Why do so many "top" soaps polarize on scent?

[Mad Man]

Maybe I've been spending too much time on the forums (heresy!) but it seems that some of the "top" ranked gear really divides opinion. Examples include Arko (great lather/urinal puck), Tabac (great lather/70s nightclub), Cella (great lather/marzipan cookie). The one soap most agree on as having an agreeable scent, MWF, then offers up it's difficulty in lathering (I have no issue but I get that's common for some to have issues with the Fat).

The question is are there others you've found work great for you, but couldn't stand the smell? And is there a single soap that performs great that we all agree smells great too? Or are we looking for Unicorn feathers??

 

[Tim_McD]

You mean, besides DR Harris Arlington?

 

[Jnyboer]

I got rid of my MWF because of the scent, but I'm itching to make room in the den to replace my Tabac. I'm surprised DR Harris Windsor - great, relatively mainstream scent, and it lathers like DR Harris!

 

[lt114]

Scent is very subjective and probably the ultimate YMMV issue. It is rare for all, or even most, of us to like any given scent.

 

[Jefebadskin]

Yeah, scent is the true YMMV. Orange scents really bug me. My old p160 I could only use sparingly from scent but great performance. Same with my proraso white, love performance, hate the medicinal smell.

 

[dundak]

The question is are there others you've found work great for you, but couldn't stand the smell?

No

And is there a single soap that performs great that we all agree smells great too?

No...it's the internet

Or are we looking for Unicorn feathers??

Some probably are. I just try different soaps for fun and variety. If it all went away and only one remained, no matter which one, I would shave with it. Would kill forum traffic though.

 

[brothers]

You've just touched on the most obvious thing. The fragrances are the worm on the hook. Fragrances are perceived differently. Physiology and emotion, in addition to perception and expectation are at work. The manufacturers either go with the one that seems to be more commonly accepted as pleasing to would-be buyers, and that becomes their trademark. Others with more resources try to offer something for everyone through multiple fragrances. Check this out --- a great many of us guys prefer a fragrance (whether it really smells good or not) that our wife or girlfriend tells us they like. Or more often, we stay away from one that she says she doesn't like. We may be slow, but we're not stupid, are we?

 

[mistercitizen]

This is tough for me because I seem to get tired of a particular fragrance after a certain amount of time when it comes to soap. Take Tabac for example. I absolutely love the scent. 70's nightclub.... I wouldn't know.... to me it just smells warm and rich. But, after 2 solid weeks of using it everyday during Tabactober, I was ready for something else. That doesn't mean that I wouldn't sneak the occasional whiff of the puck every so often in between shaving with another soap mind you. To me, using a soap with an exceptional fragrance (which I consider Tabac to be) all of the time can be like getting too much of a good thing. I Coloniali Mango soap in the terra cotta bowl is another one that I consider in the same realm as Tabac. Easy to lather, performance is great, scent is great (for me).... but again, I would grow tired of the scent after a while. Oddly enough, a soap like MWF with it's scent I could probably use all of the time and not tire of the scent because it is such a subdued scent. It's pleasant, but not exceptional or overpowering. It's a bit like living a flamboyant lifestyle. Sure, it seems like a great life to go out to events, parties, nightclubs.... be social.... see people and converse (Tabac soap).... but is that what the majority of us do? No.... most of us enjoy peace and quiet and less activity (MWF soap). I think there is something to be said about how much stimulation of the senses will can really handle or want to handle before we become exhausted. I can't count the number of times I've heard people refer to coming back from a vacation as a "break".

Personally, I enjoy the variety of different soaps. But if I had to choose one and only one to use it would be a good performing soap with a pleasant scent that I would not grow tired of as quickly as another. For me, that would probably mean something more like MWF rather than Tabac, I Coloniali.... or even Arlington. Of course, I will admit that I am one of those that has not yet mastered the lathering of the fat.... but I think I could figure it out if given the rest of my life with it and nothing else. I will say this, a bad lather with MWF, still equates to a good shave for me. I think that I have to agree though.... when it comes to soaps... the ones with the greatest performance seem to have the polarizing scents. Think about the soap sticks out there that perform exceptionally: La Toja, Speick, Irisch Moos... their scents are great IMO, but I consider them to fall in the Tabac category of scents. Somewhat polarizing. Yes, it's the fragrance of the soap that really seems to tickle our senses.... and people can have widely different opinions when it comes to what tickles our senses.

Ben

 

[takeshi]

Why do so many "top" soaps polarize on scent?

I think any top anything will polarize no matter what the topic. Whenever you have people that really like one option or the other there are typically very polarized opinions. Like/dislike is more of a vector -- with direction and magnitude -- versus just a point on a graph. Few things with universal appeal are going to be polarizing just by nature.

And is there a single soap that performs great that we all agree smells great too? Or are we looking for Unicorn feathers??

If you're looking for anything that's one-size-fits-all here then you're looking for unicorn feathers. That's why YMMV is so prevalent. When you get to something like scent it's even more so. Consider that scent is heavily tied to memory and experience. For example, many associate patchouli with "dirty hippy" but patchouli is permanently tied to very good memories for me and will always stir those memories when I smell it. Scent can also be tied to negative memories. Even without the memory association people just prefer different scents. While Arlington seems to be popular as mentioned above it's not my favorite. I know that I like sandalwood and woodsy scents so I shop based on that knowledge. That means that I prefer Marlborough instead even though there seem to be some that think it smells like "ash trays".

Why do people seem to feel that the need to have something that's universally appealing? There are many choices and that allows each to find what that person likes. As long as people can find combinations of scents they like and performance that meets their needs that seems like that should be all that matters IMO.

It's a double whammy when you're trying to find a "great" performer and "great scent" on a universal level. If both scent and performance are subjective as demonstrated by this very subforum then how can you expect to find something that everyone thinks is best on both counts? Let's not forget that price and other factors also divide people.

 

[Niles]

I was into fragrances before wetshaving, so when discussions on scent come up it doesn't surprise me. There will always be people who like/dislike certain fragrances.

 

[Panama]

Performance is the most important aspect in shave soap. A comfortable, irritation free shave is what I want. If I had to, I would put Vicks in my nose for a more comfortable shave. Scent is nice and it does outrank the color of the jar, performance is king.

 

[Jefebadskin]

Memories/experience is huge as Takeshi points out. I love Clubman aftershave. I think it smells good, but it reminds me of my Saturdays with my Dad, the neighborhood the barbershop was in with baskin Robbins, the best hot dog place on earth, before I had a care in the world.

 

[eyesofgrey]

You mean, besides DR Harris Arlington?

This.

 

[eyesofgrey]

Memories/experience is huge as Takeshi points out. I love Clubman aftershave. I think it smells good, but it reminds me of my Saturdays with my Dad, the neighborhood the barbershop was in with baskin Robbins, the best hot dog place on earth, before I had a care in the world.

This is great. I got nostalgic & I wasn't even there.

 

[john parker]

You mean, besides DR Harris Arlington?

My D.R. Harris Arlington was certainly polarizing because it had no scent whatsoever!

 

[Go West Young Man]

Any strong scent is polarizing. All the unscented/lightly scented "top soaps" are widely loved

 

[Mad Man]

Thanks guys,

I've got a hankering to try the DR Harris gear now - agree with lots of above, scent does divide and we haven't factored price in yet.

I wonder how blokes did this 50 years ago...before Internet/shipping to door. If there were only 2-3 soaps you could get your hands on locally and you didn't like the smell of any of them I guess you just had to "suck it up".

 

[mftoms59]

Scent is very subjective and probably the ultimate YMMV issue. It is rare for all, or even most, of us to like any given scent.

Succinctly stated,

Yeah, scent is the true YMMV. Orange scents really bug me. My old p160 I could only use sparingly from scent but great performance. Same with my proraso white, love performance, hate the medicinal smell.

I had purchased 4 tubes of Tabac SC, the orange note was much more pronounced but it complimented the other notes perfectly, I'm hoping the three remaining tubes are the same..

 

[dundak]

I wonder how blokes did this 50 years ago...before Internet/shipping to door. If there were only 2-3 soaps you could get your hands on locally and you didn't like the smell of any of them I guess you just had to "suck it up".

Variety in all shaving products was non existent. I shaved with just Williams and Old Spice for most of my years until the Internet came along. Even things like blades, colognes and aftershaves were very choice limited until the advent of malls and the Internet. The only balm choice was Afta or Corn Huskers, unless you raided your wife's or Mom's make-up bureau. Although people now complain, the choices are much better.

 

[bvance554]

I never understood the offense to the scent of a soap. I've never been put off by anything, but my time spent with the soap is so short lived I son't see how it could be an issue. If I had stinky AS that would be a different story.