Barrister and Mann's "Excelsior" base has been discontinued.

[BradWorld]

I highlighted the Excelsior symbol with a yellow circle.

This is quite interesting. And I’m not sure it holds true with newer bases. I got into a bit of a discussion with Will very recently about how to tell which base is excelsior versus the new hardened softheart as the ingredient list and labels are exactly the same. I had bought a modified softheart 42 and thought the vendor sent me old stock excelsior because the label is identical to the excelsior version. So I ordered another one directly from B&M, and it was identical. I reached out to Will for clarification. He did NOT mention anything about any symbols. And it was a bit of a back and forth, and I sort of accused him of not updating his labels, to which he may have taken a wee bit of offense. Lol. I would think if there was a symbol to identify the base, he would have said so right away instead of getting into a lengthy discussion. In the end, he told me that there would have been zero old stock excelsior 42 at this particular vendor, and that both of my new tubs were the new modified softheart. So I never did get a definitive resolution, except word from Will that the ingredient list is legitimately identical. And yes, the new modified softheart is amazing. But now the plot thickens. I am on the road, and can’t check my 42 tubs for the symbol. The suspense is going to torture me the whole plane ride back now!

 

[B_R_A_D]

This is quite interesting. And I’m not sure it holds true with newer bases. I got into a bit of a discussion with Will very recently about how to tell which base is excelsior versus the new hardened softheart as the ingredient list and labels are exactly the same. I had bought a modified softheart 42 and thought the vendor sent me old stock excelsior because the label is identical to the excelsior version. So I ordered another one directly from B&M, and it was identical. I reached out to Will for clarification. He did NOT mention anything about any symbols. And it was a bit of a back and forth, and I sort of accused him of not updating his labels, to which he may have taken a wee bit of offense. Lol. I would think if there was a symbol to identify the base, he would have said so right away instead of getting into a lengthy discussion. In the end, he told me that there would have been zero old stock excelsior 42 at this particular vendor, and that both of my new tubs were the new modified softheart. So I never did get a definitive resolution, except word from Will that the ingredient list is legitimately identical. And yes, the new modified softheart is amazing. But now the plot thickens. I am on the road, and can’t check my 42 tubs for the symbol. The suspense is going to torture me the whole plane ride back now!

Hmm, interesting. I didn’t get the information from Will but from a vendor that sells B&M (I won’t name the vendor to avoid any possible issues between them and Will) when I was curious what base a soap was. There are some Youtube videos that point to the symbol on the bottom that I circled and state it’s Excelsior as that symbol is on it, but again they aren’t Will so that could be hearsay. Part of the confusion could be from Will having that symbol on his site as the Excelsior symbol On the Subject of Excelsior - https://www.barristerandmann.com/blogs/mannscents/on-the-subject-of-excelsior


My guess (no proof, just a guess) is that they’ve had that symbol on the tubs for years and he may have forgotten to remove them when he started making the modified softheart as all his other packages are clear what they are (Reserve says reserve and the soft heart LE’s before modified softheart had softheart written on them).

Well if Will says there is no symbols to differentiate the bases then I’d believe him over any of us on the internet, he knows his products better then anybody. Sorry for any confusion I caused and any issues I caused between you and Will.

 

[Contact_vs_Feedback]

I have B&M Hallows and it doesn't have any such markings anywhere.




It was purchased last year around October, which base is it?
I'm asking because I'd love to get another Hallows in the same base if possible.

 

[tyoung]

I believe last years Hallows was in Soft Heart. Most online retailers still have it in stock I have seen. You may want to grab it now as Will said Hallows is not coming out this year.

 

[Barbarian80]

That is the original softheart Hallows. Just took it out and shaved with it. I love it.

 

[BradWorld]

Hmm, interesting. I didn’t get the information from Will but from a vendor that sells B&M (I won’t name the vendor to avoid any possible issues between them and Will) when I was curious what base a soap was. There are some Youtube videos that point to the symbol on the bottom that I circled and state it’s Excelsior as that symbol is on it, but again they aren’t Will so that could be hearsay. Part of the confusion could be from Will having that symbol on his site as the Excelsior symbol On the Subject of Excelsior - https://www.barristerandmann.com/blogs/mannscents/on-the-subject-of-excelsior
View attachment 1333005

My guess (no proof, just a guess) is that they’ve had that symbol on the tubs for years and he may have forgotten to remove them when he started making the modified softheart as all his other packages are clear what they are (Reserve says reserve and the soft heart LE’s before modified softheart had softheart written on them).

Well if Will says there is no symbols to differentiate the bases then I’d believe him over any of us on the internet, he knows his products better then anybody. Sorry for any confusion I caused and any issues I caused between you and Will.

I just got home and checked my 42 in the modified softheart as confirmed by Will. It does indeed have that same symbol on the label. So Will must be reusing the labels from Excelsior on other bases. He did say that the ingredient list is the same between softheart and excelsior, just the formulations are different. So it makes sense. But this completely invalidates that the symbol indicates excelsior base.

 

[Southsider]

Omnibus is the name of the new base and it will come out in its first iteration with the new version of Leviathan on 9/28. I suspect that Will is fooling himself when he says that this is it going forward i.e. no other new base to take its place. He states:

"One week from today, Tuesday, September 28th, we will be releasing Leviathan shaving soap, aftershave splash, aftershave balm, bath soap (timing may vary; see below), and EdT (timing may vary; see below). But there are some pretty serious notes here!

1. Leviathan marks the debut of our brand new soap base, Omnibus, which has been in development for a year and a half. This will eventually become the standard for ALL of our shaving soaps, including Barrister's Reserve, and is lanolin-free, extremely slick, and boasts a post-shave feel like nothing else I have ever encountered. That said, one minor note related to its color: the botanical additives in the soap render it extremely dark, but we will be correcting the occurrence in all future batches of soap. There is no risk of brush discoloration; the color is purely a cosmetic issue. However, other than that, I consider it to be the most perfect soap base that I have ever produced, and I do not expect to be developing any other shaving soap bases going forward. This is it, folks. Smile Soap will be priced at 19.99 per jar.

2. The aftershave splash, like all of our new aftershave releases, will use the Barrister's Reserve base, henceforth referred to as just "aftershave." Splash will be priced at 19.99 per bottle.

3. I have made a few minor changes to my aftershave balm formula, including the addition of highly-moisturizing cupuacu butter (which can absorb 2.5X more water than lanolin and poses no allergen risk) and will be debuting the new version with Leviathan. Also, in response to feedback, we are increasing the size to 4 oz bottles with lotion pumps as opposed to our previous 2 oz jars. Balm will be priced at 17.99 per bottle.

4. EdT bottles have not yet arrived but are expected later this week, and we are currently awaiting labels for Leviathan bar soap as well. This will also mark the debut of my brand new vegetable oil/goat milk bar soap base, which provides exemplary skin feel and moisture without the "ick" factor of a beef tallow bath soap. That said, this new base is vegetarian, not vegan, owing to the including of goat milk in the formula. Either way, it's excellent, and you should absolutely try it out. EdT, if available for launch, will be priced at 31.99, and will be released as soon as possible if not available for launch. Bath soap will be priced at 6.99 owing to an increase in ingredient costs.

For those wondering about availability, Leviathan will be available only from our website on Tuesday, but we will be shipping stock to any and all retailers who request it very shortly thereafter. As per usual, we will be producing Leviathan through the end of the year. "

 

[carm10]

I suspect that Will is fooling himself when he says that this is it going forward i.e. no other new base to take its place.

I had the same thought. If, say, Declaration Grooming comes out with a new base a year from now, and people declare it a new peak in post-shave, etc, will Will be able to resist? But on the other hand, he has always said that eventually he wants to be working in perfumes full time, because he doesn't think that the wetshaving market is reliable enough to support small businesses indefinitely. If he really stopped experimenting with bases (not just the soap but the splash and balm too), then that would no doubt free up time for fragrance projects.

 

[bobmsp]

I had the same thought. If, say, Declaration Grooming comes out with a new base a year from now, and people declare it a new peak in post-shave, etc, will Will be able to resist? But on the other hand, he has always said that eventually he wants to be working in perfumes full time, because he doesn't think that the wetshaving market is reliable enough to support small businesses indefinitely. If he really stopped experimenting with bases (not just the soap but the splash and balm too), then that would no doubt free up time for fragrance projects.

This was my theory as well. If the bases are set he can just work on scents and non- shaving fragrances.

 

[Barbarian80]

The entire concept of forever tweaking soap bases is silly. Ultimately, it's soap you shave with. People still happily shave with canned barbasol. Save a stripper popping out of my shave soap tub and doing a dance for me before my shave, i don't care about the latest soap tech. If i like your soap and your business model then you get my money.

 

[Southsider]

Save a stripper popping out of my shave soap tub and doing a dance for me before my shave

The Gypsy Rose Lee Base?

 

[SterFry]

I had the same thought. If, say, Declaration Grooming comes out with a new base a year from now, and people declare it a new peak in post-shave, etc, will Will be able to resist? But on the other hand, he has always said that eventually he wants to be working in perfumes full time, because he doesn't think that the wetshaving market is reliable enough to support small businesses indefinitely. If he really stopped experimenting with bases (not just the soap but the splash and balm too), then that would no doubt free up time for fragrance projects.

Even if this is his final base, it would take a long time and a LOT of progress in other brands bases to knock Barrister soaps from "excellent" down to even "very good".

 

[Balthier]

I wasn't aware the B&M aftershave splashes had a base.

 

[BradWorld]

I wasn't aware the B&M aftershave splashes had a base.

I think Will just calls the basic solution pre-fragrance a “base”. I’ve heard him use that term before. But really haven’t heard anyone else refer to it as that.

 

[Balthier]

I think Will just calls the basic solution pre-fragrance a “base”. I’ve heard him use that term before. But really haven’t heard anyone else refer to it as that.

2. The aftershave splash, like all of our new aftershave releases, will use the Barrister's Reserve base, henceforth referred to as just "aftershave." Splash will be priced at 19.99 per bottle.

Yeah I guess it's weird that he does that then and calls it reserve which seems to refer to his reserve soap base.