Grooming Dept

Couldn't decide which of the non-tallows to try this morning, so I opted for the Aether tallow soap.

Big wow.

The things that impressed me as most was how easy this was to lather, and the glossiness of the lather. It was super, super shiny. Very protective, not heavy, with a nice, protective post-shave feel. Excellent glide as well during the shave.

Superb performer!

What do you get from the scent of Aether lathered? I haven't shaved yet, but my first thought was a peppermint patty. This is not a knock; just simply my first thought.

I used Aether for the first time and agree with Red Tip and Michael regarding soap performance. Have to be honest and not sure what to make of the aroma when I first opened the tub. Mint for sure and also picked up Carnauba Wax which caught me off guard. I use this wax on my car and shave brushes and admit put off by the initial aroma but once lathered it changed up on me. Definitely mint comes through and a wonderful melding of citrus, woody a light sweet aroma. Cant put my finger on it but they all came together for me. Out of scale of 10 would give my soap a score of 6 in aroma strength. Will try again early next week but I like this one. Next up is Voyager

Couldn't decide which of the non-tallows to try this morning, so I opted for the Aether tallow soap.

Big wow.

The things that impressed me as most was how easy this was to lather, and the glossiness of the lather. It was super, super shiny. Very protective, not heavy, with a nice, protective post-shave feel. Excellent glide as well during the shave.

Superb performer!

What do you get from the scent of Aether lathered? I haven't shaved yet, but my first thought was a peppermint patty. This is not a knock; just simply my first thought.

I used Aether for the first time and agree with Red Tip and Michael regarding soap performance. Have to be honest and not sure what to make of the aroma when I first opened the tub. Mint for sure and also picked up Carnauba Wax which caught me off guard. I use this wax on my car and shave brushes and admit put off by the initial aroma but once lathered it changed up on me. Definitely mint comes through and a wonderful melding of citrus, woody a light sweet aroma. Cant put my finger on it but they all came together for me. Out of scale of 10 would give my soap a score of 6 in aroma strength. Will try again early next week but I like this one. Next up is Voyager

Curious, what score would you give to its performance, regardless of smell?

What do you get from the scent of Aether lathered? I haven't shaved yet, but my first thought was a peppermint patty. This is not a knock; just simply my first thought.

I used Aether for the first time and agree with Red Tip and Michael regarding soap performance. Have to be honest and not sure what to make of the aroma when I first opened the tub. Mint for sure and also picked up Carnauba Wax which caught me off guard. I use this wax on my car and shave brushes and admit put off by the initial aroma but once lathered it changed up on me. Definitely mint comes through and a wonderful melding of citrus, woody a light sweet aroma. Cant put my finger on it but they all came together for me. Out of scale of 10 would give my soap a score of 6 in aroma strength. Will try again early next week but I like this one. Next up is Voyager

Curious, what score would you give to its performance, regardless of smell?

Just first use so not dialed but 8.5-9. Thick, glossy, but light lather. Slick but I thought it would be super, super slick based on past experiences with eating duck and hate it as too oily me but still slick. Post shave is excellent. No need for a balm.

I used Aether for the first time and agree with Red Tip and Michael regarding soap performance. Have to be honest and not sure what to make of the aroma when I first opened the tub. Mint for sure and also picked up Carnauba Wax which caught me off guard. I use this wax on my car and shave brushes and admit put off by the initial aroma but once lathered it changed up on me. Definitely mint comes through and a wonderful melding of citrus, woody a light sweet aroma. Cant put my finger on it but they all came together for me. Out of scale of 10 would give my soap a score of 6 in aroma strength. Will try again early next week but I like this one. Next up is Voyager

Curious, what score would you give to its performance, regardless of smell?

Just first use so not dialed but 8.5-9. Thick, glossy, but light lather. Slick but I thought it would be super, super slick based on past experiences with eating duck and hate it as too oily me but still slick. Post shave is excellent. No need for a balm.

Thanks. Now you've got me curious. Is there a soap you would give a higher performance rating to? Or is this the best you have used?

Curious, what score would you give to its performance, regardless of smell?

Just first use so not dialed but 8.5-9. Thick, glossy, but light lather. Slick but I thought it would be super, super slick based on past experiences with eating duck and hate it as too oily me but still slick. Post shave is excellent. No need for a balm.

Thanks. Now you've got me curious. Is there a soap you would give a higher performance rating to? Or is this the best you have used?

I have way, way too many soaps and creams but these are tops for me: Antica Barbieria Colla crean and soap, XPEC, La Savonniere du Moulin " Asses Milk" 30% and their 40%, Boellis Panama 1924, Saponificio Varesino, PannaCrema Nuàvia, and two custom tallow soaps made for me from Amanda of Tiki Bar Soaps. Put Grooming Dept right in this class, previous batch and this batch. Not really a vegan guy but hard to beat these. Only knock I had on previous lot was a little weak on the Aroma. I like mine in the 6 or higher range.

Nice review. I'd love to hear more details about how this is experienced by those who have just received theirs. I'll live vicariously until mine arrives.

Test lathered Voyage today.  It produced lather almost instantly, even faster than MdC.  It looked like the lather produced by Olivia, but with even more shine and a lighter consistency.  Post shave feel was amazing. Felt crazy slick, but I have yet to test glide with a razor.  Can't wait to try it again.

Just first use so not dialed but 8.5-9. Thick, glossy, but light lather. Slick but I thought it would be super, super slick based on past experiences with eating duck and hate it as too oily me but still slick. Post shave is excellent. No need for a balm.

Thanks. Now you've got me curious. Is there a soap you would give a higher performance rating to? Or is this the best you have used?

I have way, way too many soaps and creams but these are tops for me: Antica Barbieria Colla crean and soap, XPEC, La Savonniere du Moulin " Asses Milk" 30% and their 40%, Boellis Panama 1924,  Saponificio Varesino, PannaCrema Nuàvia, and two custom tallow soaps made for me from Amanda of Tiki Bar Soaps. Put Grooming Dept right in this class, previous batch and this batch. Not really a vegan guy but hard to beat these. Only nock I had on previous lot was a little weak on the Aroma. I like mine in the 6 or higher range.

Thanks for the inclusion in your upper echelon of soaps, it really means a great deal.

Just first use so not dialed but 8.5-9. Thick, glossy, but light lather. Slick but I thought it would be super, super slick based on past experiences with eating duck and hate it as too oily me but still slick. Post shave is excellent. No need for a balm.

Thanks. Now you've got me curious. Is there a soap you would give a higher performance rating to? Or is this the best you have used?

I have way, way too many soaps and creams but these are tops for me: Antica Barbieria Colla crean and soap, XPEC, La Savonniere du Moulin " Asses Milk" 30% and their 40%, Boellis Panama 1924, Saponificio Varesino, PannaCrema Nuàvia, and two custom tallow soaps made for me from Amanda of Tiki Bar Soaps. Put Grooming Dept right in this class, previous batch and this batch. Not really a vegan guy but hard to beat these. Only nock I had on previous lot was a little weak on the Aroma. I like mine in the 6 or higher range.

Excellent. Thanks for your thoughts.

Today was Aether. Lathered up very quickly felt nice on the skin and was slick. Once lathered, the components of the scent came through and are quite light and clean. As my [first] shave progressed I noticed more and more of the scent and started to appreciate that it was not a full strength in your face scent. The scent of the tub isn't much to write about, but lather it up and give it a chance.

Aftershave pairing for this? I don't know. I reached for B&M Reserve Cool.

Today was Aether. Lathered up very quickly felt nice of the skin and was slick. Once lathered, the components of the scent came through and are quite light and clean. As my [first] shave progressed I noticed more and more of the scent and started to appreciate that it was not a full strength in your face scent. The scent of the tub isn't much to write about, but lather it up and give it a chance.

Aftershave pairing for this? I don't know. I reached for B&M Reserve Cool.

My sentiments exactly. Don't give up on the scent. I went with Davidoff Cool Waters as it has Peppermint, citrus and cedarwood plus other elements and these 3 are also in Aether.

Today was Aether. Lathered up very quickly felt nice of the skin and was slick. Once lathered, the components of the scent came through and are quite light and clean. As my [first] shave progressed I noticed more and more of the scent and started to appreciate that it was not a full strength in your face scent. The scent of the tub isn't much to write about, but lather it up and give it a chance.

Aftershave pairing for this? I don't know. I reached for B&M Reserve Cool.

I believe it's really hard to judge my scents by just sniffing the puck. The scents open up greatly once lathered. Interestingly L&L has observed a similar trait with their outstanding soaps! This is from the L&L website

Please note: The initial smell off the puck is significantly different than the full fragrance once lathered. Please do not judge the soap based on the dry smell, as my soap base heavily mutes the mid and top notes, leaving a mostly musky smell. This scent is normal and transforms into its final form once lathered.