I went through a phase about a year ago where I bought and tried most of the popular creams I saw people recommending, wanting to figure out which was best (irrgardless of cost). I was surprised and slightly disappointed to conclude that Proraso Blue was on par or better than everything else I tried. I was hoping to fall in love with something more interesting and exotic. To date, Proraso Blue (and occasionally Proraso Green) is my go-to cream and I don't bother with any of the others.