Keela Talus women’s down jacket review: a hardworking jacket for challenging weather

A tough external shell makes the warm Keela Talus hardier than your average jacket

Keela Talus
(Image: © Keela)

Advnture Verdict

Designed and tested in Scotland, the Keela Talus is a hardworking insulated jacket, very well-suited to challenging weather – great value for money.

Pros

  • +

    Helmet-compatible hood

  • +

    Stretchy side panels

Cons

  • -

    Fit is fairly tight

  • -

    Not the warmest jacket on test

You can trust Advnture Our expert reviewers spend days testing and comparing gear so you know how it will perform out in the real world. Find out more about how we test and compare products.

First impressions

The Keela Talus is an absolute workhorse of a women’s insulated jacket. Stuffed full of synthetic 60gsm Primaloft Gold fill, its Cordura ripstop outer material is far more resistant to tears and scratches than most down jackets (which can often rip at the slightest brush with a thorn) and you can tell this jacket was designed in Scotland, where four seasons in a day are more than likely.

Flexible, fleece-lined panels run all the way up the inside of the arms and offer great freedom of movement – coupled with a lighter dose of synthetic insulation, these make the Keela Talus ideal for outdoor sports. The hood and sleeves have adjustable cuff tabs with elastication to keep warmth in. Other features include three outer pockets (two body pockets and another on the chest), plus an inside chest pocket.

Specification

RRP: £140 (UK) / $194 (US)
Fill: PrimaLoft Gold
Sizes: 8–20
Weight: 460g / 16.2oz
Colors: Marine / Dark Purple / Deep Blue / Red

In the field

We found the Keela Talus to be water-resistant enough to put up with sudden rain showers, and although it’s not the toastiest puffer jacket we have tested, its synthetic insulation still offers warmth when damp, and then dries quickly. It is also windproof enough to cut chill, making it a great standalone jacket on warmer days. The two zipped and fleece-lined ‘handwarmer’ pockets are a comforting extra touch. A reinforced peaked hood keeps water and sun out of your eyes, and it is also compatible with a helmet.

The Talus’s fit runs small, and we’d advise going up a size if you want to wear anything more than a base layer underneath, although the great stretchy side panels will keep you snug even as you pop layers on and off beneath them. Overall, we were very impressed with the value for money offered by the Talus, which is as versatile and warm as competitors available for double the price.

Sian Lewis

An award-winning travel and outdoors journalist, presenter and blogger, Sian regularly writes for The Independent, Evening Standard, BBC Countryfile, Coast, Outdoor Enthusiast and Sunday Times Travel. Life as a hiking, camping, wild-swimming adventure-writer has taken her around the world, exploring Bolivian jungles, kayaking in Greenland, diving with turtles in Australia, climbing mountains in Africa and, in Thailand, learning the hard way that peeing on a jellyfish sting doesn’t help. Her blog, thegirloutdoors.co.uk, champions accessible adventures.