New Forest Hawthorn jacket review: a tough, affordable workhorse

New Forest Clothing states that its mission is to “provide practical, durable and stylish clothing that meets the needs of outdoor enthusiasts, workers and adventurers alike”. Based on my first-hand experience with a number of the company’s products, I can definitely concur that the company fulfils this pledge, and does so at some very competitive prices. So when I was asked to field test the New Forest Hawthorn jacket, I felt confident that the product would not disappoint.

At an RRP of £114.95 the Hawthorn sits a long way below most dedicated shoot-day and beating coats, and it is pitched as a hard-wearing, uninsulated shell rather than a warm winter jacket. I had it on test from an exceptionally hot, dry May through to June, which was hardly ideal weather for assessing a waterproof, so some of the wet-weather testing had to be improvised. Prices quoted here are RRP at the time of publication and may have changed.

New Forest Hawthorn jacket specifications

First impressions and build quality

On removing the Hawthorn jacket from its packaging, the first thing that stood out was the texture of the material. It felt tough – really tough. It is made from a heavyweight ripstop polyamide fabric and, like all ripstop, it has thicker reinforcement yarns woven in at regular intervals so that any tear or snag is quickly halted rather than allowed to run. As such, my immediate thought was that the jacket would be ideal for beating, because I wouldn’t hesitate to push my way through a thorny thicket with the Hawthorn providing a protective outer layer.

The elbows, shoulders and rear seat area of the jacket feature reinforced panels, though they appear not to be additional layers of material, but rather a different type of fabric.

Layering, lining and ventilation

The inside of the jacket has no built-in insulation, which I think is a great part of the design as it gives the wearer the opportunity to select base and mid layers depending on the season, adding to the flexibility of the garment. In place of insulation it has a simple mesh liner to aid breathability, and ventilation is further enhanced by two underarm zips, which again make it ideally suitable for multiple climates.

Pockets and storage options

From a stowage perspective, the Hawthorn boasts an array of options. The hand-warmer pockets are fleece-lined and of a generous depth. This is a well-thought-out touch: far too many sporting jackets, including pricey, top-end examples, skimp in this area, with hand-warmer pockets barely deep enough to keep your wrists warm. The pockets on this jacket are zipped, which on the downside potentially reduces comfort around the bare wrist, but on the plus side offers security.

Next we have two front cartridge pockets and, while the bellows section on them is quite slim, the overall size is ample. Inside the garment are two capacious zipped pockets that offer excellent security for phone, wallet, keys and more – another great touch that proves New Forest Clothing’s designs really do cater for the end user and are not simply dreamed up at some marketing meeting. The rear game pocket is discreet to the point of being virtually invisible and, while it is rarely used for gamebirds these days, it does offer additional storage.

How waterproof is the Hawthorn jacket?

The New Forest Hawthorn carries a manufacturer’s waterproof rating of 10,000mm, which means the fabric will resist pressure equivalent to a 10m column of water before leaking – in layman’s terms, this basically means that it should withstand heavy rain and wet snow. As far as field testing was concerned, I received the jacket during an exceptionally hot, dry May and, though we did get some rain in early June, conditions were hardly ideal for testing waterproofing.

To make up for the lack of rain, on a very hot June day I donned swim shorts and a T-shirt, zipped and fastened the Hawthorn – ensuring a tight fit from the adjustable, peaked hood, which is conveniently removable – and asked my wife to give me (or at least the jacket) a thorough soaking with the garden hose, running through its various spray modes. The jacket coped remarkably well. My T-shirt remained completely dry and, though I couldn’t replicate eight hours of November rain, this test gave me a reassuring indication of the jacket’s wet-weather capability.

A workhorse coat that still looks the part

The New Forest Hawthorn is an interesting garment. On one hand it is a tough workhorse, the sort of coat you’d be happy to leave in the truck or tractor cab, ready to grab for any eventuality. Yet on the other it is also a pretty cool-looking garment, certainly smart enough to wear to the village pub or to keep you warm and dry at the early-season country fairs.

It feels like a modern take on trusty old waxed cotton, with all the benefits of contemporary fabrics.

Strengths and weaknesses

• Genuinely tough outer: heavyweight ripstop polyamide with reinforced elbows, shoulders and seat, so briars and thorn hold no fear.
• Very keenly priced: £114.95 undercuts most shoot-day coats by a considerable margin.
• Proper hand-warmer pockets: deep and fleece-lined, where far pricier jackets skimp.
• Flexible across the seasons: no built-in insulation, so you choose the base and mid layers to suit the day.
• Well ventilated: mesh liner and two underarm zips keep it usable in warmer weather.
• Zipped hand-warmer pockets: good for security, but the zip can be uncomfortable against a bare wrist.
• Slim cartridge pocket bellows: the pockets are big enough, but the bellows sections are on the narrow side.
• Waterproofing not fully proven: a hot, dry test period meant a garden hose stood in for a day of November rain.

Verdict

True to the company’s mission statement, the Hawthorn is a practical, durable and stylish jacket, offered at a very affordable price. It suits the beater, the picker-up, the keeper and anyone who wants a hard-wearing coat that can be thrown in the back of the truck and grabbed when it is needed, and it is smart enough to wear away from the shoot as well. Buyers who want a jacket that is warm straight out of the bag should look elsewhere, or budget for decent layers underneath, because there is no insulation here by design. For the money, though, there is very little to argue with.