Sep 15

Sep 15 Norrøna GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat (2020)

Alex Rakestraw

Lifestyle, Parka, GORE-TEX, Review

Norrøna GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat (2020)

Type: Parka / Use: Lifestyle / Face: Nylon / Insulation: Synthetic

Technologies: GORE-TEX 2L, Primaloft Bio

Price: $699.00

On the track-marked forearm that is #hikinginspo, vintage Norrøna represents one of the last juicy veins.

Its under-exploitation has nothing to do with product nor record. Both are rich. Both are deep. But whether it was other brands owning the conversation or Norrøna’s own hushed tone, their specific assortment of contrast yokes and arctic expedition patches haven’t quite popped in culture (read: appeared in as many Organiclab Stories) the same as, say, TNF Trans-Antarctic.

Let’s save ourselves the rabbithole and just chalk it up to “how these things go.”

Now that we’ve landed on the shores of The Land of Howthesethingsgo, the actual form of the GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat – a retro-ish, function-ish unisex (although straight cut in male sizing) parka - starts to make sense. It was designed for this space, for the peculiar conditions here. And as such, its execution is, tellingly, how these things go.

What’s unfortunate is that I’m afraid Norrøna will draw the wrong conclusion on the simple binary of to revive or not to revive based on this coat. Part of me loves this since it would keep that #vintage vein #fresh. Most of me hates it since… well, I want a closet full of retro Norrøna, damnit!

But let’s not spend this whole review talking category management and merchandising.

Instead, let’s talk about the GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat.

Tech-wise, the retro-ish Outdoors Coat is ironically a materials innovator. Yes, the recycled nylon GORE-TEX 2L face is highly functional in all the typical GORE ways. But here, it’s the inside that counts.

Norrøna’s latest is one of the first garments to be produced with Primaloft Bio, a synthetic insulation that breaks down into biomass when exposed to the bacteria found in rivers and landfills. Bio is a legitimate move-the-chains advance in materials science. Sure, it’s warm when wet and all the other nice bits that come from Primaloft Silver synthetics and their cousins. But it also breaks down up to 80% of its mass within 15 months of being landfilled.

Considering the typical synthetic fabric can take up to 200 years to decompose (if they decompose at all), Bio is an unlock. Here, it insulates as part of a removable liner jacket. Interior drawcords, oversized cuffs, and snow-proof double flaps remind you of the Outdoors Coat’s retro-function roots.

Not as if you needed much reminding, that is. Like a haircut protestor, those roots are front and center.

Aesthetically, the GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat draws direct inspiration from the design of the brand’s OG ‘80s trollveggen jacket, credited as the first GORE jacket in Europe.

Old school trollvegens are properly cool kit. Just look at this shit! The patches. The rigidity. The ribcage-length flap pockets. It’s high-performance imprecision in rich, caramelized, Sunset Strip colors that tell an entirely different story than other retro performance brands.

The Outdoors Coat is, with all the generosity afforded the Jordan Spizike, inspired by this.

Contrast panels and drawcord adjustments speak of the Coat’s ancestry - certainly more directly than the modern trollveggen. However, even without trying it on, it becomes apparent that these principal features are in mixed company. A supermodern textmark takes the place of expedition patches. Replaced, too, are the diagonal pockets, and not with the Field Jacket layout of jackets gone by. The drawcords have been tucked inside.

That regal herald’s yellow? Now a pale Lemon Chrome, complete with matte sheen.

It just ain’t right.

It’s also harder to style than its retro outdoors cousins. Wide cuts are a must, but denim clashes with the mechanical perfection of GORE. The color palette doesn’t do many favors with the earthtones that make up most gorp-adjacent wardrobes, either. Funny enough, my favorite fit with this involved brown wide-wale corduroy pants and a black bucket hat. Call me Wonder Mountain.

All in all, my issue with the Outdoors Coat is entirely one of dashed expectations. If this is really how ‘80s Norrøna is brought back to life, the devil in the details has made it a bitter pill. If it’s a wholly new jacket (which the Primaloft Bio liner half indicates), it’s an odd menu of features that seems trapped between dual mandates: one of which is a retro lifestyle play, and the other of which is modern outdoors versatility.

At $700, that’s just not what I want from a parka. But hey, that’s how these things go.

Here’s my topline:

The GORE-TEX Outdoors Coat is a significant garment for so many reasons. It’s the coolest Primaloft Bio launch piece. It’s also potentially the first step in a prophecy that, with the right bravery in-house, leads to GORE Pro trollveggen retros. If you’re a collector – of if you really buy the “3-jackets-in-1” use case – you should get one yesterday.

Otherwise, I’d wait for one of two things: an honest-to-goodness retro Viking, or an end-of-season sale.