First off, full disclosure, Italian Barber Amici has a special place in my heart. Why you might ask? Well Amici was the first *real* shave soap I ever acquired. Prior to that aquisition I was shaving with a Schick Quattro and whatever can of foam I happened to pick up while shopping. But after hitting up a class with Shave Valet I picked up a wet shaving starter kit that had this soap. I havent looked back since.
As the name would imply, this is an Italian style or soft shave soap. I usually prefer the soft soaps for the easy of load and the ability to part out travel sizes (ahem, *samples*). Italian Barber describes this as having:
Top Notes: Red Grapefruit, Lemon, Orange
Heart Notes: Spices
Base Notes: Amber, Musk, Hay, Tonka Bean, Vanilla, Patchouli
I catch the citrus off the top and the Amber and Vanilla in the end. It lathers up well and creates a nice cushion. Slickness is fine as well. I love the scent, but it is a bit more subtle than I prefer. I always tend to gravitate to the soaps that have a bit more kick to the scents. I wouldnt describe it as weak, but I would like it to stand out a bit more, especially since I like the scent so much.
Where this soap really stands out is value. You can find this soap in the $4-$7 price range! That is an awesome deal for a quality product. Compare that with your can of foam and not only will you get a much better shave, it will last a lot longer. I don’t think you will find a better value for a shave soap. That is why I think it makes such a great starter product.
So for me, I say this is a recommend. Give it a try. It won’t set you back much and it is a really nice product. And if you want to enable someone, get them on the road to wet shaving, give them a tub of this with a starter shave brush and I’m sure you will have a convert on your hand.
Happy Shaving!
J
