OK, at my DH's insistence, I kept both the SIDI winter mountain shoe/boots and the Lakes winter shoe/boots that SheFly recommended.
Let me start out by saying that if you ride regularly during the winter, it's worth the money to buy winter shoes/boots. Last year, keeping my feet comfortable in temps below 40 was a challenge.
The SIDIs have been working great when temps are 30 degrees or so and above. They fit great, but you'd expect that with SIDIs. While they are more substantial than my Sidi Doms (thicker sole, insulated inside), they are not too clunky. Not half as pretty as those ruby slippers, but during the winter, I'll take comfort over looks any time. The boot closes snugly to keep out the chill, and since they are made with gore-tex, they offer decent protection from the wind. They breathe fairly well, too. In addition, I went a half size up from my regular size, and I have plenty of room for two pairs of socks (either both wool or one wool & one gore tex). I can also squeeze in a chemical toe warmer with two sock layers and still wiggle my toes. Easy to clip in and out--SPD compatible. Also, I can fit my Amfib shoe covers over them, if it's particularly brutal. I'm going to test out them out with the shoe covers sometime when it's below 30. They were expensive boots, but I'm a Sidi snob. I figure I'll get several winters out of them, too.
The Lakes are warm, as SheFly promised. The one down side is that they are clunky, but once you get used to them, it's not an issue. Walking around in them is kind of a challenge, though (I feel like Herman Munster). The cleats (SPD) were easy to install, and clipping in & out is no problem. Like the Sidis, I went a half size up and had plenty of room for layering, chemical toe warmers, etc. They aren't as comfortable as the Sidis, but they cost about half of what I paid for the Sidis (unfortunately, Performance raised the price of these shoes by about $50 since I purchased them). The sole is much thicker than the SIDIs and they are cosy inside (feels like a fleece type lining). I wore them today when the temps were in the low 20s--just had on smartwool sockliners and my woolie boolie socks--and my feet stayed toasty for about 90 minutes. I probably should have put a chemical toe warmer in each boot since I rode for 2.5 hrs, but this was the first time I wore them so I wasn't sure exactly how warm they'd keep my feet. They don't breathe, but that wasn't a problem (might be if you wore them in warmer temps, I suppose). I'm going to use these ones for my really cold rides. Hopefully, there won't be too many of those this winter season :-)
