Classic saddle maker Selle San Marco (and its sister brand Selle Italia) have started embracing the all-road and gravel lifestyle recently, mostly just with limited edition finishes. But now they’ve gone a step further with a complete line of bikepacking bags, made entirely in Italy. And if they look very familiar… that’s because they are made by Miss Grape.
Selle San Marco x Miss Grape bikepacking bags
In fact, we recognize these new Selle San Marco bikepacking bags, because they are the same Miss Grape bags that we reviewed a year and a half ago. That’s not really a bad thing. Selle San Marco could have leveraged their buying power to have their own bags contract manufactured in China as some other big brands have. But instead, they reached out to Miss Grape founder Michele Boschetti to make the bags in northeastern Italy, just 90km away from Selle San Marco’s HQ on the opposite side of Venice.
What’s new?
Not much, to be honest, it seems. The Selle San Marco edition appears to be the exact same light & waterproof Miss Grape bikepacking bags, just with reflective Selle San Marco branding and… in addition to the regular Miss Grape tabs. And all the straps are black, no signature Mis Grape green straps.
What you do get new is simplified naming and classification. Miss Grape breaks their bags down into Road, Adventure, or Commuting ranges and gives them unique names. Selle San Marco just names them for where they go on the bike and how big they are.
From a tech perspective, you still get lightweight fabrics, durable construction and reinforcement where it is needed, plus full heat-bonded waterproof internal liners on the saddle & frame bags.
Selle San Marco bikepacking bags – Pricing, availability & options
Selle San Marco offers essentially 4 different types of bags, some 2 of which come in a wide range of sizes. The small 0.7L Top Tube Bag sells for 76€ (aka Miss Grape Node Road) and the small canister 2L Handlebar Bag sells for 80€ (aka Moon), both in only one size.
As for big storage under your Selle San Marco saddle, the waterproof Saddle Bag (aka Cluster) comes in a compact 7L version for 166€ or an overnighter-ready 13L size for 180€.
The partial & half Frame Bags (aka Internode) give you the most options to choose from, with 5 different sizes to fit almost any bike or any length of adventure riding. The smallest 2L partial Frame Bag (the one we found useful for everyday long gravel rides) sells for 110€ or in slightly bigger 3L for 120€. The 4L for 120€, 5L for 126€ & 6L for 130€ half frame bags are designed to extend more the full length under your toptube, while still leaving room for water bottle underneath.
The Selle San Marco bikepacking bags do seem to cost just a few euros more than their Miss Grape analogs, but it does also seem that some are available in-stock now that are not from Miss Grape. Plus, Selle San Marco has huge international distribution, which might make these Miss Grape bags even easier to get for cyclists outside of Europe.
