‘Ultra-Puffy’ Cotopaxi: Fuego Max Answers Call for a Warmer Winter Jacket With Style

How do you improve on a wildly popular winter jacket? Make it warmer, puffier, and “buttery soft” to the touch — at least, that’s the formula Cotopaxi is banking on. And those are just the parts you can see and touch; the Utah purveyor of retro-fun performance outdoor gear also reinvented its winter Fuego collection for the upcoming season with 100% recycled fabric.

“The goal was to create the most sustainable down jacket on the market,” Cotopaxi’s Senior Vice President of Product and Merchandising, Sara Westbrook, said in a press release. “During this process, we made an unexpected discovery that by using 100% recycled fabric, the updated Fuego ended up much softer, but just as durable.”

Headlining the new-look (and feel) line, which launched this month, is the Fuego Max, Cotopaxi’s answer to customer calls for a higher warmth jacket — that still has the fun colors.

Cotopaxi Fuego Max Down Jacket

The Fuego Max shares almost all the same materials and construction as its Fuego cousin. They both use 800-fill RDS down, have 100% recycled nylon in the shell and lining, and are free from intentionally added PFAS.

But the Fuego Max, as the name suggests, is designed to be warmer, thanks to its bigger, puffier baffles. The color blocking is more spread out, creating a similar but distinctly different aesthetic.

Beyond that, the Fuego Max carries many of the same design specs: two zippered hand pockets, two interior dump pockets, an adjustable hem, and self-storage capability (it stuffs into its own pocket).

The Fuego Max retails now for $350, while the traditional Fuego retails for $295 for men and $270 for women.

Updated Fuego Line: Pants, Parkas, Vest, and Overalls

While the Max receives hero treatment, Cotopaxi revamped the entire suite of gear within the Fuego line. That includes men’s and women’s down overalls ($285), a women’s parka ($325), men’s and women’s down vests ($220), and men’s and women’s down pants ($225).

Heck, there’s even a Fuego down scarf — with pockets! (Unisex, $80.)

“We really rebuilt the Fuego from the bottom up,” Westbrook said.