Páramo Grid Technic Base Layer – Review by Rudolf Abraham

The Páramo Grid Technic is the warmest, most luxurious-feeling base layer I’ve ever owned. The length is good (it stays tucked in), and the thumb loops keep the sleeves down over the back of the hands nicely (even when not using the thumb loops, I didn’t find the sleeves rode up at all). There’s a good, high collar as you’d want on a cold-weather top, and the deep zip provides ventilation when required. The upper end of the zip is covered, which protects the skin of your neck and chin.

I don’t use it in the summer top, but on spring/autumn trips if I’m going to be somewhere cold and as a winter base layer I think it’s hard to beat. I’ve worn mine on winter snowshoeing days in the mountains above Austria’s Zell am See (see the photo in the banner above) and the French Jura, on late October trips to the Salzkammergut and the Vercors and late November after heavy snowfall in the Julian Alps of Slovenia, and it kept me toasty warm, including while out taking some bitterly cold sunrise pictures. It went to the Hohe Tauern with me in February, worn with a Velez Adventure Smock while snowshoeing in the Gastein valley, and beneath several other layers for some unbelievably cold early morning summit views. And it was just what I needed while photographing the truly amazing Basel carnival between 4am and dawn in February. As with Páramo’s Tempro tops, the colours are great (I have the Midnight Blue). I bought one for my wife to convert her to Páramo – she feels the cold more than I do, and gave it the seal of approval.

The fabric used in the Grid Base Layer is Parameta G, which does a very effective job of wicking moisture away from the skin, and which Páramo describe as ‘two fabrics in one’.  As the name implies, the material has a raised, grid-like pattern, which when covered with a windproof layer does a very good job of trapping air for insulation, while when worn on its own, allows air to pass through the thinner material of the narrow ‘gaps’ in the grid to promote cooling.

I haven’t tried the Grid Technic Long Johns yet but based on how much I like the long-sleeved top I’ll probably end up getting a pair of these for myself at some point.

As with all Páramo gear, the ethics and environmental commitment are outstanding – the company has a long-term partnership with the Miquelina Foundation in Bogotá, Colombia (which provides work opportunities, training and experience as well as homes and childcare for vulnerable members of the local population), and their clothing is PFC-free as well as fully recyclable through Páramo.

Find out more about the Páramo Grid Technic long-sleeved top here.

Review date: July 2022 | Updated: May 2023 | Back to reviews