Richa Charleston leather jacket in brown

The truth is that we often blow hot and cold when it comes to Richa. There are products in their range that we love. Their gloves, for example, punch well above their weight. We have, over the years, offered quite a few pieces from their collection, but Richa is one of those companies that tries to be all things to all people. That’s a very difficult act to pull off. And so we tend to just hand pick a few pieces from their huge portfolio.

We have, for example, sometimes thought that their leather jackets were not out of the top drawer. The quality of a leather jacket usually comes down to the quality of the leather used in its construction. And, in the past, we have not always thought the hides used by Richa were the most supple and wearable.

But then we came across the Charleston. The Charleston is not entry-level inexpensive, but neither is it out-and-out expensive. This is a really lovely biking jacket made from the most beautifully soft leather. It is another one of those Richa products that punches above its weight. It’s a jacket that nobody would be embarrassed to wear. And nobody is going to find it less than seriously comfortable.

                                                                    The Charleston in detail

On their website, Richa merely states that the Charleston is made from genuine cowhide. They tell us no more, but all we can say is that the leather is buttery soft; it feels like the kind of leather you would use to make a pair of driving gloves. In fact, we are not sure that we have ever come across a more luxurious-feeling leather, motorcycle jacket.

The styling is pure café racer. The hem of the jacket sits on the belt line, although in truth it sits a little longer at the back. You get classic, padded panelling on the shoulders and at the elbows. Adjusters at the waist allow the waist to be cinched a little. At the ends of the sleeve, there’s a zip and a poppered strap. 

Behind the shoulders, the jacket features what his known as football pockets. This is a design feature that first appeared on motorcycle jackets in the thirties. It was particularly necessary on heavy horsehide jackets of the time. These pockets aid articulation and made these jackets less hard work to wear, particularly on the bike. It’s not quite so necessary on a jacket with leather this soft, but it still contributes to just how nice the jacket is to both walk around in and ride in.

There are five zip pockets on the outside of the jacket. Two side ones and three on the chest. If you’re not carrying anything in the chest pockets, undo the zips, and they act as vents. Inside there’s a removable, thermal liner and four pockets, one in the liner being waterproof.

In terms of protection, the jacket comes with D3O armour in the elbows and shoulders. There’s also a Level 1 D3O protector in the back. For even more comfort the elbow and shoulder armour could be upgraded to Ghost. For slightly less, you could upgrade the back protector to Level 2.

There are A rated leather jackets out there, AA-rated ones and even AAA-rated ones. AAA rated jackets tend to be quite heavy and a little stiff. When we first picked this jacket up we thought it might only be A-rated given how soft and pliable it is, but pleasingly it is AA rated, which is much as one could ever expect in a jacket that is this nice to wear.

The Charleston is one of the most comfortable, protective motorcycle jackets we have ever come across. It comes in black leather or brown leather, and costs a less than one might expect.