Proraso red (as far as I know) still contains real sandalwood oil. It's just a smidgen, given the price of Proraso, but there nonetheless.Interesting thread. I've only been here six years, but started using traditional shaving soaps and creams rather than the can o' foam well before that. IMO, the biggest change over the years has been the proliferation of new DE razors, including at the top of the high end. Trends in soaps as seen at B&B seem to be more of a fashion thing, much like, pardon the unmanly reference, perfumes. I found and tried Proraso early on as it was for sale locally on the shelves (no longer) and for only $5 (again, no longer). When I joined here, Proraso was still considered great stuff, especially for shaving soap beginners. Not so much any more, though I still like and use it. The artisan soaps seem to have taken over most of the discussion.
I've noticed other trends. For example, sandalwood soaps once were very popular, or at least provoked much discussion. I rarely see them mentioned now. That's fine with me, as the only sandalwood soap I've tried that has what I consider the genuine scent is the Mysore brand from India, and that is only available as bath soap. But I'm sure they will return to fashion some day.
Between the rising cost of sandalwood oil, EU perfume restrictions, and the tendency of synthetic Sandalwood scents to cause allergic reactions, I'm not surprised to see Sandalwood falling by the wayside as a scent base.
...disappointed, but not surprised.
Edit: It wouldn't surprise me in the least if Proraso sells more soap and cream than all the American "artisans" combined. Just because it doesn't get hyped up, doesn't mean it doesn't get used by millions of traditional wet shavers who just don't care enough about wet shaving to make it a hobby like we do.