DeNiro Review: Salento Field Boot

My holy grail tall boots: the DeNiro Salento. I've owned them for a little over 8 months, and have finally gotten them 90% broken in and used them, so I figured now is the perfect time for a review!

The DeNiro Salentos are styled very similarly to the Parlanti boots that are oh-so-popular as of right now, and coincidentally fit me perfectly. They run about $700, making them roughly $300 less than Parlantis (I also managed to snag them on sale for $640 from SmartPak). I have stupid high arches so I selected the field boot Salentos, which very closely resemble the Parlanti Miami. I also have ridiculously long legs, and the Parlantis were the only semi-custom boots I had tried that were tall enough. I took a risk and ordered a pair of extra extra tall, medium calf Salentos.

First Impressions
The leather is soft, but sturdy. One of the biggest cons of the Parlantis is how soft the leather is; as a grad student, I can't afford to replace my boots once a year and need them to last. There is a black elastic panel that runs down the back of your calf to help fit the boots to you. I love the sturdiness of the zipper. They were very snug even in a medium calf, which I found a little shocking; I wear a regular calf in Ariats and a slim in Tredstep. I do have a lil fluff, and am built "athletically" so I guess I shouldn't be shocked I no longer have the body of a Junior. They came with a little tub of DeNiro conditioning cream which took 5ever to open; it is 1 part leather conditioner: 1 part boot polish and does its job well.

Ignore scruffy winter Sawyer. These boots are the first boots I've ever owned that are almost too tall.

8 Months Later
They still haven't quite broken in fully, which I am surprised about having worn them in weekly lessons, a handful of clinics, and to several shows. The left calf always feels a little too snug. They are showing a little wear on the inside calf, but nothing extreme. Overall, they are wearing like iron. The footbed is so comfortable, even with my arches being out of control. I wear them to bathe, groom, tack up, ride, and catch horses, and they still polish up perfectly.

Verdict
9/10- great variety of sizes. I did have to wait 4 months for them to arrive because they are made to order in Italy, hence the 9 out of 10, but they are well worth the wait!