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Obermeyer Alpha
$200; obermeyer.com
The laurel for warmest jacket goes to the Alpha, a 36-ounce shell with the contoured fit of a motorcycle jacket. While the Alpha is completely stormproof-Obermeyer sandwiched a waterproof film between a microfleece lining and a nylon shell-it didn’t breathe as well as the other fabrics we tested. But open the pec zips and chest pocket vent and you’ll cool off on the downhills. Zip everything back up, and the Alpha’s fleecy innards form a furnace that keeps cranking to last chair. Unfortunately, it only comes in black. If you’re looking for color, look elsewhere.