In the spirit of discovering high quality shave creams and soaps, I also decided to ditch the Dial and move up to a quality European triple milled soap. At the beginning of November, I started a rotation of seven bath soaps. Three months later, here's my findings. Unless noted, they were all purchased at Merz in Chicago.
1) Nesti Danti Cypress
$9.95/8.8 ounce bar/$1.13 per ounce
This is my winner, and I can't wait to try other scents. Made in an old traditional manner of boiling for four days in open kettles constantly attended to by grizzled, master soap makers. The bar is dense and amazingly hard, yet yields the lushest, creamiest lather of the bunch. The Cypress scent is very lightly woody (think balsa wood almost) with a definite lemony note. Of all the soaps, this is the one whose aroma tends to linger on the skin for hours after a shower, and that's a good thing. A great base for following up with a Castle Forbes Lime or Blenheim Bouquet shave. As an added bonus, Nesti Dante's old soapmaking process seems to have produced the longest lasting bar of the group.
2) Whole Foods Organic Cedar-Vetiver Shea Butter Soap
$5.99/8 ounce bar/$0.75 per ounce
An incredible value from Whole Foods for an organic, made in France, triple milled, shea butter soap. This particular variety has an incredibly woodsy aroma. Very masculine. Performance is along the lines of the regular shea butter soap which is to say excellent. Longevity has been very good and expected for a triple milled French bar.
3) South of France Shea Butter Soap (from Whole Foods)
$4.99/8 ounce bar/$0.62 per ounce
The two Whole Foods bars are easily the best bargains of the bunch. Though not listing any scent, this bar is perfumed (as stated in the ingredients) and while I can't peg the scent, it seems to be a very mild floral note. The soap lathers as well as more expensive soaps with long lasting stable lather. The bar's longevity has been very good.
4) Pre de' Provence Rose Petal Soap
$7.25/8.8 ounce bar/$0.82 per ounce
Kind of torn on this one because I wanted to like it so much. Performance wise, this is excellent: dense, creamy lather that's probably only second to Nesti Dante. There's just enough rose petals in the bar to add a nice exfoliating element without being annoying. Also, this bar is the best value outside of the Whole Foods offerings. With regards to scent, this comes up short. It just smells faint and synthetic compared to my T+H rose cream, Trumpers Rose SS or the following soap.
5) L'Occitane Rose Bonne Maere Soap
$6.00/4.3 ounce bar/$1.40 per ounce
I really like the scent of this soap. It smells like a rose garden, and the scent is rich and deep. Unfortunately, the small, square cube of soap is the second worst value in the group. Performance wise, the bar fell into the middle of the pack. Longevity has been good. Were this scent attached to the PdP bar, I don't think I'd ever use anything else.
6) Claus Porto Tango (Tobacco Blossom)
$11.50/5.28 ounce bar/$2.18 per ounce
The legendary seven times milled bar was also by far the most expensive soap in the bunch. The tobacco blossom scent is a very mild, light note that, to my nose, was floral with tinge of sweet orange. The bar lathered up great. The scent did not linger. Longevity has been good, but I don't notice any real difference between it and standard triple milled bars. This is a very high quality soap, but there's really nothing about it (scent, performance or longevity) to justify its very high price.
So that's it. I know these aren't too detailed reviews but at some point one finds oneself splitting hairs. These are all good products. Some, however, don't seem to take it to the next level to justify their price (Claus Porto) while others don't excel in all catagories (L'Occitane Bonne Mere & PdP Rose--although I'll be trying other scents from the latter).
Overall, the Nesti Dante really seems to bring it all together: lush, dense, creamy lather, a great lingering scent and a hard long lasting bar. The two Whole Foods offerings give incredible value with no drop off in quality.
Next up (it'll be a couple of months) will be my USA v. UK faceoff: The Caswell-Massey Presidential Sampler bars (#6, Almond Cold Cream and Jockey Club) vs. Lightfoot's venerable tallow based Pine Athletic Soap.
1) Nesti Danti Cypress
$9.95/8.8 ounce bar/$1.13 per ounce
This is my winner, and I can't wait to try other scents. Made in an old traditional manner of boiling for four days in open kettles constantly attended to by grizzled, master soap makers. The bar is dense and amazingly hard, yet yields the lushest, creamiest lather of the bunch. The Cypress scent is very lightly woody (think balsa wood almost) with a definite lemony note. Of all the soaps, this is the one whose aroma tends to linger on the skin for hours after a shower, and that's a good thing. A great base for following up with a Castle Forbes Lime or Blenheim Bouquet shave. As an added bonus, Nesti Dante's old soapmaking process seems to have produced the longest lasting bar of the group.
2) Whole Foods Organic Cedar-Vetiver Shea Butter Soap
$5.99/8 ounce bar/$0.75 per ounce
An incredible value from Whole Foods for an organic, made in France, triple milled, shea butter soap. This particular variety has an incredibly woodsy aroma. Very masculine. Performance is along the lines of the regular shea butter soap which is to say excellent. Longevity has been very good and expected for a triple milled French bar.
3) South of France Shea Butter Soap (from Whole Foods)
$4.99/8 ounce bar/$0.62 per ounce
The two Whole Foods bars are easily the best bargains of the bunch. Though not listing any scent, this bar is perfumed (as stated in the ingredients) and while I can't peg the scent, it seems to be a very mild floral note. The soap lathers as well as more expensive soaps with long lasting stable lather. The bar's longevity has been very good.
4) Pre de' Provence Rose Petal Soap
$7.25/8.8 ounce bar/$0.82 per ounce
Kind of torn on this one because I wanted to like it so much. Performance wise, this is excellent: dense, creamy lather that's probably only second to Nesti Dante. There's just enough rose petals in the bar to add a nice exfoliating element without being annoying. Also, this bar is the best value outside of the Whole Foods offerings. With regards to scent, this comes up short. It just smells faint and synthetic compared to my T+H rose cream, Trumpers Rose SS or the following soap.
5) L'Occitane Rose Bonne Maere Soap
$6.00/4.3 ounce bar/$1.40 per ounce
I really like the scent of this soap. It smells like a rose garden, and the scent is rich and deep. Unfortunately, the small, square cube of soap is the second worst value in the group. Performance wise, the bar fell into the middle of the pack. Longevity has been good. Were this scent attached to the PdP bar, I don't think I'd ever use anything else.
6) Claus Porto Tango (Tobacco Blossom)
$11.50/5.28 ounce bar/$2.18 per ounce
The legendary seven times milled bar was also by far the most expensive soap in the bunch. The tobacco blossom scent is a very mild, light note that, to my nose, was floral with tinge of sweet orange. The bar lathered up great. The scent did not linger. Longevity has been good, but I don't notice any real difference between it and standard triple milled bars. This is a very high quality soap, but there's really nothing about it (scent, performance or longevity) to justify its very high price.
So that's it. I know these aren't too detailed reviews but at some point one finds oneself splitting hairs. These are all good products. Some, however, don't seem to take it to the next level to justify their price (Claus Porto) while others don't excel in all catagories (L'Occitane Bonne Mere & PdP Rose--although I'll be trying other scents from the latter).
Overall, the Nesti Dante really seems to bring it all together: lush, dense, creamy lather, a great lingering scent and a hard long lasting bar. The two Whole Foods offerings give incredible value with no drop off in quality.
Next up (it'll be a couple of months) will be my USA v. UK faceoff: The Caswell-Massey Presidential Sampler bars (#6, Almond Cold Cream and Jockey Club) vs. Lightfoot's venerable tallow based Pine Athletic Soap.
Last edited:
I'm excited!
