I recently ordered and received KUIU's new Ultra Marino 125 LS shirt in Forest. After watching the video Jason & the guy from the Wool Company put together I had to get one. The video spells out how Ultra Merino is materially better than the other merino sold today...I am guess they were speaking to products I now own such as
First Lite, Icebreaker, etc. I was particularly taken by the statement Jason made he and other staff members only wear the Ultra Merino because it feels that much better.
So I am thinking to myself, dang if someone has made merino feel and perform better...I am going to kick myself because I have a ton of what would now be in my eyes inferior merino wool.
I Paid $69.99 plus shipping and about a week later it arrived. When I opened the box I was shocked at the presentation that would easily meet or exceed Nordstrom standards. My LS Shirt came neatly folded and placed in a nice cotton sack with attractive printing and a pull string, then the standard KUIU ribbon. It is an impressive presentation that I will just call the WOW factor. Anyone who has bought one knows what I am talking about.
I wore the Ultra Merino for the first time all day to see if I could tell the difference. My initial feeling when putting it on is this does not feel any different; same feeling when I took it off that night. The next day I wore my Icebreaker LS shirt in the same weight range, which I paid about $40 on steep & Cheep. The Icebreaker felt worse, whatsoever, in feel...and believe me I wanted the Ultra Merino to be better! I cannot speak to performance and whether is dries faster, wears longer, returns to normal size fast after stretching, etc. I did get both wet and felt they both dry fairly quickly, one did not stand out, but is was just a small spot on the front since I was wearing them.
Not finding any difference in feel and my unscientific wet test, I am left wondering whether the other claims will be realized. Based on all the data they shared in the Ultra Merino video, it appears it is different, but is it that different?
All in all, I think the price they charge is fair (but would prefer they drop the WOW packaging and lower the price) and it is high quality...as I have found all the thing I have bought from KUIU. So far, I do not feel Ultra Merino is as revolutionary as it is being marketed. The people at KUIU are equally good in the area of Marketing and presentation...they got me to try it!
Anyone else have input on the Ultra Wool?