Legendary UK outdoors brand Rab has a huge reputation for making long-lasting kit that can handle the worst of UK conditions. It recently launched the Cinder cycling range, with over 30 pieces for both men and women, that aims to incorporate all of its materials and clothing tech into a coherent set of cycling clobber.

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You can mix and match Rab’s kit depending on conditions, and it should all play nicely together, with this Cindercrino jersey being the brand’s summer option using a soft, breathable, and fast drying fabric. The main material is a 53% polyester and 47% merino wool blend with a 125gsm weight, which is reasonably thin without making it shapeless.

A deep front zip allows you to dump heat on long, sweaty climbs

There’s a secondary fabric in areas that demand more cooling, with an open weave/subtle mesh structure and an 85gsm weight. This textured, more aerated fabric can breathe more, is better ventilated and is also treated for odour control.

With a longer front chest zip and a dropped rear hem, Rab’s styling is a bit more road/gravel and XC MTB than enduro, but we appreciated how you can unzip the chest right down to dump heat on the longest climbs, and the thinner side panels (with more of a mesh/honeycomb fabric) are really breathable and airy. The jersey also feels good quality and super soft next to bare skin.

Rab’s Cindercrino jersey sports a small zipped pocket for keys or valuables

In terms of ventilation of the fabric and drying time, if you get absolutely drenched in sweat, it is not the most effective on test, and we did also find that our upper arms would get a bit warm in the close-fitting merino sleeves that extend most of the way down to the elbow. One other thing to bear in mind is the more open, textured weave is quite easy to snag on vegetation and create little pulls in the fabric that look a bit unsightly.

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The Cindercrino is pretty cool when you need to be, but also maintains body heat better than any other here in a summer shower or when descending after a sweat-generating climb.

Rab Cindercrino jersey pairs well with Rab’s lightweight Cinder Crank shorts