MacDuff's Soap Company

Just updating the scent of Crowsnest Pass from the puck was uninteresting for me, but by no means unpleasant. I'm sorry Sean for my quick impression.

That said, the scent is a classic tobacco-vanilla where I can pick a bit of bay leaf, all from the perspective of an untrained nose.

Performance-wise this soap is with the best tallow soaps.

Not sure what version of soap you have but I’ve found that if you let the tub sit open for about 10 minutes you get a better impression of the actual scent compared to opening the lid and sniffing the soap immediately.  I think that’s more of a thing with v3A.

I used MSC Old Sea Captain soap for today's shave.  It was very nice, lathers beautifully and is plenty slick    Its a nice scent, MacDuff's description is :

Top: Bay Leaf, Tobacco, Sea Salt, Oakmoss, Amber, Patchouli, Bergamot

"The sea complains upon a thousand shores" - Andrew Smith

Old Sea Captain is a bay leaf forward scent that is sweetened with tobacco, bergamot and patchouli, with hints of sea salt and oakmoss. The scent is comparable to our Crowsnest Pass scent, but without the sweet spice notes.

Today was my first use of Trail Tobacco.  This is a very soft soap which I happen to like.  It makes whipping up lather from soap smeared on the bottom of my copper lathering bowl as easy as pie.  I don't stint on the amount of soap I use these days and the soap spread easily on the bowl.  As I worked in drops of lather, the soap went through various consistencies from ropey to Elmer glue to a nice voluminous lather.  When I mistakenly tipped the side of the bowl into water in the sink and putting in a little too much water before the third pass, I simply worked the lather a bit more to incorporate the water.  It never lost its slickness.  Performance was top notch.

The scent is an interesting take on a tobacco leaf scent.  The listed scent notes include tobacco leaf, plum and spice.  I enjoyed it but will have to see how it appeals to me in the fullness of time.  Of some interest was the fact that the scent notes differ in the matching aftershave:  tobacco leaf, lemon zest and spice.  I actually prefer the aftershave version.  My wife commented that it is manly scent, reminding her of her father who smoked cigars regularly.

If you can find a scent you like, MacDuffs is a winner.  Based on limited sampling, I prefer Backcountry Bourbon over Trail Tobacco though that may change over time.

I have a sample of Trail Tobacco that I haven’t tried yet. I think I’ll do that today. 

Today was another use of Backcountry Bourbon. This will not be a full review as I would need to have a few more uses under my belt before I do that. My tub of Backcountry Bourbon is the version with craft beer but my tub of Trail Tobacco is not. It did not go through that ropey phase that Trail Tobacco did as I added water while lathering. It developed more directly into an Elmer's Glue consistency then to a voluminous lather. It was slick and provided a great shave.

I really like the scent on this one. Scent notes include oak, vanilla and cedarwood. It does give the impression of a nice bourbon.

One other point. MacDuffs chooses its ingredients with obvious care. One example is Alberta grass fed beef tallow. I know from experience from putting grass fed beef on the grill that the fat is different in grass fed beef, calling for a lower cooking temperature.

The only thing I don't really like is the tub with the top lip of the jar projecting inward. I prefer a wider tub with flat sides, making it easier to cut a portion with my knife. Otherwise, the label and tub make for a nice presentation with a picture of a snowy scene on the top of the lid. There is a flask presumably containing Dave in KY 's favorite adult beverage buried in the snow in the foreground.

Today was another use of Backcountry Bourbon.  This will not be a full review as I would need to have a few more uses under my belt before I do that.  My tub of Backcountry Bourbon is the version with craft beer but my tub of Trail Tobacco is not.  It did not go through that ropey phase that Trail Tobacco did as I added water while lathering.  It developed more directly into an Elmer's Glue consistency then to a voluminous lather.  It was slick and provided a great shave. 

I really like the scent on this one.  Scent notes include oak, vanilla and cedarwood.  It does give the impression of a nice bourbon.

One other point.  MacDuffs chooses its ingredients with obvious care.  One example is Alberta grass fed beef tallow.  I know from experience from putting grass fed beef on the grill that the fat is different in grass fed beef, calling for a lower cooking temperature.

The only thing I don't really like is the tub with the top lip of the jar projecting inward.  I prefer a wider tub with flat sides, making it easier to cut a portion with my knife.  Otherwise, the label and tub make for a nice presentation with a picture of a snowy scene on the top of the lid.  There is a flask presumably containing Dave in KY 's favorite adult beverage buried in the snow in the foreground.

Thanks for the nice helpful review Glenn. Did your wife write it ? Just kidding buddy, much appreciated !

Thank you for the reviews and thoughts on the soaps Southsider.  The full scent notes on Trail Tobacco are as follows: Lemon Zest, Butterscotch, Spiced Plum, Cured Tobacco Leaf, Vetiver, Vanilla, Cedarwood, Roasted Coffee, Amber.  The plum note on the tub is from prior versions where I emphasized that note in the scent blend--I just missed changing that and will make sure I don't miss that for future labels!

I would love to switch our tubs to the wider version you mentioned--it's been requested a few times now.  Unfortunately, when I was looking at that style of tub this Fall, there was ongoing supply issues especially with the lids. When our current supply of tubs start to run out I will take another look and see if that situation has changed.

Today was another use of Backcountry Bourbon.  This will not be a full review as I would need to have a few more uses under my belt before I do that.  My tub of Backcountry Bourbon is the version with craft beer but my tub of Trail Tobacco is not.  It did not go through that ropey phase that Trail Tobacco did as I added water while lathering.  It developed more directly into an Elmer's Glue consistency then to a voluminous lather.  It was slick and provided a great shave. 

I really like the scent on this one.  Scent notes include oak, vanilla and cedarwood.  It does give the impression of a nice bourbon.

One other point.  MacDuffs chooses its ingredients with obvious care.  One example is Alberta grass fed beef tallow.  I know from experience from putting grass fed beef on the grill that the fat is different in grass fed beef, calling for a lower cooking temperature.

The only thing I don't really like is the tub with the top lip of the jar projecting inward.  I prefer a wider tub with flat sides, making it easier to cut a portion with my knife.  Otherwise, the label and tub make for a nice presentation with a picture of a snowy scene on the top of the lid.  There is a flask presumably containing Dave in KY 's favorite adult beverage buried in the snow in the foreground.

Thanks for the nice helpful review Glenn. Did your wife write it ? Just kidding buddy, much appreciated !

I done writ it. She proofred it.

Today was another use of Backcountry Bourbon.  This will not be a full review as I would need to have a few more uses under my belt before I do that.  My tub of Backcountry Bourbon is the version with craft beer but my tub of Trail Tobacco is not.  It did not go through that ropey phase that Trail Tobacco did as I added water while lathering.  It developed more directly into an Elmer's Glue consistency then to a voluminous lather.  It was slick and provided a great shave. 

I really like the scent on this one.  Scent notes include oak, vanilla and cedarwood.  It does give the impression of a nice bourbon.

One other point.  MacDuffs chooses its ingredients with obvious care.  One example is Alberta grass fed beef tallow.  I know from experience from putting grass fed beef on the grill that the fat is different in grass fed beef, calling for a lower cooking temperature.

The only thing I don't really like is the tub with the top lip of the jar projecting inward.  I prefer a wider tub with flat sides, making it easier to cut a portion with my knife.  Otherwise, the label and tub make for a nice presentation with a picture of a snowy scene on the top of the lid.  There is a flask presumably containing Dave in KY 's favorite adult beverage buried in the snow in the foreground.

Thanks for the nice helpful review Glenn. Did your wife write it ?  Just kidding buddy, much appreciated !

I done writ it.  She proofred it.

MacDuff's Backcountry Bourbon /with a shot of Elijah Craig over the rocks accompanying the shave...perfect