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Murphy & McNeil

Garda Síochána

Another winner from Murphy and McNeil - and Ruds! My maiden voyage set sail this afternoon. I quickly whipped up an abundance of slick, protective lather. Very nice ghost lather too. The scent was moderate but very agreeable to my nose.

All things considered ...
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After seeing your post, I was really hoping my Garda was going top show up in todays mail.

Alas, it will have to wait.
 
So my Garda arrived in today’s mail - just after this mornings shave! Lol.

The scent is a little citrusy, and a little gourmand, but not offensive. Will be nice for the hotter time of year at least. Even if I didn’t like it, I would use it regularly if it lives up to expectations for performance. Alas, I will need to wait for another shave to find out.
 
So my Garda arrived in today’s mail - just after this mornings shave! Lol.

The scent is a little citrusy, and a little gourmand, but not offensive. Will be nice for the hotter time of year at least. Even if I didn’t like it, I would use it regularly if it lives up to expectations for performance. Alas, I will need to wait for another shave to find out.

I’m sure it will perform well. The more I use Claddagh, the more I like it. It’s quickly becoming a favorite of mine. Definitely top 1-2 in my den (hard to decide between this and Barrister Reserve).
 
Claddagh is really nice; I find it a very easy soap to make a good lather with and the performance is top notch.

Also I realized the tubs are 5.5oz; really quite a lot of soap considering the price.
 
Can anyone give their take on scent profile of Garda?

Thanks
It seems a little citrusy and a little gourmand for my nose, but I’m really not good at this. The scent isn’t really ringing my bell - I don’t mind it, I would even go so far as to say I like it in a noncommittal kind of way, it’s just not a wow scent.
 
Garda Siochana is a cologne fragrance. As described in a Ruds Shaves video that introduced this soap, it is a scent modeled after Dolce and Gabana Light Blue which is an marine aquatic type of fragrance. The scent notes are mandarin, grapefruit, bergamot, juniper, rosemary, sichuan pepper, rosewood, musk, incense, and oakmoss. Scent strength is mid-strong.

Since it has three different types of citrus, the citrus does come across. The juniper, rosemary and sichuan cerainly add some spice; but I do not consider it to be a "gourmand" type scent as noted by some. I find Garda to be in a style similar to the ADP Colonia inspired scents, but certainly not the same. Like many cologne-inspired scents, the fragrance is complex.

My face is sensitive to grapefruit, but this is so well blended that I have no issue with it.
 

shavefan

I’m not a fan
I almost fished off the samples that I got back in April (Kells, Triskele & Mandate of Heaven). Have been testing for the last 6 weeks.

First, i realize that M&M is pretty popular around here. It is a very nice soap that is extremely easy to lather and all the scents that I sampled were very nice. That said, I don't think I'll be adding M&M to my regular rotation. For some reason we just didn't get along. Even after 6 weeks of shaving with it, I'm not exactly sure why it doesn't work for me, the ingredients list on paper look excellent. But every shave, while certainly not horrible, was "rough" for lack of a better word. I tested all sorts of different lathers, from pasty thick to thin and slick and everything in between, no matter, still not a great shave. Along the way I took a couple "breaks" and shaved with my go to soaps and those shaves were as expected, that is, outstanding.

I was hoping that I'd get to add another artisan to my rotation especially since M&M is based right here in my neck of the woods (Flower Mound, TX). Based on the feedback from other users I'm sure he will do well and I wish Murphy and McNeil nothing but best wishes in the future. But it's time for this shaver to move on...
 
I almost fished off the samples that I got back in April (Kells, Triskele & Mandate of Heaven). Have been testing for the last 6 weeks.

First, i realize that M&M is pretty popular around here. It is a very nice soap that is extremely easy to lather and all the scents that I sampled were very nice. That said, I don't think I'll be adding M&M to my regular rotation. For some reason we just didn't get along. Even after 6 weeks of shaving with it, I'm not exactly sure why it doesn't work for me, the ingredients list on paper look excellent. But every shave, while certainly not horrible, was "rough" for lack of a better word. I tested all sorts of different lathers, from pasty thick to thin and slick and everything in between, no matter, still not a great shave. Along the way I took a couple "breaks" and shaved with my go to soaps and those shaves were as expected, that is, outstanding.

I was hoping that I'd get to add another artisan to my rotation especially since M&M is based right here in my neck of the woods (Flower Mound, TX). Based on the feedback from other users I'm sure he will do well and I wish Murphy and McNeil nothing but best wishes in the future. But it's time for this shaver to move on...
What soaps do you normally go to?

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My current rotation includes: Grooming Dept., Wholly Kaw DM, Speick stick (grated into aluminum dish), CRSW Select, Saponificio Varesino 4.3, MdC, Santa Maria Novella
That helps to understand. One thing that I notice is that the regulars in your rotation are mostly made with EOs and absolutes whereas MMcN is largely made with synthetic fragrance oils. That may be where the roughness comes from.

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shavefan

I’m not a fan
That helps to understand. One thing that I notice is that the regulars in your rotation are mostly made with EOs and absolutes whereas MMcN is largely made with synthetic fragrance oils. That may be where the roughness comes from.

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That is an excellent point, and very possible. It wouldn't be the first time I got rough shaves because of a sensitivity, the traditional Italian croaps were the same for me (benzaldehyde) when I tested them a few years back (Boellis Panama, ABC, Vitos, Cella, etc.)

In my previous post I left out a go to soap of mine: Barrister and Mann Seville, also in my rotation
 
That helps to understand. One thing that I notice is that the regulars in your rotation are mostly made with EOs and absolutes whereas MMcN is largely made with synthetic fragrance oils. That may be where the roughness comes from.

I could be wrong, but I think all soaps makers listed by @shavefan, use fragrance oils (=synthetic), except some GD Janus formula where fragrance is listed as only essential oils/resins, Speick and MDC
 
I could be wrong, but I think all soaps makers listed by @shavefan, use fragrance oils (=synthetic), except some GD Janus formula where fragrance is listed as only essential oils/resins, Speick and MDC
So the ones you mentioned I am in agreement with. I have had a few CRSW selects and I thought they were all EO frags (at least the ones I owned)? I had a couple of simple ones like Bay/Bergamot. If the others use FOs,I stand corrected.

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Hannah's Dad

I Can See Better Than Bigfoot.
Tried a sample of Mandate from Heaven today. Quite slick, and a really pleasant/lighter scent.

I have a few other samples and I’m not ready to award a crown — but I was pleasantly surprised by all aspects of the soap.
 
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