s Barrow Jacket is a topcoat. Some might even call it a greatcoat.

Honestly, it’s fine. And reader, here’s why.

The Barrow is the latest pinnacle parka from Aether, one of the OG’s of “technical menswear.” Founded in 2009, Aether and its cohort (Outlier, 2008; Veilance, 2009) defined the low-friction urbanite look now spread by brands like Ministry of Supply.

Years before Kit + Ace, Aether was shaping Schoeller stretch fabrics into what we now call athleisure. The brand’s decade of success is as much a result of its head start on macro-trends as the trend-defining silhouettes it created. Which brings us to the present. And to the Barrow Jacket.

The Barrow is a technical topcoat: a slimming, soutien collar rain shield, stuffed with tech details and in this case, 800 fill down. The nylon face fabric drapes nicely. A hidden-snaps placket adds a touch of sophistication. Movement-friendly patterning and a detachable hood makes it surprisingly versatile.

There’s a lot to like about the Barrow. And yet, it’s just hard to love.

First and foremost, there’s the price. $800 for a “wind and water resistant” jacket is a hefty, hefty ask. Eight Benjamins get a lot these days. Norrona and Arc’teryx both make GORE-TEX topcoats for right around $500. One could buy that shell (and an equivalently-warm down sweater) from either brand for about the same price.

Parkas have benefits over layering systems, but sheesh - the Barrow is just $50 away from an equivalent Veilance piece. The Barrow is impressive and certainly high quality. It’s not Veilance.

Price notwithstanding, though, the Barrow just seems to be missing… something.

Fasteners and furniture seem at odds. I get the use of buttons to make hood detachment stealthier. But they didn’t have to be these buttons. They feel finicky and certainly far from premium, a sharp contrast to the full-length coated double zip. Speaking of zips: when have zip cuffs ever improved a jacket design? Pants, sure, but jackets? I digress.

More importantly, despite the big 8-0-0 - down fill, not dollars - it’s not terribly warm.

In 40 degree rain, I needed a midlayer. In 50 degree sun, I didn’t want an insulated technical topcat. There seems to be a narrow window where the Barrow Jacket sings. But unlike the Alpha SV – another $800 use case – that specificity isn’t superlative.

When a Lambo can’t drive on cobblestones, it’s a quirk. When an Alfa can’t, it’s a push.

Still, there’s a reason people buy Alfa’s. Case in point: the Barrow looks pretty darn good.

Perhaps it’s the drape, free-flowing without a real waterproof membrane. Maybe it’s the profile, a slimming Sherlock Holmes fit enabled by that scant down fill. There is just enough tech showing to not look retro, and yet, only enough visible to not overpower suiting. Somewhere in the balance, the Barrow becomes technical menswear in the truest sense.

The odd mish-mash of traits that make up the Barrow, well, make the Barrow. I get more compliments on this coat than overdue haircuts.

In a sentence: this is the most underwhelming coat I wear all the time.

If you dress #bizcaz and can spare the $800, Aether’s Barrow Jacket should be on your radar. If you don’t, it’s a toss-up. Tech heads will hate it. Gray Men will love it. My take? Well, that’s what this review was for.