Newbie Questions RE: Bay Rum

[nesta]

So, I've heard (mostly through online marketing blurbs about products) that Bay Rum has often been used for a number of things, not simply an aftershave. First aid, general refreshing, during prohibition as a consumable (yikes!), and interestingly as an additive to bath water.

Have any of you tried these things? What do you think? I have a hard time imagining cutting myself in the kitchen and thinking "quick! get the aftershave!" rather than more ordinary first aid supplies. What about bath water? That might be kind of relaxing, getting a nice smelling bath going. Perhaps a more masculine version of ladies' bath oils and such.

I'm also wondering about what "real" bay rum smells like. As I understand it, West Indian bay is quite a different animal than Mediterranean bay, and has a somewhat spicy smell. But I also hear that often spices are added to bay rum, too. The only BR I've ever smelled is the bottle of Master Bay Rum I got at Sally's the other day, because so far it's all I've seen locally. It looks pretty dang cheap, but I like the aroma and the feel on my skin after a shave. How does it stack up to more "genuine" bay rums like Dominica or whatever?

 

[wsteineker]

For my money, Dominica's the way to go. It has a very fresh bay smell that's uncomplicated by the addition of too many extra scents. The most common knock on the product, though, is that it's a fleeting scent. I'm afraid that's true. That said, the scent is decidedly less done up than the bottle of Master's you've found. It's a clean, natural scent as opposed to Master's, which smells spicier and more synthetic to my nose. The other big names around these parts are Clubman (though I don't think it's even as good as Master's), Ogallala, and Royal, and Captain's Choice. I'm sure there are a couple more that I've missed, but these (along with Dominica) seem to make up the bulk of the conversation. You could always head over to Barclay Crocker and check out their bay rum sampler. It contains 23 one ounce samples of various common and not so common bay rums for $24.95. If you can't find your scent in there, then there's a really good chance that you just don't like bay rum. Good luck on your hunt!

 

[Mick]

Only used it as an aftershave product.

Typically I will blend Master and Pinaud in my hand for a nicer scent than either alone

 

[bassopotamus]

I havent' done any of those things. The bath Idea is kind of intriguing, but it seems like it would be pretty expensive to use enough to make the smell like much of anything.

There seems to be quite a bit of variety in what people call bay rum scent. I've tried about a half dozen and they are all over the map. Two of my faves- Ogalala Original and Bay Rum, Lime and Peppercorns, are real outliers. The first smells kind of like eggnog, the second just smells like lime. Both are awesome, neither smell like anything else I've tried that is labelled bay rum. Of what I've got, Captains choice and Dominica seem to be the closest to bay rum as I understand it, though I like Captains Choice much better than Dominica. I've got a bottle of Masters, and to me it smells more powdery than anything. Nice scent, but not much like bay rum.