Berluti Rewrities the Rules of the Suit With the Forestière Jacket

The evolution of formalwear is something menswear has been grappling with in recent years. The sartorial codes of the traditional suit have long since evolved beyond corporate demands and formal expectations to meet the practical needs of the modern gentleman. As such, the jacket has become a staple of the contemporary wardrobe, retaining the structure of tailoring while accommodating a more fluid way of dressing. 

For Fall/Winter ’26, Berluti takes this idea a step further with the Forestière matching set, pairing the French maison’s historic jacket with coordinating trousers for the first time and, in so doing, offering an alternative approach to formalwear. It is a development that speaks to the Forestière’s inherent versatility. Worn as a matching set, the jacket takes on a more formal character, while its distinctive proportions and construction prevent it from becoming another conventional suit. Paired with a tie or scarf, it can take on a refined business-ready sensibility; however, when worn separately with more relaxed trousers, the Forestière retains its ability to move between formal and informal occasions. These new combinations open up fresh styling possibilities and offer gentlemen a dynamic take on formalwear.

The progression of the Forestière matching set brings the Forestière’s history into sharper focus. The Forestière name was inspired by early 20th-century gamekeepers, or “guardians of the woods”, who required a work jacket that offered comfort and freedom of movement. These utilitarian elements have been adapted for the modern wearer, resulting in the Forestière Jacket becoming the quintessential amalgamation of fashion and function. With its tailored, architectural shape, it appears smarter than a bomber jacket, yet its non-constricting silhouette offers a more relaxed alternative to the traditional suit jacket. 

Last year, Berluti celebrated its 130th anniversary and highlighted how the core biological principle of Phylogeny (how new branches arise from the same trunk of a tree) was a good description of how the house viewed its heritage — that its footwear, leather goods and tailoring (like the the Forestière jacket) can all be traced back to the maison’s mastery of leather.  

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The Forestière jacket has gone through various iterations over the decades, having been first designed by Léon Grimbert, founder of the Paris menswear institution Arnys, over half a century ago. His son Jean revived it in the late 1980s by reintroducing the Forestière in thick-ribbed corduroy, and this was soon followed by various versions over the years. In 2011, former Berluti Artistic Director Alessandro Sartori revisited the Forestière and incorporated a new interpretation of the jacket into the maison’s first ready-to-wear collection. This iteration was made in luxurious materials, including a combination of 100 percent wool flannel and pure cashmere.

It was Berluti’s Fall/Winter ‘25 collection that saw the Forestière return as a key piece in the maison’s ready-to-wear showcase. Retaining its signature standing collar, relaxed shoulders and distinctive generous pockets, the jacket was presented in a subtle palette of exclusive mid-tones that accentuated its inherent lightness and ease, crafted out of premium materials that included leather, wool and cashmere gabardine. 

In Spring/Summer ’26, the Forestière family expanded into lighter expressions, offering up the Forestière Ultra Leggera — a new interpretation of the summer jacket, in airy fabrics including a beautifully supple, breathable linen that gave the jacket a fluid drape and allowed it to move naturally with the body while retaining its shape. The body of the jacket is deliberately left unlined to accentuate the Forestière’s unstructured nature, while its silk-lined sleeves can be nonchalantly rolled up when the moment calls for it. This sense of lightness makes it particularly suitable for Singapore’s warm weather.  

The hybrid nature of the Forestière jacket’s long and short cuts allows for easy adaptation to the personal style of the individual wearer, making it a highly versatile garment. It can be styled many different ways, pairing naturally with bespoke boots and the signature Andy loafers, as well as the more casual Shadow sneakers alongside Bermuda shorts or loose-fitting trousers. Worn open with lightweight trousers, or draped casually across the shoulders as the day winds down, it imparts an almost architectural structure without the feeling of constriction. The seasonal palette also broadens styling possibilities, as it comes in a wide range of colours spanning deep Indigo, Twilight Blue, Lilac, Cocoa and Turquoise.

What began as a functional jacket for gamekeepers has appeared in corduroy, flannel, cashmere and linen before arriving at a version that can now occupy the same space in one’s wardrobe as a suit. Across each iteration, Berluti has retained the characteristics that define the Forestière while allowing its materials and styling to change with the way men dress today. It is perhaps this sartorial sensibility that makes the Forestière particularly suited to becoming a Berluti ready-to-wear icon — and an expression of sprezzatura, the Italian art of dressing impeccably, seemingly without effort. 

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