O Melhor

Im sort of torn by this cream. On one hand I love the mild, European, fresh scent (reminds me of a sunny summer day in a park) and the moisterizing properties, its also a decent price. On the other hand, the lather is thin and not very luxurious, although it does its job. I find I need to use a bit more than other creams to get the same shave. I will continue to use it, but wouldnt buy it again.

This is a quality shaving cream. Availability seems to be the buzz word here. Appart from buying online through confianca I have never seen this cream retailing anywhere in the UK or Europe. Once you lay your paws on it you will quickly realise that this is a shaving cream of the highest quality.
It offers a slick, onctuous and a smooth shave. The secnt is of an old school charm, refreshing yet not overpowering. Moisturising products are great. packaging is a plain steel tube with the old fashioned label glued on.

Confiança is a very old factory, founded in 1894, in Braga, northern Portugal.
For more than a century it has achieved an enviable reputation of production of high quality products. Some of their products are in the personal preferences of some well-recognised celebrities, like Oprah Winfrey, Kate Moss or Naomi Campbell. The cherry soaps from Confiança were already part of the famous Christmas baskets of Oprah Winfrey.

Recently, Confiança (=confidence or trust, in Portuguese language) has been recently acquired by Ach.Brito/Claus Porto, makers of "Musgo Real".

This was the second shaving cream produced by Confiança that I have acquired . I was really impressed with my experience with "Top Secret" shaving cream, so I went to a local store and bought a tube of this luxurious shaving cream.

First, let's take a look at what the manufacturer has to say about this shaving cream:

100% Men

“O Melhor” is a product range specially formulated for men's skin care.

Translated as “The Best” it includes shaving cream, exfoliating soap and balsam after-shave.

The stylish retro packaging is the result of the restyling of an original logo dating back to the 1920's.

The strength of this line is reinforced by a back to basis old-school fragrance with notes of musk and marine.

From: http://www.confiancasoaps.com/catalogo/detalhes_produto.php?cat=240&id=193

Click to expand...

I must say that I have quite sensitive skin, that doesn't react very well with some aftershaves and shaving creams. But my impressions about "O Melhor" couldn't be better.

Price tag is somewhat high. At about €9,00 a piece, this is not properly cheap stuff. In fact, it costs about the same of a tube of Musgo Real. But it is worth every penny.

The scent is just marvellous. That is the first thing you notice when you open the tube for the first time. It has some subtle notes of marine, complemented by some woody notes, but in a light, clean and fresh way. A nice and extremely pleasant "cologne" type of scent. However, I wouldn't not call it "old school" or "retro". Very nice.

The package contains 100mL, and it is a metallic coloured tube (not painted) partially wrapped in a retro-style paper label. The same vintage-style label is present in the outer paper box, that is black on the outside and yellow on the inside. All the package is very exquisite and inspires confidence.

It is terrifically effective. Easily produces lots of creamy, slick and protective lather. Does not require a lot of water. The texture of the cream itself is already very creamy, and resembles the texture of Musgo Real.

It is excellent for your skin, leaving it very moisturised. Even with sensitive skin, this cream proves his value, delivering very good protection and slickness during the shave. It contains lanolin, which smooths and moisturises your skin.

For me, this is simply one of the best (if not the best) shaving creams actually available.
The words "O Melhor" mean "The Best" in Portuguese. And that is a name that simply suits this cream heavenly.



EDIT:
Gentlemen, feel free to post your comments to my review in this thread:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?p=2293177#post2293177

I must say I'm very impressed with the quality of this cream. O Melhor means "the best" and it's really the best cream produced by Confiança. IMO it surpasses Musgo (scent is very different though).
O Melhor produces a rich, creamy and protective lather.

Price: This is not cheap stuff, it costs about 9€ a tube (100 ml). Luckily I bought during the vintagescent.com one day discount, and it cost about 7€. And I must say this cream worth every cent.


Quality: This is an high quality shaving cream, made with the best ingredients, and using all Confiança's knowledge. It can be used even on sensitive skin


Scent: It's a very mild scent, not easy to describe, but to me it smells like hand washed clothes with soap. My grandmother used to wash clothes with some vintage soap, and O Melhor scent's is almost the same. Makes me dream about old times.


Efficacy: A small portion creates an high quality lather, you only need to soak your brush and no more water is needed.


Moisturizing properties: Contains lanolin (extracted from wool) so it smooths your skin, and creates less drag for your blade. Your skin will feel very moisturized.


Packaging: O Melhor is sold in a 100ml metal tube that comes inside a cardboard box. The tube itself looks very vintage, especially the logo.