Lightweight merino / fleece beanie hat?

My most used are the Smartwool cuffed beanie and the Z-Packs fleece hat, both are great

I've owned a couple Merino wool beanies made by Minus33. I like them a lot despite the wet dog smell in the snow or rain.

Another favorite 1.0 oz fleece beanie is the one made by mountain hardwear often found for around $10. Currently, I am wearing the Montbell fleece beanie.

I use a merino buff doubled over as a beanie. It's longer length than a poly buff provides better coverage over my ears than the Smartwool beanie I own.

I have a thin Smartwool beanie and the merino buff. The buff is a perfect weight but it's the only merino item I own that feels scratchy to me. I take the Smartwool (or a Blackrock Gear down beanie but you didn't ask about those).

Bummer…my favorite fleece hat is the montbell Chameece one with ear covers. ~1 oz.
Looks like it's no longer available.

I have two Icebreaker beanie hats, they work out really well.

I use either a Mountain Hardwear Microdome (100wt Polartec Classic) that I got on sale for $7 or a Lands End Thermacheck 100wt that is functionally identical. They weigh .9 and .85oz respectively.

I’m loving the Patagonia PowerDry HE Cap 4 beanie, but appears that it may be sold out (till next season?). Prior to that, I had been totally happy for years with the MH Micro Dome. I would buy both again.

ARC’TERYX Rho LTW BEANIE (1.05oz)
ARC’TERYX WOOL SKULL CAP – (1.05oz)
BLACK DIAMOND BEANIE – (1.75oz)
ZPacks™ Micro-Fleece Hat – (0.95oz)

MANY CHOICES………….GO HERE
RAB 165 MeCo BALACALVA (65WOOL & 35COCONA) – (1.5oz)
RAB 165 MeCo BEANNIE (65WOOL & 35COCONA) – (1.3oz)

I have 3 beanies to use depending on the hike:

Icebreaker Chase (.8 oz) Merino Wool beanie for extra warmth while hiking and for use under a hat.

SmartWool Training Beanie (1.6 oz) when more warmth is likely needed while active. It breathes very well but I don't find it as warm as the fleece overall because of this.

Athletec (basically a generic brand) micro fleece beanie (1.2 oz) that covers the ears. Warm and comfortable around camp and to sleep in. I picked up 3 of these new with tags from a thrift store, $1.99 each and they are my frontline warmth beanie. It looks very similar to the OR Windwarrior beanie. I think Athletec is a brand found in Kmart.

I bring the Chase and the micro fleece on most hikes. The Chase goes on when hiking when it gets cold, the fleece in camp and for sleeping, but I can wear the Chase under the fleece as an extra layer.

"The buff is a perfect weight but it's the only merino item I own that feels scratchy to me."

I like a buff too — I have a hard time finding a beanie that fits well because my head is roughly the size of a five year old's.

The Buff brand merino is a little scratchy and I also found it stretches out easily. Lost it a while back and replaced it with an Ibex brand "Quick Link"–which is essentially the same, but a little bit softer. Icebreaker makes a merino Buff knockoff, too, the Flexi Chute. Plus, if it's too hot to sleep in your hat, the buff makes a great pillowcase.

Does Mountain Hardwear still sell the Microdome? Mine is 0.7 ounces and works well.