I own eight bay rums, and have used most of them for at least a decade. I prefer the smoother, less clovey versions over the heavy clove-like Pinaud VIBR. My favorites are St. John's, Taylor on Bond Street, and Trumpers. They are rich, slightly boozy and mildly spiced. On the opposite side are the clove-heavy VIBR, Ogallala, and Gabel's. If I learned anything from my bay rum splurge of years ago, is the richer scented ones are more pleasing to me.
Please recommend me Bay Rum fragrances
- Thread starter Vincentchou
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@jeffm54321 please share your expertise, sir.
I have tried a lot of Bay Rums over the past few years. The ones that stayed:
Soaps: Barrister and Mann, Stirling, Mike's, Turtleship, Chiseled Face
Splashes: Barrister and Mann, Rooster's Nest, DR Harris
Soaps: Barrister and Mann, Stirling, Mike's, Turtleship, Chiseled Face
Splashes: Barrister and Mann, Rooster's Nest, DR Harris
Here's the Bay Rums in my rotation.
Left to Right -
Bootleggers Original Bay Rum AS - Great daily performer! Very low cost for what you get, so you can afford to really bathe in it!
Bootleggers Lime Bay Rum AS - Ditto but with Lime.
Pinaud VIBR AS - This one is 1/3 of the Bootlegger's recipe, so I rarely wear this on it's own but I love the glass bottle.
AVON Bay Rum AS - Very pleasant and simple. Bordering on medicinal and doesn't last too long, but I still love it.
Ogallala Double Strength Bay Rum Cologne - BURNS! Very strong and long-lasting.
St John’s Bay Rum (Virgin Islands 4oz) - Phenomenal scent, very complex and almost creamy if that makes any sense.
St John’s Bay Rum (West Indies 8oz) - Slightly different scent profile than the VI version, but still incredible.
PAA Atomic Age Bay Rum AS - Really pleasant, and I definitely get that root beer note mentioned before.
Royall Bay Rhum 57 Eau de Toilette - This has that creamy and spicy feel, and the only one where I can note cinnamon.
Ogallala and Royall are the longest lasting
Left to Right -
Bootleggers Original Bay Rum AS - Great daily performer! Very low cost for what you get, so you can afford to really bathe in it!
Bootleggers Lime Bay Rum AS - Ditto but with Lime.
Pinaud VIBR AS - This one is 1/3 of the Bootlegger's recipe, so I rarely wear this on it's own but I love the glass bottle.
AVON Bay Rum AS - Very pleasant and simple. Bordering on medicinal and doesn't last too long, but I still love it.
Ogallala Double Strength Bay Rum Cologne - BURNS! Very strong and long-lasting.
St John’s Bay Rum (Virgin Islands 4oz) - Phenomenal scent, very complex and almost creamy if that makes any sense.
St John’s Bay Rum (West Indies 8oz) - Slightly different scent profile than the VI version, but still incredible.
PAA Atomic Age Bay Rum AS - Really pleasant, and I definitely get that root beer note mentioned before.
Royall Bay Rhum 57 Eau de Toilette - This has that creamy and spicy feel, and the only one where I can note cinnamon.
Ogallala and Royall are the longest lasting
Bay Rum is what got me into wet shaving. So glad to see so many folks making suggestions. Warms the ole' Bay Rum heart!
Barrister and Mann. It's great for those too with sensitive skin. No clove!
DR Harris is another one that is well balanced with much lighter on the cloves and stronger on the other notes.
absolutely. Bay Rum might be one of the unique all around scents. I find it equally suitable to black tie evenings or walks on a caribbean bench with a fufu umbrella drink in your hand
My favorite bay rum is a mix of all my bay rums. I keep a little bottle and add to it as it disappears. It is kind of constantly changing depending on what gets added to it.
That's so different from all the other Bay Rums out there, that 99% of people use, that it's almost a totally different "thing".
you will smell like a Christmas pudding for days - don't say you weren't warned
*cough*
EclipseRedRing
I smell like a Christmas pudding
I have only just noticed! Brilliant!
I had not considered that that was so, but you may well be correct. That the original bay rum does not have very much to do with what goes by bay rum nowadays. Good point.
I'm trying to think of a good analogy. The first that comes to mind is the use of "fake crab" in sushi ... people get so accustomed to that (especially in North America) and sushi roll recipes get attuned to the taste of that product that when you get real crab substituted it seems ... strange.
(Or maybe Chicago deep dish and Dominoes is now more "what pizza is" than an actual, authentic margherita.)
Interesting analogies. I would have thought that things that label themselves bay rum would have some real bay tree leaf extract in them. But maybe not. The smell of that extract is the distinct bay rum smell most folks would identify as bay rum. But if folks want some combination of cinnamon and cloves and artificial ingredients instead, who am I to object!
I wonder if Califorina rolls were actually originally made with real or artificial crab.
Funny how for some things we really care about things authenticity. We apparently want Scotch to be made in Scotland from malted barley, mostly, and aged in wood for a certain time.
I wonder if Califorina rolls were actually originally made with real or artificial crab.
Funny how for some things we really care about things authenticity. We apparently want Scotch to be made in Scotland from malted barley, mostly, and aged in wood for a certain time.
St John's always irritates my skin. Great scent though.
CzechCzar
Use the Fat, Luke!
CzechCzar
Use the Fat, Luke!
Alright, I have found this thread to bump rather than creating a new one.
I have and love Bootlegger's. It is pretty much the perfect smelling scent. I am now looking for something to complement it.
I don't know whether it is considered clovey. What ever it is is incredible.
But now I want something with more staying power. Not that will offend co-workers, but just that I can smell on myself.
The short list contains Atomic Abe, Stirling, and Thor's hammer.
Is anyone able to compare these three??
I have and love Bootlegger's. It is pretty much the perfect smelling scent. I am now looking for something to complement it.
I don't know whether it is considered clovey. What ever it is is incredible.
But now I want something with more staying power. Not that will offend co-workers, but just that I can smell on myself.
The short list contains Atomic Abe, Stirling, and Thor's hammer.
Is anyone able to compare these three??
They're all good Bay Rum...Thor's Hammer has a more traditional, homemade kind of Bay Rum scent. They also have it with a good shot of lime. Stirling is heavy on nutmeg and in that sense it's very different from other Bay Rum I've tried and I've tried quite a few. I happen to love Stirling Bay Rum...one of my favorites. I have five bottles of it just waiting in the wings. PAA Atomic Age is a great scent, one of those Bay Rums that you have to experience. Chances are you'll be re-ordering it when it's gone because you won't want to be without it. To my nose Atomic Age is the sweetest of those three, but when I say that, I don't mean it's intensely sweet...it's very nice. As far as staying power...of those three...I'd have to give the nod to Atomic Age. I am also a Bootleggers fan and always have it on hand and reach for it occasionally. It's good stuff.
One quick note, if it hasn't already been said in this thread...Bay Rum is a fleeting scent by nature. So, expecting a Bay Rum to remain floating about you like a gas cloud throughout the day...well...probably not. If you're looking for that kind of staying power from a Bay Rum, you might want to order, not only the aftershave, but also the cologne/edt. Not sure offhand if Thor's Hammer offers a cologne, but the other two do. Although Stirling may be in the midst of discontinuing their Bay Rum edt. If I'm not mistaken, it's currently on sale. I think they're trying to sell the remaining stock off. I just picked up a second bottle of it about two weeks ago.
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