New Proraso Santa Maria Novella Showdown!

[brucered]

thanks for the final verdict John. it was nice to follow this comparisson.

i still want to try it eventually, but with my 888 and other fine soaps and creams, i'm in no rush any longer.

when the new Proraso hits the shelves of Shoppers Drug Mart up here in canada, i'll give it a try.

was your comparisson with the Green Tub or White Tub Proraso?

[JCinPA]

Green tub. Both soaps are top notch IMO. I am really impressed with the new green tub Proraso. I am really impressed with the SMN, too! But I'm still drinking that California champagne.

[JCinPA]

Update

Well, my SMN was packed away for the winter in Philly, and I just brought it out to Chicago again. I've been wet shaving with good soaps and brushes and using a DE razor for two years now, and have really honed things down and consider myself an expert shaver. I am not as much of a product or equipment freak as I was at the beginning, though. But with more experience I wanted to try these two again.

I copied my last comparison post below, because, frankly, I feel exactly the same way. SMN clearly blew away the old version of Proraso Green, but the Proraso reformulation was simply one of the best product updates in the history of the world, IMO, and judging by the reaction of others here to the red, the white and the blue, it was truly a remarkable upgrade to the entire line. I had some old Proraso last summer and once I saw the difference between it and the new, I tossed the remainder, now I kinda wish I still had it because it would be fun to do a comp between the three.

But, as I said, I don't have any skin issues at all and do not need lanolin. I've been shaving alternating days lately with the SMN and the Proraso (soap in tub) and today I did a side/side shave, lathering the SMN with an Omega 49 brush, and the Proraso with a TGN finest 22mm knot in an old Everready handle. The rest of the shave...

• DE89 head on Ikon Bulldog handle
• Polsilver SI blade on shave #3 today
• Thayer's WH
• Pinaud Clubman

I got a BBS, smooth shave, no real burn with the Clubman (I think the Polsiver is my new favorite blade, it's new to me), and face feel is identical on both sides of my face. About 8 hours after the shave, both sides are equally smooth as the shave wears off over the course of the day.

If you have dry skin and/or just really like lanolin, I can see the SMN having an edge. I can tell slight differences between the two but I can't tell if I prefer one to the other. The SMN might have just the slightest more cooling effect, but it is so close it could be imaginary. Both are super slick. I did not find one to be more protective than the other, frankly shave quality, for me, is identical.

Nobody can judge another man's preferences or perception of value. I have things in my life I am way more particular about and I get the passion. But I would say to you that if you are a typical shaver with normal skin, even accounting for the weight differential in these two soaps I would tell you there is simply no way the SMN is worth more than 4X the Proraso. Again, if you have problem skin, it may be different.

Anyway, I recommend two things. Well, three, now that I think about it.

1. If you have not tried the new Proraso Green in the tub, DO IT TODAY! It is superlative stuff.

2. If you have tried the new Proraso Green and like it, and have not tried the SMN, DON'T. Your brain may try to tell you that you like the SMN more because you'll feel stupid after spending on it if you don't. Half kidding here. But only half.

3. If you simply must try SMN, get a 1/4 split from Gary's sample shop, don't get the whole tub. I have gotten dozens of shaves out of my 1/4 split and it's still good for a dozen more.

And many thanks to Marco for turning me on to Italian soft soaps and Omega brushes. For some reason I much prefer the Omega to Semogue, although many think me crazy for that. (maybe that casts doubt on my SMN opinion) But what I know is that if I had to, I could shave the rest of my life with cheap Omega boar brushes and only Cella and Proraso Green tub. Like Marco, Cella is my favorite shave, hands down.

After trying several dozen soaps/creams, I will always have Cella and Proraso, and Queen Charlotte Green Irish Tweed soft soap, along with a smattering of these others, but not likely all of them at one time; TOBS Rose cream tub, Tabac, RR Don Marco, and one hard soap like a D.R. Harris.

But Cella, Proraso, QCS GIT are always to be in my cabinet. Always. Marco, I know you want me to try a few more, but I think my experimenting days are over. Long live Cella and Proraso!


I'd love to see some others compare these two. They are so similar, they beg to be compared, sort of like that long Spetsnaz/Ninja comparison thread I did ages ago. Comparing very different products like a Mama Bear soap and a hard soap really doesn't make much sense, IMO. But Proraso Green tub and Santa Maria Novella scream out for a comparison. Have fun!

Final Verdict ...

Well, I've been using these two pretty much consistently during the Chicago summer heat wave, alternating days, using Omega brushes with each. Just for grins I did a pair of days with an EverReady resto with a 22mm TGN two-band finest.

Well, you probably guessed it. While I can tell a difference, I am simply indifferent as between these two soaps. N.B. I am not saying there is no difference, nor am I saying what difference there is is not worth the price differential! It may be plenty worth the price differential for those who are 'soapaphiles', I am not judging any man's perception of value/price here.

I think my wine analogy is very, very apt, here, though. Like trying the Moet French and California Champagnes ($37-$15 USD respectively) I can tell a difference, but it matters not to me, I like them both equally, and therefore for me there is no point to buying the pricier version.

Same here. Please note a couple things. First, you have to get some NEW Proraso soap to do a good comparison now, I believe SMN was meaningfully better than the old version, but Proraso has really upped their game. Second, I have an everyman's face, not dry, not oily, no problem skin areas, so lanolin is not important to me. For those with either dry skin or sensitivities to lanolin, your results may be RADICALLY different than mine.

For me, it's Proraso! I won't be reloading the SMN, although it is a fine soap. One thing I will note, the SMN is a little more product, but after adjusting for that it is still 4x to 4.5X more expensive. And UNLIKE MdC, I can detect no difference with regard to product used per shave. MdC yields so much more lather with less soap than competition that the price differential there is really much lower on a per-shave basis. In this case, you better really like the SMN because it really is going to cost you 4X more per shave.

So, make your own choice, but please try the NEW Proraso. These are different, and I can see soapaphiles being crazy for SMN, especially if they are lanolin fans. Also, if you care (I could not care any less) about parabens, SMN still has them, Proraso does not. That also makes no difference to me but it may to you. This is assuming my tub of SMN is current production.

Have fun! Either of these coupled with Aqua Velva or Mennen Skin Bracer will get you through those hot summer days!

[brucered]

where has this guy been? glad to see you back and posting.

thanks for the honest update, looks like new Proraso Green is the one to get.

Great post.

[Saxman11290]

A little off topic, but was the reformulation of Proraso only in the tubs, or was it in the tubes as well? I'm still on my first tube of Proraso, which I bought in June while on a trip to Italy. Based on the tube design, it is the "old" design, but has the stuff inside changed as well? I have nothing to compare against, but just curious.

Also, great thread!

[JCinPA]

Tubes too. They have the new striping on them like the tubs. Looks like this.



My son is with the Army in Kuwait. I just sent him a tube of this to replace his Bigelow and he is impressed, as well. Any of the newer products are head and shoulders above the old formulas. And the old ones were not bad!

I sampled one shave out of it before sending it to him. I like the tub better, but this was excellent stuff!

[Saxman11290]

Tubes too. They have the new striping on them like the tubs.

Thanks for the info John!

I actually picked up my first Proraso Red tube a week or so ago. Bought it in a B&M, so it is the new stuff, stripes and all on the tube. Now I'll have to pick up some new Proraso Green tube to compare to my original Proraso Green tube to see for myself. I'm certain I'll be restocking my Proraso green eventually, so I might as well get one while I have the old formula around to compare. For now, I will say I like the new red tube a lot, even though I can't compare to an old red tube.

Also, once I get my hands on a new Green tube (or tub, who knows), I might try my hand at a head to head SMN / New Proraso green shave-off. I picked up some SMN on the same trip I got the old proraso green tube. For now, I can definitely say there is an appreciable difference between the old proraso green formula and the SMN. Haven't done the cheek to cheek test yet though

[rxonmymind]

The new Proraso is good. It's funny that here a $10 soap sits next to the Ferrari of soaps, my MDC. In love both for different reasons.

[JCinPA]

@Saxman, yes, between the old Proraso green and SMN ... simply no contest. I'm curious what you'll think about the new tub verion.

I might have stocked SMN for that 'special occasion' shave if the old proraso was the only alternative. Now, I can't see me ever buying it, although I will use it daily until it's gone to see if I change my mind. Another couple weeks of daily SMN shaves followed immediately by a new Proraso shave should really help me tease out differences, maybe.