Favorite Scents

What are some of your favorite scents in wetshaving?  It could be any type of product: soap, cream, aftershave, etc.  Are you just a fan of the way it smells or does the scent hold a special significance to you?

One of my all time favorites is Tabac.  I simply love it.  Maybe Tabac is a cliche as it’s (rightfully) a wetshaving classic but I have read some people hate the scent; calling it grandma's purse or things like that.  I got it, probably like most people, fairly early on after starting to shave with a DE.  Now all these years later I associate the scent with a long wetshaving journey filled with fantastic shaves.  To this day I’ve never smelled anything like it.  It’s unique, old school, classic.  It is wetshaving to me. 

Other favorites: D.R. Harris Sandalwood, XPEC, Knize Ten.

One of my all-time favorites, and unfortunately no longer available, is Chatillon Lux Blackberry Blossom Bay

Not sure what it is about Mystic Water Bay Rum soap, but I've been addicted to this scent since I first tried it, many years ago. 

Many Pinaud aftershaves, Cella soap, Fine Italian Citrus (old tallow formula) soap. Having difficulty finding a nice summer soap with performance (tallow) and scent that I really enjoy. I generally limit myself to mass market brands. I feel that the so called "artisan" soaps are OK in performance, too strong in scent and always overpriced for what you get.

I have a tub of Cella Bio that I have yet to use yet, maybe that will be the Holy Grail for me in a summer scent soap.

Many Pinaud aftershaves, Cella soap, Fine Italian Citrus (old  tallow formula) soap.  Having difficulty finding a nice summer soap with performance (tallow) and scent that I really enjoy.  I generally limit myself to mass market brands.  I feel that the so called "artisan" soaps are OK in performance, too strong in scent and always overpriced for what you get. 

I have a tub of Cella Bio that I have yet to use yet, maybe that will be the Holy Grail for me in a summer scent soap.

How funny, I also have a tub of the green Cella that I have yet to use for a shave, although I think I’ve test lathered it.  My impression is that it’s a good clean inoffensive scent that should be well suited for summer. 

I also have the tallow Fine Italian Citrus and was disappointed with the scent, or rather lack of scent.  Maybe I got a bad puck as all my other Fine tallow soaps are well-to-strongly scented.

Eleven Sweet Orange Balm.

It reminds me of a trip in southern Turkiye when I was a kid. I think they'd had a bumper tangerine crop that year; a man by the side of the road waved us over, & when my Dad rolled down the window he passed in a couple dozen of the best tangerines I've ever tasted. Then he smiled and waved us on.

I can't eat much citrus these days, so I really go for realistic citrus scents.

IColoniali Mango Oil Shave Cream, I don't know what it is but is so intoxicating to me.

IColoniali Mango Oil Shave Cream, I don't know what it is but is so intoxicating to me.

Dave this is another one of my favorites as well, both the soap and the cream.  If I remember correctly some people had some rather unflattering things to say about this fragrance as well.  I never understood the criticisms.  

I don’t think that the performance was ever criticized though.  It’s a shame they discontinued it.

IColoniali Mango Oil Shave Cream, I don't know what it is but is so intoxicating to me.

Dave this is another one of my favorites as well, both the soap and the cream.  If I remember correctly some people had some rather unflattering things to say about this fragrance as well.  I never understood the criticisms.  

I don’t think that the performance was ever criticized though.  It’s a shame they discontinued it.

I use it sparingly my partial puck in the terracotta dish and have a small chunk as a backup. 2 Bath bars too. When it's gone, it's gone forever........Sad

Provence Sante Green Tea is killer. Just not a great performer.
Salters French Vetiver will put hair on your chest, and on your ears. Love it
Black Ties Black Velvet is so awesome I feel like the King.
Art of Shaving Sandalwood ought to be required.
Declaration Grooming Darkfall feels like I need a passport for the trip it takes me on.
L’Occitane Cade smells like sun on the cedars in summer.

Oh yes there are some great scents out there.  Vetivers, sandalwoods, chypre, oh my.

And anyone who thinks Tabac smells like Grandmas purse has a grandma who rides rough stock, is a bull on Wall Street, and makes James Bond feel weak.  Tabac is the way a man ought to smell (and this one does right now!)