Review: Café du Cycliste Yolande Long Sleeve Jersey

Café du Cycliste is a French brand based in the Côte d'Azur; their performance range comprises an extremely high quality selection of cycling apparel with a unique and classic style. The Yolande is the long sleeve jersey in the performance range; made of merino Tecnowool, it is designed to keep you in comfort through the Autumn, Winter and Spring months of riding.

The thing that strikes you about the Yolande straight away is the attention to detail; this has to be one of the most carefully thought out pieces of clothing around.

Let's start at the top... the collar has a classy button-up tab for added warmth, it has reflective detailing on the back of the neck and even a headphone clip for those that ride with music.

The shoulders of the jersey have quilted padding for extra protection and durability. The full length front zipper has a suede baffle for keeping out the chill, and this is complemented by the classic elbow patches that make the Yolande appear and feel like a jersey that will have a long life.

That's not the end of the clever design though; subtle reflective detailing on the sleeve and rear pockets increases the visibility dramatically in the low light conditions of Spring and Autumn evenings. Then the pockets themselves... the three traditional pockets have some cool modifications; one additional zippered pocket is added for valuables, then inside the central pocket there is an elasticated pump pocket. You can't beat that for design detail!

Out on the road the Yolande continues to look and feel like a classy piece of kit. Its tailored cut and soft merino fibres mean it keeps you warm and comfortable in cold conditions, yet has great temperature management properties when the weather warms up, or the going gets tough. Another distinctive feature of the jersey is the lycra integrated sleeve loop; I haven't seen this on a jersey before, but it is surprisingly effective at stopping the sleeves riding up and keeping your wrists and hands warm.

The Yolande jersey then is the epitome of quality and design detail. It has traditional styling that challenges the best, it has quality that will keep you in comfort for many seasons, and it has an attention to detail that is second to none. It is something quite different from the norm, and the Café du Cycliste brand promises a whole complement of similarly distinctive and classic products; its a range well worth checking out.

Shop the full Café du Cycliste range HERE (Link)