- Messages
- 10,991
TABAC v DRH Marlborough v Art of Shaving Sandalwood
Now that my tap water is quite cold...those scented soaps and creams more suited to warmer temperatures start to take a back seat so
when the trees start shedding their leaves and you fancy more hearty fare you know it's time to get the woods out full time.
No Boab and Fido, not those types of woods.
These soaps really aren't competing with each other as they are placed throughout the price spectrum but for all you celery huggers they
do all contain delicious tallow. I do have some good non tallow based soaps in my rotation but I'm happy to know that an animal has
been fully exploited for my shaving pleasure*.
Is the AOS twice as good as DRH or thrice Tabac? A difficult question to answer but the short but incomplete answer is no.
All these soaps can produce very fine lather indeed and it's very difficult to tell them apart but the AOS does have an added unctuousness
that leaves my skin feeling so so soft....just like my calf skin loafers*.
The real difference with these soaps lies in the quality of the scent, the soap makers amongst you will know the cost of true sandalwood
essential oil and many soaps claiming to be sandalwood are usually a very poor imitation. Those that use and like Tabac know about its
qualities but for me the powdery floral note to Tabac can be a little off putting but I do find it subsides with use and hydration. I have
a cake and a few sticks/refills, the cake is by far the most floral but M&W say it's the same stuff.
Types of container, age, hydration and environmental conditions seem to make some difference.
The DRH Marlborough is the most intriquing and complex, containing more cedar than sandalwood and possibly a touch of musk, it's subtle
but warm and rich. I understand that AOS is the most faithful of all sandalwood scents and if that is the case then I'm happy to stop
searching, the AOS Sandalwood cream is also worth trying in that respect. I didn't want to like the AOS at all, thinking it was overpriced sillyness,
but after receiving an AOS sample pack I think the AOS sandalwood cream is worth it, probably won't be replacing the soap though.
My overall favorite though is the DRH Marlborough, because it does everything very well indeed, AOS gets downgraded because of cost,
Tabac is the best value soap but gets downgraded because of the scent. Small margins between them but I'm very happy to use
all of them in my rotation. If you like Tabac and want a more traditional masculine woody scent then a refill puck of Marlborough is worth considering. EDIT: If you are happy to spend £20 on a refill then AoS has the best of the scents in my opinion.
EDIT: SA kindly scent me a sample of sandalwood EO, compared to that, Marlborough is the best representation of Sandalwood I have smelled in a soap.
* - this statement could be fictitious but is added for dramatic effect.
Now that my tap water is quite cold...those scented soaps and creams more suited to warmer temperatures start to take a back seat so
when the trees start shedding their leaves and you fancy more hearty fare you know it's time to get the woods out full time.
No Boab and Fido, not those types of woods.
These soaps really aren't competing with each other as they are placed throughout the price spectrum but for all you celery huggers they
do all contain delicious tallow. I do have some good non tallow based soaps in my rotation but I'm happy to know that an animal has
been fully exploited for my shaving pleasure*.
Is the AOS twice as good as DRH or thrice Tabac? A difficult question to answer but the short but incomplete answer is no.
All these soaps can produce very fine lather indeed and it's very difficult to tell them apart but the AOS does have an added unctuousness
that leaves my skin feeling so so soft....just like my calf skin loafers*.
The real difference with these soaps lies in the quality of the scent, the soap makers amongst you will know the cost of true sandalwood
essential oil and many soaps claiming to be sandalwood are usually a very poor imitation. Those that use and like Tabac know about its
qualities but for me the powdery floral note to Tabac can be a little off putting but I do find it subsides with use and hydration. I have
a cake and a few sticks/refills, the cake is by far the most floral but M&W say it's the same stuff.
Types of container, age, hydration and environmental conditions seem to make some difference.
The DRH Marlborough is the most intriquing and complex, containing more cedar than sandalwood and possibly a touch of musk, it's subtle
but warm and rich. I understand that AOS is the most faithful of all sandalwood scents and if that is the case then I'm happy to stop
searching, the AOS Sandalwood cream is also worth trying in that respect. I didn't want to like the AOS at all, thinking it was overpriced sillyness,
but after receiving an AOS sample pack I think the AOS sandalwood cream is worth it, probably won't be replacing the soap though.
My overall favorite though is the DRH Marlborough, because it does everything very well indeed, AOS gets downgraded because of cost,
Tabac is the best value soap but gets downgraded because of the scent. Small margins between them but I'm very happy to use
all of them in my rotation. If you like Tabac and want a more traditional masculine woody scent then a refill puck of Marlborough is worth considering. EDIT: If you are happy to spend £20 on a refill then AoS has the best of the scents in my opinion.
EDIT: SA kindly scent me a sample of sandalwood EO, compared to that, Marlborough is the best representation of Sandalwood I have smelled in a soap.
* - this statement could be fictitious but is added for dramatic effect.
