Do Stirling Menthol Soaps Have a Scent That Lingers?

[Wgg2017]

Pretty much just what the title says. I used Iced Pineapple soap and aftershave recently and they are my only mentholated products. About 20 minutes after the shave the pineapple scent faded away and what was left was an unpleasant smell that I don’t really know how to describe other than to say it had a kind of chemical/synthetic smell to it. Nothing like the soap at all. The smell seemed stronger from the aftershave than the soap.

Was it the menthol that I was smelling and do all Stirling menthol soaps/aftershaves contain that scent? If so, are there any other mentholated products that don’t have that smell?

 

[redrako]

As a general rule, citrus oils such as pineapple, lemon, orange etc. are very volatile meaning the scents dissipate quickly.

For me, I enjoy Stirling's Iced/Glacial scents while I'm shaving, and a short while afterwards.

 

[Wgg2017]

Yes, but does the menthol itself have a scent that lingers? The only thing I can think of that I was smelling was the menthol and it wasn’t very pleasant.

 

[geneaut]

Yes, but does the menthol itself have a scent that lingers? The only thing I can think of that I was smelling was the menthol and it wasn’t very pleasant.

Menthol is naturally produced from oil of mint plants so I've always detected a faint whiff of that from some menthol products, but beyond that I don't recall them being very strongly scented.

 

[Barbarian80]

Menthol definitely has its own weird scent. You either like it or you don't. If you don't like the chemical menthol scent then Stirling glacial isn't for you- they're all basically the same. Menthol significantly changes the scent profile and i doubt there's a single person out there that thinks its for the better. Some artisans use other cooling agents that have less effect on the scent profile than menthol. Stirling uses menthol, for better or worse.

 

[Wgg2017]

Menthol definitely has its own weird scent. You either like it or you don't. If you don't like the chemical menthol scent then Stirling glacial isn't for you- they're all basically the same. Menthol significantly changes the scent profile and i doubt there's a single person out there that thinks its for the better. Some artisans use other cooling agents that have less effect on the scent profile than menthol. Stirling uses menthol, for better or worse.

Good to know and I’ll avoid the Stirling glacial/iced line going forward. Off the top of your head, do you know any soap makers who use an alternative to menthol that don’t have the lingering bad smell?

Edited to add: I see that Stirling lists menthol as an ingredient. Are there any words/ingredients other than menthol that I should look for and avoid?

 

[Lockback]

I've used Stirling's Margaritas In The Arctic pretty extensively and haven't ever noticed any weird after-scent. But my sense of smell admittedly is not the in the Superman category.

 

[Wgg2017]

I've used Stirling's Margaritas In The Arctic pretty extensively and haven't ever noticed any weird after-scent. But my sense of smell admittedly is not the in the Superman category.

I noticed it more from the aftershave than the soap. And now that I have that memory in my brain I can’t help but pick it up in the soap also, even though it is much more mild.

 

[Barbarian80]

Good to know and I’ll avoid the Stirling glacial/iced line going forward. Off the top of your head, do you know any soap makers who use an alternative to menthol that don’t have the lingering bad smell?

Edited to add: I see that Stirling lists menthol as an ingredient. Are there any words/ingredients other than menthol that I should look for and avoid?

Look for synthetic cooling agents. Though not convenient, you might even be able to purchase separately and add into your lather. Noble otter lists Koolada in their ingredients list of some soap (Orbit is one scent that has it). Only other one I've tried is from Summer Break (Cannonball). Whatever cooling agent they used was super nice feeling and didn't stink.

 

[Albert V]

I have used Stirling Glacial Citron soap and do not recall menthol scent lingering. Soap scent was nice but fades within 10-20 minutes. i also use Stirling non-alcoholic witch hazel in Lemon Chill scent, and also Stirling Glacial Unscented Balm, and Glacial Lemon Chill balm. No lingering menthol scent