QED American Gent Glycerin Soap

I have been shaving with American Gent for 9 months and find the scent as tantalizing as the day it arrived. A unique blend that should be in everyone’s shave den. Packaging –The soap is packaged in a heavy plastic tub that makes a tight seal when closed. Price – The tub is currently selling for $19.95 and the shave stick is $12.50. I prefer tubs but as a travel item or just to sample without the commitment of a full tub the stick maybe a better choice. I travel with a shave stick of Pine & Cedarwood and like Charles’s use of a twist bottom to raise the soap instead of a push type tube system. Some would say a bit pricey for glycerin soap but as Charles uses only essential oils I consider the cost reasonable. Quality – This is as fine a product as you will find. As we all know Charles is somewhat obsessive about quality. I prefer tallow based soaps but as a glycerin soap it has no peers. Scent – This is clearly a rose/sandalwood soap with something underneath which kicks it up the refinement scale. The rose alone would draw me to the soap but here it is intertwined in a supporting role. Charles ability to balance these scents demonstrates how the sum of the parts can be grater than the individual fragrance. Lather - Lather is outstanding. I face lather and have no difficult in loading my brush so I can complete a three pass shave. Efficacy – I rate efficacy as a value of slickness and smoothness, which allows the blade to glide across my skin. It performs well in this category. Good cushion and great slickness whether I am using my slant or Futur. Moisturizing – In this category I would rate it average. I rinse my face after each pass, before I re-lather, and my face has never felt dry. I have oily skin so I don’t know how good a judge I am in the area. I would highly recommend any of the soaps Charles makes. If you have an affinity for complex scents and a feeling for lost sophistication this is a must have. A shave with American Gent followed with SCS Savoy Rose aftershave or maybe Castle Forbes Cedarwood & Sandalwood Balm will kick start any day.

Here's a thread I started to introduce American Gent to B&B: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=170739

No, Charles doesn't have me on the payroll!

The description on the QED site of this new scent was a bit vague, so I decided to send him an e-mail for a little more depth...

"I don't want to go into a lot of specifics about the scent other than to say I tried to create something I felt would have appealed to men who lived during an era which, for me, represents the pinnacle of men's fashion (and deportment) in America. (I am certain some chaps will want to argue this point from a couple different perspectives ... so be it.) American Gent is a very complex formula ... it contains Sandalwood, but Sandalwood from 3 different countries that are interwoven with an intriguing blend of essential oils that produce the perfect rose; underneath, a dry citrus along with delighful hebal notes. I love all natural scents but, for me, the most exciting ones are complex blends (containing several essential oils) because they play with your nose by constantly changing."

Still not too deep, but I couldn't resist after he mentioned both sandalwood AND rose

I've now had the pleasure of shaving with American Gent, and can honestly say that it's immediately on my "must order again" list.

Price - Aboot $20 bucks. Yes, expensive for a glycerin soap; but, if I thought it was too much, I wouldn't have bought it.

Quality - It's QED.

Scent - NOW here comes the fun stuff!

Out of the jar, sandalwood and rose are riding shotgun with the dry citrus and herbs laying in the back. However, once lathered up, I think rose becomes much more predominant, but the sandalwood is still there, holding steady. Once you splash some hot water on the top and get to swirling, the entire bathroom becomes filled with this wonderful aroma that will likely become illegal once the government hears about it.

If you love rose and/or sandalwood, you must buy now. If you're not sure, you must buy now. Why? Because I said so, isn't that a good enough reason?

Seriously, though, I say that because there's not too much rose to make it too "feminine", whatever that means. What, so my shaving soap has ti... err, get real! The sandalwood, dry citrus and herbs are there to make you feel comfortable in your manhood, you confused little person, you.

Lather - Again, it's QED; stop asking.

Efficacy - Geesh, you just won't stop, will you?

Moisturizing - I don't care.

Knowing how great rose and sandalwood oils are for the skin, I chose to forego aftershave and can say that my skin is doing JUST fine, thank you. The rose and sandalwood are working their magic and my face feels great!

Another winner from Charles. I'll stop repeating myself now.