Gore Bike Wear Passion Vest gilet review

The Passion gilet spiked us on the horns of a dilemma: white kit looks fabulous but really doesn’t play well with peat bog.

Nevertheless, in the interests of testing we forced ourselves to get it muddy and with some careful aftercare and judicious use of Vanish, it survived mostly unscathed.

Other colours are available and, in a more practical shade, we’d not hesitate to make it our default option for changeable autumn, spring and even winter days.

The soft shell fabric is windproof, resists showers and has a brushed inner face that traps plenty of insulating air, making this a toasty option – we often found ourselves with the zip undone to the navel.

It’s warm enough to wear with just a thin merino base layer on chilly mornings, although it doesn’t pack up particularly small; for that reason, we’ve mostly been wearing it as a layer rather than a carry-along jacket and so have still needed to pack a shell when the weather looks iffy.