So what of the Helios frameset? Well, it sits in between the lightweight Xanthus and aero Arion frames in the range, naturally offering up a combination of both. Designed as an all-rounder that’ll be equally rewarding in high mountains as it is prodigious in crit races, it’s the most modern of takes on the latest generation of carbon road bikes.

This shows up in the shape of the carbon tubing, which blends aspects of the aero tubed Arion with featherweight round tubing of the Xanthus. So you get a rounded 44mm head tube carbon-wrapped at the joints to an aero-tapered toptube and heavily shaped downtube, designed to provide shelter for the rounded, compliant seattube hidden behind it.

Stiffness around the BB86 Pressfit bottom bracket is bolstered by a flared downtube, which also bulks up at the junction of the headtube so the front end should feel super-stiff too.

That sharp feeling through the front end is further fortified by an ENVE 2.0 carbon fork, which is married to the supplied Cane Creek headset – all told, a seriously high-grade setup.

There’s also plenty of detail in the frameset too, with carbon dropouts used to save weight, and an internal cable routing system fully compatible with both electronic and mechanical groupsets.

Perhaps even better, though, is you can customise your Helios to your specifications. Got an ideal colourway that you’d like to see? No problem. Want to spec up a whole bike including your ideal stem lengths and handlebar widths from a selection of premium component brands? Be our guest.

Our RCUK 100 bike came fitted with Shimano Dura-Ace Di2 and ENVE SES 4.5 wheels shod with Vredestein Fortezza Sensa tyres.

However, at its core this is a premium carbon frameset that’ll turn heads, whichever way you go.

[monetizer101 search=’Alchemy Helios’ price=’4400′]