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Gentleman's Nod Soap Review

An interesting name for a soap. Apparently this name in in homage to the show of respect one gentleman shows for another by a nod of the head or tip of the hat. This soap is the work of an rookie artisan soapmaker from Omaha, NE.

Some soaps have names, some have numbers. These soaps are given both a name and a number. There are apparently two formulation: the original dark grey label soaps that are vegan based and a newer red label that is tallow based. Since I tend to prefer tallow soaps, I chose the red label formula. The only soap currently available in that formula is No. 11 Vincent which is a gentleman's nod to the famous painter Vincent Van Gogh.

The scent notes are: Bergamot, Lavender, Bitter Almond, Cypress, and Vetiver. The scents are so well blended that I could not distinguish any of the individual notes. The scent strength was a little less than mid-strong, both off the puck and after lathering. the scent has a little something for everyone.

The ingredient list contains all the superstars of artisan soaps:

Aqua (Water), Beef Tallow, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Garcinia Indica Seed (Kokum) Butter, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Glycerin, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Fragrance, Sodium Lactate, Raw Honey, Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Allantoin, Bentonite Clay, Goat Milk, Silk Amino Acids, Arnica Extract, Lanolin, Tocopherol (Natural Vitamin E), Sodium Phytate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrodyethylcellulose.

I consider the soap to be firm in texture. It certainly cannot be called a hard soap as it can be dented with a finger, but this does require some pressure.

The soap was easy to load. A 20 second load time with a 26mm synthetic brush produced enough lather for a five pass shave. I will cut back to a 15 second load next time. The soap was easy to lather. It took me less than 60 seconds to generate a great lather with small bubble size. The lather was somewhere between whipped cream and sour creme in consistency. Thus, loading and lathering each get 10/10 ratings.

The primary slickness was at elite level (10/10). The residual slickness was just a little less than elite (9/10). The cushion/protection was elite (10/10).

Considering the ingredient list in the soap, I was anticipating that the post shave feel might be at the elite level. However, it fell just a little short. I gave it a 9/10 on this metric.

Thus, if you add up the points you get a total of 58 points out of 60.. The elite soaps in my den score at 60 points.

When evaluating soaps, I generally do not consider price point. However, I have to mention it in the case of this soap. The red label Vincent soap currently costs $27 per 4 oz tub. That makes it one of the more expensive soaps in my den alongside Wholly Kaw Sandhurst, Italian Holiday and King of Bourbon. I rate these Bufala base soaps as exceptional. I believe this price point is somewhat ambitious for Gentleman's Nod considering that there are better performing soaps priced at $20 and under. To warrant a price over $25, a soap needs to be truly exceptional in both scent and performance. While Vincent is an excellent shaving soap, it is not exceptional.

The Gentleman's Nod dark gray label vegan formula is priced at $20. If the performance is similar, it may represent a better value.

Although I enjoyed using Vincent and plan to keep it in my den for regular use, I will not be in any hurry to add other Gentleman's Nod soaps to my den at the current price points. If the pricing becomes more competitive, I would reconsider that position.
 
Great review - I think I’ll pass bcs I too believe the price is on the high end - especially for a new brand that’s not yet proven to be elite.


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An interesting name for a soap. Apparently this name in in homage to the show of respect one gentleman shows for another by a nod of the head or tip of the hat. This soap is the work of an rookie artisan soapmaker from Omaha, NE.

Some soaps have names, some have numbers. These soaps are given both a name and a number. There are apparently two formulation: the original dark grey label soaps that are vegan based and a newer red label that is tallow based. Since I tend to prefer tallow soaps, I chose the red label formula. The only soap currently available in that formula is No. 11 Vincent which is a gentleman's nod to the famous painter Vincent Van Gogh.

The scent notes are: Bergamot, Lavender, Bitter Almond, Cypress, and Vetiver. The scents are so well blended that I could not distinguish any of the individual notes. The scent strength was a little less than mid-strong, both off the puck and after lathering. the scent has a little something for everyone.

The ingredient list contains all the superstars of artisan soaps:

Aqua (Water), Beef Tallow, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Garcinia Indica Seed (Kokum) Butter, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Glycerin, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Fragrance, Sodium Lactate, Raw Honey, Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Allantoin, Bentonite Clay, Goat Milk, Silk Amino Acids, Arnica Extract, Lanolin, Tocopherol (Natural Vitamin E), Sodium Phytate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrodyethylcellulose.

I consider the soap to be firm in texture. It certainly cannot be called a hard soap as it can be dented with a finger, but this does require some pressure.

The soap was easy to load. A 20 second load time with a 26mm synthetic brush produced enough lather for a five pass shave. I will cut back to a 15 second load next time. The soap was easy to lather. It took me less than 60 seconds to generate a great lather with small bubble size. The lather was somewhere between whipped cream and sour creme in consistency. Thus, loading and lathering each get 10/10 ratings.

The primary slickness was at elite level (10/10). The residual slickness was just a little less than elite (9/10). The cushion/protection was elite (10/10).

Considering the ingredient list in the soap, I was anticipating that the post shave feel might be at the elite level. However, it fell just a little short. I gave it a 9/10 on this metric.

Thus, if you add up the points you get a total of 58 points out of 60.. The elite soaps in my den score at 60 points.

When evaluating soaps, I generally do not consider price point. However, I have to mention it in the case of this soap. The red label Vincent soap currently costs $27 per 4 oz tub. That makes it one of the more expensive soaps in my den alongside Wholly Kaw Sandhurst, Italian Holiday and King of Bourbon. I rate these Bufala base soaps as exceptional. I believe this price point is somewhat ambitious for Gentleman's Nod considering that there are better performing soaps priced at $20 and under. To warrant a price over $25, a soap needs to be truly exceptional in both scent and performance. While Vincent is an excellent shaving soap, it is not exceptional.

The Gentleman's Nod dark gray label vegan formula is priced at $20. If the performance is similar, it may represent a better value.

Although I enjoyed using Vincent and plan to keep it in my den for regular use, I will not be in any hurry to add other Gentleman's Nod soaps to my den at the current price points. If the pricing becomes more competitive, I would reconsider that position.


Thanks for the review. I agree. The price is a little steep for a relatively unknown brand.
 
An interesting name for a soap. Apparently this name in in homage to the show of respect one gentleman shows for another by a nod of the head or tip of the hat. This soap is the work of an rookie artisan soapmaker from Omaha, NE.

Some soaps have names, some have numbers. These soaps are given both a name and a number. There are apparently two formulation: the original dark grey label soaps that are vegan based and a newer red label that is tallow based. Since I tend to prefer tallow soaps, I chose the red label formula. The only soap currently available in that formula is No. 11 Vincent which is a gentleman's nod to the famous painter Vincent Van Gogh.

The scent notes are: Bergamot, Lavender, Bitter Almond, Cypress, and Vetiver. The scents are so well blended that I could not distinguish any of the individual notes. The scent strength was a little less than mid-strong, both off the puck and after lathering. the scent has a little something for everyone.

The ingredient list contains all the superstars of artisan soaps:

Aqua (Water), Beef Tallow, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Garcinia Indica Seed (Kokum) Butter, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Glycerin, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Fragrance, Sodium Lactate, Raw Honey, Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Allantoin, Bentonite Clay, Goat Milk, Silk Amino Acids, Arnica Extract, Lanolin, Tocopherol (Natural Vitamin E), Sodium Phytate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Hydrodyethylcellulose.

I consider the soap to be firm in texture. It certainly cannot be called a hard soap as it can be dented with a finger, but this does require some pressure.

The soap was easy to load. A 20 second load time with a 26mm synthetic brush produced enough lather for a five pass shave. I will cut back to a 15 second load next time. The soap was easy to lather. It took me less than 60 seconds to generate a great lather with small bubble size. The lather was somewhere between whipped cream and sour creme in consistency. Thus, loading and lathering each get 10/10 ratings.

The primary slickness was at elite level (10/10). The residual slickness was just a little less than elite (9/10). The cushion/protection was elite (10/10).

Considering the ingredient list in the soap, I was anticipating that the post shave feel might be at the elite level. However, it fell just a little short. I gave it a 9/10 on this metric.

Thus, if you add up the points you get a total of 58 points out of 60.. The elite soaps in my den score at 60 points.

When evaluating soaps, I generally do not consider price point. However, I have to mention it in the case of this soap. The red label Vincent soap currently costs $27 per 4 oz tub. That makes it one of the more expensive soaps in my den alongside Wholly Kaw Sandhurst, Italian Holiday and King of Bourbon. I rate these Bufala base soaps as exceptional. I believe this price point is somewhat ambitious for Gentleman's Nod considering that there are better performing soaps priced at $20 and under. To warrant a price over $25, a soap needs to be truly exceptional in both scent and performance. While Vincent is an excellent shaving soap, it is not exceptional.

The Gentleman's Nod dark gray label vegan formula is priced at $20. If the performance is similar, it may represent a better value.

Although I enjoyed using Vincent and plan to keep it in my den for regular use, I will not be in any hurry to add other Gentleman's Nod soaps to my den at the current price points. If the pricing becomes more competitive, I would reconsider that position.



Thank you very much for the review !!!!
 
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