Trying to save $450. Premium sample haul. info inside!

[guitarslinger]

So, I've been on the fence about buying some Nuavia Panna Crema and some Saponificio Varesino. I don't want to buy it blindly, and accidentally have it burn me, OR not be crazy about the scent. SOOOO......THank you, Shave Dash! I have all 4 Nuavias and 7 SV's here.

I've mounted them all into dishes, and started making notes about the scents.

SV- 70th Anniversary - Beautiful scent. My absolute favorite of the entire haul. Reminds me of a girl from college. Like Estee Lauder Pleasures with the correct skin chemistry.
SV - Felce Aromatica - Nice scent. Sharp. Not fougere-ish, IMO. More rosey.
SV - Dolomiti Black - kind of meh. It reminds me of a low cost domestic soap. Can't put my finger on it.
SV - Tundra Artica - VERY Rose scented. Nothing tundra-ish about this. Unless there's some menthol when I shave with it.
SV - Stella Alpina - Herbal. Fresh. Light. Not bad.
SV - Opuntia - If I didn't know better, it's a Creed Aventus clone. Fine if you like that sort of thing.
SV - Mirto Di Sardegna - Kind of a waxy, soapy smell. Very mild scent. Nothing special.

PCN - Blu - great scent. Kind of a pepsin, herbal Soda pop smell. Supposed to be floral, citrus, herbal, amber. Like Emporio Armani with Speick Herbs.
PCN - Verde - fresh, sharp. grapefruit, rose, musk. nice.
PCN - Rossa - definitely sandalwood. Very nice.
PCN - nera - Aquatic cologne scent. Similar to maybe Armani code, but lots of amber and vanilla. Not as dry as armani.

So, I'm really glad I did this. I'll hopefully have time to shave with all of these without making clown barf out of it eventually,
but the winners are:
SV 70th and PCN Blu.

The others are nice, but not as spectacular. I'll update this thread as I use them.

 

[Boghopper]

Can you show us the size of the sample s you got? I’ve been interested in these particular soaps too, especially the Nuavias.
I blindly bought a tub and AS of SV Opuntia on the BST and I like it a lot.
It doesn’t really smell like my Executive Man aftershave to me.

 

[guitarslinger]

Can you show us the size of the sample s you got? I’ve been interested in these particular soaps too, especially the Nuavias.
I blindly bought a tub and AS of SV Opuntia on the BST and I like it a lot.
It doesn’t really smell like my Executive Man aftershave to me.

For the SV, you get some shavings in a bag, but they are soft enough to clump together. I could get a few shaves from it.

For the Nuavia, you get what looks like a paint container. You get a bit more of this than the SV, but it will go faster since it's VERY soft. very croapy.

 

[guitarslinger]

BTW, good news. I just lathered up some SV 70th in my office, and put it on my face. It didn't burn. Plus, the scent lingers. I might just have to get this one if it shaves as well as it smells.

 

[Boghopper]

Thanks for that.

 

[sarimento1]

great report!
what are the costs for the samples???

 

[guitarslinger]

After the currency conversion, these 11 premium samples were $45.

Got them in 11 days.

 

[global_dev]

i’ve been wondering about all these! thanks for the reviews!

 

[sarimento1]

After the currency conversion, these 11 premium samples were $45.

Got them in 11 days.

that's a great deal!!

 

[kingfisher]

Wow. Nice!

 

[GearNoir]

Great top pick! 70th absolutely blows away all but the top of the top elite tallow soaps for me, which it rivals easily. I got a sample of the AS and it’s pretty killer too.

Hefty price tag, but worth it I think. I can’t wait to try Opuntia or Cubebe next.

 

[BrianP]

Nice trip report! Thanks for this!
I really liked the performance of the PCN -- scent didnt' get there for me (I tried Blu and Verde)

SV 70th I'm not familiar with the Estee Lauder reference, how else would you describe the scent? Floral? Green? Musky? Same or totally different territory than the Felce?

 

[guitarslinger]

Nice trip report! Thanks for this!
I really liked the performance of the PCN -- scent didnt' get there for me (I tried Blu and Verde)

SV 70th I'm not familiar with the Estee Lauder reference, how else would you describe the scent? Floral? Green? Musky? Same or totally different territory than the Felce?

Floral, aquatic, perfumey, cologney. Not green.

Not sharp like felce.

 

[guitarslinger]

Shave Report #1 - SV 70th.

So, the scent in the container is absolutely amazing. When I lathered it, and brushed it into my face, the scent kind of faded. Not much there. Also, lathering it wasn't super brainless. I had to work a tad to get it to where I needed it. That said, it shaved really well. Post-shave feel was above average. Not sure I would spend $40 on it. The holy grail status surrounding this brand may have built up my expectations a bit too much. It's alright.

 

[BrianP]

Floral, aquatic, perfumey, cologney. Not green.

Not sharp like felce.

Thanks for that. That puts it in a "try before I buy".
Enjoying the reviews!

 

[GearNoir]

Shave Report #1 - SV 70th.

So, the scent in the container is absolutely amazing. When I lathered it, and brushed it into my face, the scent kind of faded. Not much there. Also, lathering it wasn't super brainless. I had to work a tad to get it to where I needed it. That said, it shaved really well. Post-shave feel was above average. Not sure I would spend $40 on it. The holy grail status surrounding this brand may have built up my expectations a bit too much. It's alright.

Ah dang. Could it have been just trouble from having to deal with a sample?

My normal loading for 70th is to let the tub bloom off about 7 big drops of water for a few minutes (it is a triple milled soap) and load with a slightly damp brush for about 5-10 seconds, then build on the face. The scent lasts through the shave and slightly after for me and I usually, just from that quick load, have easily 4+ passes worth of lather. I hope the others work better for you!

 

[BigJ]

So, I've been on the fence about buying some Nuavia Panna Crema and some Saponificio Varesino. I don't want to buy it blindly, and accidentally have it burn me, OR not be crazy about the scent. SOOOO......THank you, Shave Dash! I have all 4 Nuavias and 7 SV's here.

I've mounted them all into dishes, and started making notes about the scents.

SV- 70th Anniversary - Beautiful scent. My absolute favorite of the entire haul. Reminds me of a girl from college. Like Estee Lauder Pleasures with the correct skin chemistry.
SV - Felce Aromatica - Nice scent. Sharp. Not fougere-ish, IMO. More rosey.
SV - Dolomiti Black - kind of meh. It reminds me of a low cost domestic soap. Can't put my finger on it.
SV - Tundra Artica - VERY Rose scented. Nothing tundra-ish about this. Unless there's some menthol when I shave with it.
SV - Stella Alpina - Herbal. Fresh. Light. Not bad.
SV - Opuntia - If I didn't know better, it's a Creed Aventus clone. Fine if you like that sort of thing.
SV - Mirto Di Sardegna - Kind of a waxy, soapy smell. Very mild scent. Nothing special.

PCN - Blu - great scent. Kind of a pepsin, herbal Soda pop smell. Supposed to be floral, citrus, herbal, amber. Like Emporio Armani with Speick Herbs.
PCN - Verde - fresh, sharp. grapefruit, rose, musk. nice.
PCN - Rossa - definitely sandalwood. Very nice.
PCN - nera - Aquatic cologne scent. Similar to maybe Armani code, but lots of amber and vanilla. Not as dry as armani.

So, I'm really glad I did this. I'll hopefully have time to shave with all of these without making clown barf out of it eventually,
but the winners are:
SV 70th and PCN Blu.

The others are nice, but not as spectacular. I'll update this thread as I use them.

Great review!! You had me with the line, “reminds me of a girl from college!!”

 

[johnwick]

Shave Dash is the best! I never hesitate to recommend them. The owner, Jim, is an outstanding gentleman!

 

[shavefan]

Ah dang. Could it have been just trouble from having to deal with a sample?

My normal loading for 70th is to let the tub bloom off about 7 big drops of water for a few minutes (it is a triple milled soap) and load with a slightly damp brush for about 5-10 seconds, then build on the face. The scent lasts through the shave and slightly after for me and I usually, just from that quick load, have easily 4+ passes worth of lather. I hope the others work better for you!

I found a difference between their 4.1 and 4.3 formulas. I tried a sample of 70th (4.1) a couple years back and was kind of unimpressed, then I tried a 4.3 formula and was very pleased. You have some 4.3 versions in your samples, looking forward to your thoughts on those.

SV does recommend blooming their soaps, but personally I didn't find it made a difference (4.3) so I don't bloom. Water quality may matter here.

 

[les24preludes]

Interesting you put 70th ahead of Stella and Dolomiti. Others have put those in reverse order. Shame you didn't have Manna di Sicilia since that's very popular.

I'm a great fan of Fitjar and they offer tasters for their range. You may have to import from Norway but you may be very pleasantly surprised. I have the four main ones (Holme is very lightly scented) and they're a constant joy.