Razor: Karve CB on B CC
Blade: Astra Green
Brush: Sloyd Silvertip
Soap: Noble Otter Monarch
Aftershave: Noble Otter Monarch
Other: Thirsty Badger lather bowl
A day late on the post for this one. I got busy hanging with the boy and before you know it, the day was gone. It was too good of a shave to skip over the post, so late it is…..
Noble Otter has always been a bit of an enigma for me. Their base is quite good, no complaints there. The packaging is top notch, I love their labelling. The scents are quite nice (Thé Noir et Vanille continues to be ranked as one of the best scents by the shaving community) and yet, none have really stuck around in my den. I get great shaves with the product and yet they always end up traded or sold at some point. This particular offering was acquired in a recent trade, maybe it will be the one that breaks the curse.
Monarch is an interested blend of scent notes…. Lavender, Face Powder, Cognac, Coffee, Orange, Neroli, Hyacinth, Sandalwood, Vanilla. To my nose, I get slightly powdery-slightly floral fruit scent. It isn’t an aggressive floral by any stretch, the floral and powder notes lend themselves to soften the bright citrus and sweet vanilla. I have trouble picking up and Cognac and Coffee and I’d say the Sandalwood is very subtle to ground it with a touch of masculinity. Scent strength is about a medium or slightly less. Any stronger and I think it wouldn’t work. It is a very interesting scent, very different than anything else i own. Will it be a keeper? I’m unsure. It isn’t something I see myself grabbing often but I have gone back to it several times to sniff and enjoy.
As I mentioned earlier, performance isn’t a problem at all. This soap loads and lathers easily. Slickness (residual and lathered) are excellent and post shave is also excellent. This is a really good base, however they have released a new one. I need to get my hands on that for a try. The matching post shave was also quite good. There is a bit of alcohol in there so I got a bit of a burn. There is also menthol but I appreciate the restraint, just a very subtle cooling and no contamination of the scent.
I have flipped back and forth from the Karve open comb and closed comb plates of late and I have swung back to the closed comb being my favourite. I just find the closed comb is so much smoother for me especially with the Astra blade. But regardless the plate, this razor still gets a huge about of use in my den and highly recommend picking one up.
No complains on this shave today…. or should I say, yesterday. All for now – J
