Three New Soaps Reviewed

[steffenapelz]

I was gifted three soaps by my lovely bride of almost 20 years for Christmas and having now shaved with each about 6 times, allow me to share my findings.

Here are the three soaps in order of personal preference:

1) Australian Private Reserve - Alfredus Choice
2) Storybook Soapworks - Visions and Revisions
3) Siliski Soaps - Sea Spice

Detailed Notes:

APR

This is the soap I had to work on the hardest to dial in on the lather. I started with a slightly fluffy/airy and thin lather, but after 6 tries am now dialed into a much nicer lather that is both ultra slick and protective. The soap is on the harder side, so it requires a bit more patience and elbow grease. Post shave is also fantastic and the scent was initially underwhelming, but I have been won over by it. The scent is actually very difficult to describe...very herbal and green, with spicy peppery notes. Unlike any shaving soap I have ever smelled and very much a manly scent.

It is the one soap that feels better every time I use it and it has definitely found its way into my personal rotation. I find myself wanting to reach for it all the time. And this is apparently the old formula...which means I should REALLY try the new formula.

Storybook

This soap proved to be the easiest to lather of the three soaps. With enough effort, it produces a slick and thick yogurty lather that does its job very well. The scent is to die for. Imagine a lemon gremolata laced with some Darjeeling tea notes. I know some say it is an Earl Grey scent, but I think it is slightly too citrus forward for that kind of direct comparison. Either way, my favorite Citrus scent in my soap collection. Unfortunately, despite the good performance and amazing scent, the post-shave is lacking a little. I wouldn't go so far as to say it dries my face, but my face does feel a little tight after shaving. So while I enjoy using this, I think this will be a hot weather soap here in Texas when dry skin is less of an issue.

Siliski

I have a love/hate relationship with this soap. It produces a GREAT lather, but the lather isn't nearly as slick as I like it, and while the postshave is good, the scent is totally uninspiring. Sea Spice is very simple and reminds me of a scent from my childhood in Germany. I can't decide whether it was a hair mousse I used as a teen or the body wash (Aquamarine) that my grandmother kept in her shower...either way, it feels a bit cheap and unsophisticated despite the fact that I understand Siliski to use very high-quality ingredients. The soap puck also shows use strangely. Both APR and Storybook pucks flatten the surface with use. But the Siliski puck remains lumpy for some reason and it feels difficult to pick up soap despite the soap being reasonably soft. In the end, I will probably use this up, but I likely won't buy another Siliski soap because the base just doesn't wow me at all. Perfectly nice soap though, so I assume it will perform much better on others in this forum.

I hope you are finding this helpful.

 

[ajkel64]

Thanks for your reviews on these soaps, none I have tried before.

 

[johnwick]

Wonderful reviews, thank you!

 

[Ryanshh]

Great reviews thank you. I have been making my way through a sample puck of Siliski's Santa's Pipe and so far have had a similar experience to you with a decent lather that lacks slickness. The first time it was a very unpleasant surprise as I put it on my face thinking it looked amazing only to feel like I was dry shaving.

My shaves since then have certainly improved and I think I can get a great shaving lather from it soon (would love to hear ideas on improving it if anyone has any). It also has an amazing scent off the puck and during the early shave but most of the spicy goodness goes away quickly with a lingering earthy tobacco scent that I do not like as much.

Sorry for the brief thread hijack. Enjoyed hearing your thoughts on the soaps.

 

[boilerphan]

I love Visions and Revisions!! Storybook has to be one of the most underrated artisans.

In terms of Siliski soaps, I always work excessive amounts of water into it and spend my time with working it in until you get a good sheen. Andrew's new base is a big improvement in slickness and post shave feel. It's thirsty as well but not quite as much as the original base. I have really like Santa's Pipe but absolutely LOVE Midnight in Tunisia.

 

[steffenapelz]

Great reviews thank you. I have been making my way through a sample puck of Siliski's Santa's Pipe and so far have had a similar experience to you with a decent lather that lacks slickness. The first time it was a very unpleasant surprise as I put it on my face thinking it looked amazing only to feel like I was dry shaving.

My shaves since then have certainly improved and I think I can get a great shaving lather from it soon (would love to hear ideas on improving it if anyone has any). It also has an amazing scent off the puck and during the early shave but most of the spicy goodness goes away quickly with a lingering earthy tobacco scent that I do not like as much.

Sorry for the brief thread hijack. Enjoyed hearing your thoughts on the soaps.

Glad I am not the only one to notice the surprising lack of slickness even when the lather looks and feels otherwise perfect. Conventional wisdom would dictate we add more water...and that is what I will try on my next set of shaves.

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

 

[steffenapelz]

I love Visions and Revisions!! Storybook has to be one of the most underrated artisans.

In terms of Siliski soaps, I always work excessive amounts of water into it and spend my time with working it in until you get a good sheen. Andrew's new base is a big improvement in slickness and post shave feel. It's thirsty as well but not quite as much as the original base. I have really like Santa's Pipe but absolutely LOVE Midnight in Tunisia.

Thanks for the feedback. I will try adding water aggressively. Hopefully that will help.

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

 

[Rhody]

Thanks for the write up
great to read

 

[dmshaver]

Great reviews, thank you. I've recently been looking into APR.

 

[Luecke2326]

Excellent reviews, I’ll have to try out APR someday.


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[boilerphan]

Thanks for the feedback. I will try adding water aggressively. Hopefully that will help.

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk

Here is a video clip from Ruds where he reviews Siliski Soaps. He talks about its thirstiness as well as what it should resemble when fully dialed in. There are also some other videos, including one from West Coast Shaving.

 

[steffenapelz]

Here is a video clip from Ruds where he reviews Siliski Soaps. He talks about its thirstiness as well as what it should resemble when fully dialed in. There are also some other videos, including one from West Coast Shaving.

Thanks for the link to this review, boilerphan. I think after viewing it and several other videos of his that review other bases that are in my rotation, that both his review and final score are perfectly in line with my own experience. He rates GD 96, NO 94, Oleo 91, Eufros 90, A&E 95 and comparatively Siliski at 86. That 86 score means in my mind that it is a good soap, but not in the same league as the other soaps I just listed, which is EXACTLY what I believe to be the case in my personal experience.

 

[RayClem]

Thanks for the link to this review, boilerphan. I think after viewing it and several other videos of his that review other bases that are in my rotation, that both his review and final score are perfectly in line with my own experience. He rates GD 96, NO 94, Oleo 91, Eufros 90, A&E 95 and comparatively Siliski at 86. That 86 score means in my mind that it is a good soap, but not in the same league as the other soaps I just listed, which is EXACTLY what I believe to be the case in my personal experience.

Jason Rudman has blue eyes and a ruddy complexion, very similar to mine, although I am older. I have found that I tend to like soaps that he likes. I agree with his assessment of most soaps, although he tends to rate B&M slightly higher than I do. I have not tried APR or Storybook soaps. I have tried a sample of Siliski soaps Midnight Oasis and would concur with Ruds' rating of 86. It is a decent soap, but it does not come close to being a top tier soap. However, at $16 for 4 oz, it is not priced as a top tier soap.

Based on the OP description of APR, I would hesitate purchasing it. I won't mess around with a soap for a half dozen tries learning how to get optimize the lather. I want a soap that is easy to load and lather. There are too many great soaps out there to mess with one that is finicky.

I have not tried Storybook soaps. The review indicates that is is easy to load and lather...great. However, I like a soap with a great post-shave feel, so I am a little concerned about the tightness reported after the shave. The only aftershave product I use is plain witch hazel, so I want a soap with skin moisturizing and conditioning.

 

[boilerphan]

Thanks for the link to this review, boilerphan. I think after viewing it and several other videos of his that review other bases that are in my rotation, that both his review and final score are perfectly in line with my own experience. He rates GD 96, NO 94, Oleo 91, Eufros 90, A&E 95 and comparatively Siliski at 86. That 86 score means in my mind that it is a good soap, but not in the same league as the other soaps I just listed, which is EXACTLY what I believe to be the case in my personal experience.

Agreed. Ruds' rankings are pretty spot on for me as well. If those top tier soaps did not exist, I would be happy with a soap of Siliski's quality. But it is a notch below the top soaps in my book as well.

 

[steffenapelz]

Jason Rudman has blue eyes and a ruddy complexion, very similar to mine, although I am older. I have found that I tend to like soaps that he likes. I agree with his assessment of most soaps, although he tends to rate B&M slightly higher than I do. I have not tried APR or Storybook soaps. I have tried a sample of Siliski soaps Midnight Oasis and would concur with Ruds' rating of 86. It is a decent soap, but it does not come close to being a top tier soap. However, at $16 for 4 oz, it is not priced as a top tier soap.

Not sure I fully agree on the fact that the price alone can be used as an indicator that it is not a top tier soap. At $15 per 4oz tub, it is only one dollar less than a 4oz tub of Noble Otter which absolutely blows Siliski away. I actually just shaved with NO and it isn't even close. Ruds' scores confirm that bias of mine. Even Oleo, which is one of my faves is also only $18 per 4oz tub.

Based on the OP description of APR, I would hesitate purchasing it. I won't mess around with a soap for a half dozen tries learning how to get optimize the lather. I want a soap that is easy to load and lather. There are too many great soaps out there to mess with one that is finicky.

Totally understood. The only way to see if it is worth it is to try a sample and then see if the slickness and postshave make up for the finicky lather. And I am only reporting on their old base...the new one may well be much better still. But if that is too much work, I also understand.

I have not tried Storybook soaps. The review indicates that is is easy to load and lather...great. However, I like a soap with a great post-shave feel, so I am a little concerned about the tightness reported after the shave. The only aftershave product I use is plain witch hazel, so I want a soap with skin moisturizing and conditioning.

If that is your post-shave regimen, I would advise to stay away from Storybook. I use Witchhazel, followed by Eufros AS balm, followed by face moisturizer. I have dry skin, so I couldn't do what you do anyway. But if it feels tight on me after my regimen, I wouldn't want to think how it would feel without really any of that.

 

[RayClem]

Not sure I fully agree on the fact that the price alone can be used as an indicator that it is not a top tier soap. At $15 per 4oz tub, it is only one dollar less than a 4oz tub of Noble Otter which absolutely blows Siliski away. I actually just shaved with NO and it isn't even close. Ruds' scores confirm that bias of mine. Even Oleo, which is one of my faves is also only $18 per 4oz tub..

I never use price as a criteria of tier level, only performance. My intention of my comment was to indicate that I felt it was reasonably priced compared to the preformance. I consider Ariana and Evans at $17 to be an elite level soap, every bit as good or better than some soaps that cost $20-25. I would not hesitate to purchase A&E, even if Peter were to price it higher. I consider Captain's Choice at $15 to be an "A" level soap, just slightly below the elite soaps. I consider Noble Otter to be an "A" level soap as well. I rank Oleo Soapworks at "A-" as I find the cushion to be just slightly below NO. Any soap that I rate A- and above with provide a wonderful shave. Thus, it is not necessary to pay $20 and up to get a great shave.

Today I shaved with Wet Shaving Products Christmas Spice in Formula T. I consider it to be a "B" level soap, but I still got a great shave. It costs $15 for 5.3 oz. Even my "C" level soaps (Proraso, TOBS, GFT, Pre de Provence and Cremo) provide a decent shave, but they do not provide some of the "extras" found in higher level soaps. It is only when I get to "C-" and "D" level soaps like VDH and Olivina does the quality of the shave suffer.

 

[steffenapelz]

I never use price as a criteria of tier level, only performance. My intention of my comment was to indicate that I felt it was reasonably priced compared to the preformance. I consider Ariana and Evans at $17 to be an elite level soap, every bit as good or better than some soaps that cost $20-25. I would not hesitate to purchase A&E, even if Peter were to price it higher. I consider Captain's Choice at $15 to be an "A" level soap, just slightly below the elite soaps. I consider Noble Otter to be an "A" level soap as well. I rank Oleo Soapworks at "A-" as I find the cushion to be just slightly below NO. Any soap that I rate A- and above with provide a wonderful shave. Thus, it is not necessary to pay $20 and up to get a great shave.

Today I shaved with Wet Shaving Products Christmas Spice in Formula T. I consider it to be a "B" level soap, but I still got a great shave. It costs $15 for 5.3 oz. Even my "C" level soaps (Proraso, TOBS, GFT, Pre de Provence and Cremo) provide a decent shave, but they do not provide some of the "extras" found in higher level soaps. It is only when I get to "C-" and "D" level soaps like VDH and Olivina does the quality of the shave suffer.

Makes sense.

 

[SHAVEWIZARD420]

Great reviews of 3 top notch artisan soaps!

Not trying to hijack but figured i would put my 2 cents in:

Storybook Soapworks is a excellent soap base. Shaken has become one of my favorite scents of all time (and i have smelled hundreds of soaps) and performance is top notch. Very underrated soap IMO.

Siliski is a artisan i am intregued by for some reason, perhaps its the simple packaging, or the unique ingredients. Lather is thirsty as mentioned, and works best when lots of water is incorporated. Great soap base and look forward to see what Andrew has up his sleeve for the future.

APR is a soap i need to experiment with a bit more, have a tub of Fougere Rose Bourbon i have used a few times, but honestly was not that impressed with the lather. Not to say it is bad but nothing jumped out at me, and the scent is just ok IMO. I understand it costs quite a bit to have a Australian soap shipped to US market and is the reason behind the high cost, but for the price it would take a great scent to do a repeat APR purchase.