Tiz true that goretex lined boot's arnt that breathable, but they do dry out over night unlike leather which will stay damp for days on end if on a longer trip. As for the goretex booty being mostly taped seams this depends on the design ordered by the boot manufacturer, some use more or less seams. Remember that glue is not breathable either so when the bootys attached to the felt lining thats the end of any real breathablity anyway
Unlined fabric boot's for summer with some spare socks, well built leather boot's for the winter with as few seams as possible to reduce likelyhood of leaks, rest of the time sandals
As for Meindl build quality i've never had any problems, used them for 15yrs now (man i'm old) and have nothing but praise for them. Sold them for about 7 yrs and maybe had a pair a year back, thats not bad going for the amount we sold
(Like to say i no longer work in the industry :togo: )