A cold-weather icon, home for the holidays

So long summer, the chilly drizzle’s landed. Fortunately, next week sees the return of a heavy-duty winter-wear stalwart, a trusty remedy to the shoddy weather we’ve had our first taste of. The Heavy Zip Knit’s an Asphalte favourite, already indispensable to 8000 fans out there. Those lucky enough to have already got to grips with its wonder-wool credentials gave it some pretty telling scores in the Asphalte Knits category:

You can’t argue with numbers like that. And next Tuesday this tried-and-tested knitwear pillar returns. We can’t wait for you to (re)discover it.

When it comes to keeping the cold at bay, wool’s the obvious way to go. Naturally warm and thermo-regulating, it’s also hard-wearing and crease-resistant, supple and anti-bacterial, antistatic and (should it ever come to it) biodegradable. When the temperature drops, what else would you rather have on your back?

We've packed 950 grams of pure, virgin wool into the Heavy Zip Knit. With all of that worked into a seriously sturdy knit, when you put yours on, you'll feel ready to take on all comers, as far as unfriendly weather goes.

We sourced this wool from Knoll, a British spinning company that’s made a name for itself thanks to its top-of-the-range wools processed on exceptional machines using traditional know-how.

A kilo of wool is perfect for thermal regulation. A kilo of wool knitted in a pearl rib is the ultimate insurance against draughts.

The pearl rib results in an extremely stable knit, one that’s resistant to warping and wavering. It’s stand-up stuff. Unlike a traditional 1x1 rib, which can stretch up to 30%, the width shrinkage of pearl ribbing is right down at 5%. In other words: your soon-to-be favourite jumper will remain in shape season after season, year after year. To be extra safe, we opted for an extra tight-knit, making this a woolly windbreaker of sorts.

In the co-creation questionnaire, a neither-here-nor-there fit was the main criticism you levelled at zippered jumpers on the market. Hundreds and hundreds of you pointed the finger — so naturally we took note.

We knuckled down to make sure that the Heavy Zip Knit was cut to perfection, millimetre by millimetre. To be more specific, we've gone for a subtly fitted shape that’ll allow you to layer it up, without looking like an overstuffed festive roast.

Any more snug and you'd have trouble slipping a tee or a button-down underneath. Any more wiggle room and slipping a coat over it would have required some real elbow grease... We’re pretty confident we hit the sweet spot.

Now let's get down to the nuts and bolts, the production and design details that bring the top-notch wool and rugged knit together. First up: the classic raglan sleeve.

• We don't need to introduce you to this design, a sportswear-inspired touch that offers great freedom of movement as well as a more characterful overall look. When utility meets beauty, everyone wins.

• You can mothball your scarf. This 11cm collar’s more than up to the task of keeping unwelcome winter draughts at bay.

• If there's any room left in the drawer, you can pop your gloves in there too: the deep hand warmer pockets will provide all the warmth you need.

• Sure, this hardy YKK zipper looks rock solid, but that’s not all there is to it. Firstly, it prevents the dreaded overhanging hem bulge you see on a lot of jumpers. Secondly, it’s an instant thermostatic control: too hot? Unzip. Too cold? Zip up. You get the picture. But there’s more…. This double-smart zip can be opened from the bottom or the top. Let the waist out on the bus, create a regal cape, expose a little chest - it’s all up to you.

We could go on, but you’ve probably got the gist now. The last thing we’ll shout about is reviews. That’s right, the Heavy Zip Knit is close to unanimously acclaimed. After selling 10,000 of them, the Heavy Zip Knit is a confirmed box office hit. Don’t take our word for it, let us remind you about those 8.5/10 for style and 8.7/10 for comfort ratings. The maths on this one isn’t too tricky.

This hefty kilo of prime, winter-proof wool is available in five colours. We don’t want to introduce dilemmas to your day-to-day, but once we saw how these dyes looked on Knoll’s virgin wool yarns, we couldn’t stop ourselves.

• A beige marl. Calm from far, but far from calm.

• Navy. Intense.

• Charcoal — exactly 1,001 tones in the mix (we counted).

• A warm, deep brown marl. Think wintery puddings and pub lunches.

• Black. Inject some contrast into things.

That’s the introductions over with. This Heavy Zip Knit’s the warmest piece of knitwear we’ve ever come up with, but it’s also much, much more. It's a cold-weather, reliable fortress that’ll keep icy winds at bay and provide the answer to shabby knitwear cuts.

A reminder for newcomers: at Asphalte, we launch a new product every Tuesday at 10 am sharp (CET).

You'll be able to preorder the Heavy Zip Knit from next Tuesday, for 149€. For a jumper of this quality, made in Europe from a kilo of 100% pure wool, you'd normally have to pay twice as much. So how do we do it? Well, it all comes down to our preorder model. We're proud to be able to offer proper clothes and proper prices. We hope you'll take advantage of it.

We'll be operating as usual: those first to preorder will be the first to receive their deliveries (around the 31st of December). If you're fretting about missing out, you can always sign up for an alert: just pop in your e-mail address below and we'll send you a heads up when it’s time to order, we'll even open preorders up to you an hour before the other wool-wear-fanatics out there. That way, you'll be sure to get your parcel first.