My order from Crown & Crane arrived a few days ago and included the two new scents, Spruce and Kingsmen, plus one very cool sample. Both of the soaps performed great. They’re easy to load and I felt a good amount of slickness to both. The tallow based is similar to the vegan but felt there was a little more slickness to the tallow. That might be due to my inexperience but, for me, the tallow just seemed a little better in that aspect.
The scents are right up my alley too. IMO, both have above average strength. The Spruce was purchased just because I enjoy the woodsy scents and it definitely doesn’t disappoint. It is a very “spruce” scent, by that I mean I don't get other "tree" scents. If you enjoy being surrounded by or walking through a forest of spruce trees, this one is for you. The Kingsmen is difficult for me to describe. I mainly purchased it out of curiosity. But I’m more than thankful I did. I’m not sure what it is but somehow it just reminds me of my grandpa.
The sample that was included was the Tobacco Leaf & Amber aftershave balm. Karl gives an excellent description of the performance:
"My criteria were very rigorous. In order to be acceptable to me, it had to be skin nourishing, by which I mean it should be soothing, skin hydrating, readily absorbed by the skin and the aftershave feel should be enhanced after use, not diminished. After 5 minutes, the skin should feel smooth, supple and well hydrated, but If there was any sign of a greasy or oily feeling after that 5 minutes the recipe was rejected. In addition, the balm had to be capable of holding a fragrance for an acceptable amount of time, like an aftershave. "
The only thing I can add is that his words are very true. I’ve used it the past couple days and my skin feels very supple and smooth for several hours after applying it. Also, the scent does stick around for awhile. Yesterday, I remember noticing the scent about two hours after I applied it. Overall, I’m very pleased with the Crown & Crane products…you guys are doing a great job!