If you're not already familiar with Merino it may be counter intuitive to think about wearing wool next to your skin in the summer heat and still feel cool and dry. But here is why we love Merino wool and you will too.

Our Merino wool is grown in the high alps of New Zealand. These Merino sheep flourish in extreme environments where the land is rugged and free from low lying brush. This allows the Merino's fleece to be super clean and soft, creating the purest and highest quality Merino wool fibers in the world.

Cyclists have known about merino for ages. The classic wool cycling jerseys were all made with merino and the best still are. Long before the era of synthetic fabric, wool was one of the top performance fabrics used in the world of outdoor sports. Even Edmund Hillary wore wool garments on his pre-eminent climb of Mount Everest. Today, wool is top among performance fabrics for its refined and improved features.

Wicking, odor resistant, breathable, temperature regulating, quick drying, lightweight, flame retardant (just in case!), washable, soft and super comfortable, Merino wool is completely natural and one of the best performance fabric available.

Here's how it works: Merino fibers have a complex structure with a hydrophobic exterior (water repelling) and a hydrophilic interior (water holding). This makes the fabric dry to the touch yet wicking moisture away from the body at the same time. Combined with your body's ability to create heat, the fabric dries much faster creating a cycle of moisture evaporation. Not only that but it's also odorless and stays that way by being naturally anti-microbial. This means odor doesn't bond to the material because bacteria can't find a solid environment to grow on.

It's temperature regulating because it wicks and stays dry when hot yet generates a very small amount of heat when completely wet through a natural chemical reaction. So when it's hot, you feel dry and comfortable, but when it's cold outside, it holds in your heat creating more.

Merino wool, like anything else, comes in different grades or classes known as Ultafine all the way up to Strong grade. We only work with Ultrafine, Superfine and Fine Merino Wool, so no worries about itching or being uncomfortable. The grades we work with are based on micron measurements (how fine the fibers are in diameter). For example our Empire Merino Tee is a 17.5 grade (the finest available on the market), whereas our hoodies are 19.5 grade (for more structure).

If that's not enough, you can wash and dry it without the extreme shrinkage factor. It'll shrink, but similar to the same amount a cotton tee would and then relax out with wear.

All of this tells you that we're not just creating another garment the same as everyone else. We're selecting and refining our material for the way we think is best for cycling. Our first Merino product is simply a Tee. But as you've just read, it's not quite that simple.

Outlier is a detail oriented company and as we iron out the last details in production, we thought we could give an explanation on what's to come. The first full run of our OG cut pants will be made in black 4Season Lotus, a fabric we absolutely love.

The 4Season is a mid-weight fabric you can wear year round, from the beach to the ski slopes and out to dinner too. The Lotus, well that's trickier, and we'll get to that.

The base 4Season fabric is a blend made in Switzerland by Schoeller Textiles. A durable tech fabric with a great handfeel worthy of our old school New York garment district construction. It stretches with you as you ride your bike, but drapes like a pro as you walk indoors. It's abrasion resistant and wicks moisture away from your body. In light rain, it's water resistant and raindrops bead up and roll away. In a downpour? Well... nothings perfect. It'll saturate eventually. But once you are in the clear, it'll dry out in no time (10-20, usually.)

As for the Lotus, that's our name for what the Schoeller people call "nanosphere" or "self-cleaning". It's a nano tech fabric treatment modeled after the surface of a lotus leaf, no lie. What that means is that the surface is a fractal with no repeating surface structure upon which oil or stains can bond. We've been known to pour coffee and red wine straight onto our pants. Usually it just rolls off. Occasionally a bit might actually dry down, but it too will roll right off if you splash some water over it.

We aren't too comfortable with that phrase "self-cleaning" but this is some pretty nice fabric. It wears harder and needs way less cleaning than your average fabric. It's extremely comfortable, resists wrinkles, fading and odors too (just a bonus). In other words, a seriously versatile fabric for all 4 seasons.

To top it off, it's made to the bluesign environmental standards of Switzerland. The fabric is woven and dyed in a manner which minimizes waste, reduces emissions and avoids the toxic chemicals common in much of the textile industry. In other words, it's a start, and we at Outlier are committed to pushing our suppliers to do even more and rewarding those that follow through.

Technically this fabric is 80% Nylon, 10% Polyester and 10% Spandex. You can machine wash it warm, and machine dry it warm as well; although it's not really necessary given how fast it dries. Quick note, machine drying does help re-up the lotus effect, as does ironing. For the most part this stuff just works, throw it on and go ride your bike....