The North Face Men's Denali Jacket

Yes, the Denali is a bit cheesy in these days of windproof, breathable, soft shells, but as a utility layer it can not be beat. There is no other heavy weight fleece jacket with 4 zippered pockets, reinforced shoulders and elbows and pit zips.
This is replacing another Denali I have had for 20 years...literally...it's been back to TNF for trim replacement and has worn so thin that I'm surprised it hasn't fallen apart.
As an outer layer it's great alone for hiking, sailing, biking, etc in milder weather. As a layer it's great under a shell awesome for all but the coldest, windiest, cloudy days.
Under a spray top it works perfect for mountain lake sailing where days start cool and calm, ramp up to gale force, t-storms roll in cooling things 50 degrees and then back to sunny and calm for derigging and beers. Reach under the spray top and unzip the pits and air things out without losing a boat length.
The reinforced elbows don't readily absorb beer from the bar. The reinforced shoulders won't get cut from ski edges.
I wanted to find something equal to replace the old one but couldn't find anything nearly equal. It was awesome when Backcountry had black on sale and I was actually online to find it. Black (almost) NEVER goes on sale. Thanks Backcountry!
Similar to skiing...it's not a date, it's a sport...The Denali isn't sexy, but it's a great multipurpose 'tool'...

The good:
This Fleece was the coolest thing for years. By now it's a well known classic. This fleece is well made with plenty of pockets, vents and so forth. Snaps into other TNF jackets as insulation. Very durable. This jacket will not fall apart.
The Bad:
For the money... you are getting a basic non wind blocking fleece. At almost 2 Benjamins, I'd put my money toward a more technical windblocking fleece or softshell with better weather resistance.
I've owned both full jacket and vest versions of the Denali over the years. A great well made fleece. However, next go around, I will opt for a more technical fleece. Basic fleece jackets can be bought for much less.
Buy it if you are using it together with other TNF jackets as an integrated layering system. Buy if it's on sale. Or, just buy it if you don't care how much it costs and want a well made durable fleece jacket.
Runs large. Me: 5'11" 180-185. I own a Medium. Arms feel good; but, the main jacket body is big.

My seventeen year old son is very hard to buy for. He is very tall and very thin and doesn't usually like to wear brand name anything. He didn't ask for this particular item but I bought it in hopes that he would give up wearing his two hoodies to school and actually wear something warm. This was the perfect gift! It is warm enough to put another hoodie under and still be warm. I live in the Midwest and we have pretty harsh winters and my son walks about 7 blocks back and forth to school. This is the perfect gift for a teenager. It maintains his "coolness" without actually having to put on a coat.

I got an older version of this jacket years ago. I've worn it every single winter, and almost every time I've been skiing as well. I actually love wearing this Denali Fleece under my outer Oakley shell. It has perfect loft keeping me completely warm. Its also nice to have vents on an underlayer, so you can customize your air flow even more. I also wear this jacket almost everyday during the winter. Great durability, you absolutely get what you pay for. The price is high but worth it.
This fleece fits well, but its loose fitting. So it'll feel like it runs large.

I've had this jacket for about six years now, and it still looks as good as the day I bought it. It's fairly warm, durable, and made of high quality material. It's a little broad in the shoulders for me (6'1, 180 lbs., wear a 40in. blazer, have this in a Medium), and it does not cut the wind at all. While the latter can be expected, I feel there are other fleeces (Patagonia) that offer a fleece jacket with more protection from the wind. Overall it's a nice fleece jacket, but I prefer my Patagonia fleece over this one.