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Barrister & Mann soaps.......still my all around favorite brand!

ShavePastor

ShavePastor

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In the last two years since I started DE shaving, I have found myself really liking the artisan soaps over commercial mass produced stuff (some of which is really good, but still). I have been chasing for that unicorn shave soap of my dreams it seems like from WK, to DG, to Noble Otter, to Sudsy Soapery, to GD, Midnight & Two, WSP, Haslinger, Tabac, Shannon's, etc..........all of which are really excellent & I still have. Along the way I have come to really know what I enjoy the most & what I'm looking for in lather quality. Many of these soaps provide amazing lathers. But there is one to me that stands out overall as my favorite brand. Barrister & Mann!!

It's the lather quality, the scent variety, the packaging, the ease of use, & the matching aftershaves that put B&M as a very well rounded brand for me. I especially LOVE the Reserve line! It is incredibly slick & silky lather that just works great for me everytime. And the scents, WOW are they awesome--from Spice (Shulton Old Spice) to Lavender (Caldey Island Lavender) to Classic (Gillette Sun-Up) & then the best of them all--Cool (Floid Blu)!! And then of course is the other two fantastic scents & performers from the glissant base--Seville, & Leviathan!


Anyone else really enjoy Barrister & Mann products? If so share your thoughts about your favorites!
 
I'm glad they work for you! Nothing like being able to find a good solid software to fall back on when needed.

I tried the Reserve Classic, but unfortunately was not as impressed as you are. The scent was just not in my wheelhouse among other things. Spice sounds cool though...can't go wrong with Old Spice!
 
I have used quite a few B&M and enjoyed them but have found others that work better for me. CRSW's Glide line, Declaration Grooming, Ariana & Evans and our very own CBL Premium Soaps are all better performers and scents for me. I do still have and get to occasionally the B&M Promises Set I have. We are spoiled with so any choices of quality soaps compared to years ago. But it is nice that we can all find what works best for each of us. Glad B&M is a BIG winner for you.
 
I’m also in the, don’t care for them camp. I’ve tried a few, it find them pretty average. I still keep a tub of 42 around, just because I’m a huge HHG2G fan, but other than that I don’t use them.
 
Here's a lather shot of the Reserve base. It's so good!
It's so heavily wet & dense & silky. Not foamy, frothy, light, or airy. Many soaps make good lather, but in my experience fewer make exceptional lathers. But I think the Reserve base makes one of the best lathers around....period!

This was my setup this morning:
 
I didn’t know they had a different bases, so I guess I’ve never tried the reserve line.
 
I was impressed with the Glissant base when it came out, then a few other artisans came out with soaps that topped it IMO. I'm in agreement with the Reserve base, though. It is amazing. I've only gotten it in lavender so far, but it is in my top 5 performing soaps.
 
Haven’t tried the reserve base. The two B&M soaps I have tried (42 and Night Music). I like the 42 and hated the Night Music.
 
Spider said:
I didn’t know they had a different bases, so I guess I’ve never tried the reserve line.
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Yeah, KJ, the Reserve base is different from their glissant base. It is definitely better IMO. I can send you a sample to try if you want. Just PM your address.
 
My only experience with B&M is Fougere Gothique. Very strong scent, but I like it and the performance a lot. Right up there or within shouting distance of the best stuff. Packaging and graphics are also really nice/creative. Not sure what base it is though. Probably start using this soap more as the weather gets a little cooler and October rolls around ?

Anyone preorder their Halloween release this year (called Hallows, I think)? Going back and forth on whether I’ll pick some up if I see it in stock.
 
Great to here you've found what works for you, congrats! I have tried the B&M Reserve Cool AS & really like it. I need to try the soap too.
 
I really like the latha soaps (except Oceana which burned my face like acid!) But I couldn't really get into the regular line scents. Great soap though!
 
I have tried a few. I haven't used the reserve line soap, but I had a sample of the Cool A/S. It is probably the reserve that I would go with if I were to buy one. I really like Seville and Lavanille scents.
 
It's still true! A year later & I STILL just love the B&M Reserve line!!
I like others too just as good (A&E, WK, DG, etc...) but the lather from B&M Reserve never fails to amaze me in its performance!

Here's the lather from this morning's shave: it's not voluminous, doesn't have a high structure to it (to hold a shape like peaks), isn't frothy or airy or light, but boy is this low structure lather super slick & dense with a wetness that just shines!
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I still have a soft spot for B&M, as it was one of the first shaving soaps I tried and he has always thought more out of the box with scents than a lot of other artisan soap makers did until more recently. I also like the he is constantly working to improve on the performance of his product, though I'm still a little bummed that the Latha line was discontinued.
 
MilkCrate said:
Very nice! I haven’t tried anything from that artisan yet.
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Thanks Tim, I gotta feeling you'd like it.

Smattayu said:
I still have a soft spot for B&M, as it was one of the first shaving soaps I tried and he has always thought more out of the box with scents than a lot of other artisan soap makers did until more recently. I also like the he is constantly working to improve on the performance of his product, though I'm still a little bummed that the Latha line was discontinued.
Click to expand...

Never tried the earlier bases such as black label, white label, or the Latha line. I've only had the Glissant base, Reserve, & the newest Excelsior base. For me Reserve is my favorite by far. Will at B&M is definitely one that has impacted wetshaving greatly in the last decade.
 
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