Gentleman's Nod 11 "Vincent" and 85 "Ernest" shaving soaps

A new soap artisan which is becoming more popular among wet shavers : Gentleman's Nod 

A to start , a disclaimer : the man behind these shaving soaps is a virtual friend since 2012 when we used to chat in other shaving forum regarding synthetic shaving brushed,.I lost contact with him until I recently tried these soaps and I discovered he is the one behind them.CJames was his username in other shaving platforms back at the time and I'm really glad I tried his creations and re kindled our friendship.

This brand has two lines , one with tallow and the other without it , but if you ask me , both are equally good and I'm actually more partial to the non tallow version , due to the slickness of it's lather.

I'm going to start writing about the number 11 or "Vincent" , which has a tallow based (red label) 



Here are it's ingredients :



As you can read a lot of great ingredients for extra dry skin like mine with Aloe , Jojoba, Castor , Lanolin etc as well as tallow.

This soap comes on a 4 oz plastic jar (around 115 grams) and is the more expensive of the line , 27 dollars per jar.

It was a very elegant presentation and , like other artisan shaving soaps , a medium hard consistency 



And ,of course , a pic with the later I get from this soap , using a Semogue 1305.



Is very easy to make lather from this soap , no matter what shaving brush you use , badger , boar or synthetic , and the lather is quiet thick compare to other artisan soaps but I find this one less slick than the non tallow one that I'll write about it later.

The lather is extremely protective , and my extra dry skin can testify about that.The shave is extra pleasant and I don't even need pre shave oil , which I always use.Its impossible to ask more to this soap on the skin care department.

But the thing that I LOVE (yes , with capital letters) about this soap is it's scent.Pure poetry of notes combine together to create such a brilliant and elegant scent.Since the Tallow and Steel Classic scent I haven't fell in love with the scent of soap like I have done with this Vincent.Simply superb.A combination of lavender and bergamot with green notes of Cypress and Vetiver.When I open the tub I can smell the fresh notes of lavender and bergamot , very crisp and clean , but as I start loading the brush , the green deep notes start showing up creating a very classy symphony of herbal scents.The idea behind this scent was Van Gogh is Southern France and let me tell you , it smells that way.Amazing indeed.

The 85 "Ernest" comes with the new non tallow formula and it has a citrusy scent , perfect for this time of the year if you want to avoid mentolated creams or soaps.




Same presentation than the Vincent , with 4 oz of soap (approx 115 grams) and a price of 20 dollars.



And here the list of it's ingredients



As you can read , no tallow on this formula but plenty of great ingredients like Aloe Vera , Argan , Jojoba , Castor , Mango and Basau Oil and even Raw Honey and Goats Milk.

The lather looks identical to the Vincent tallow based one , with that extra thickness , but this lather is more , more slick , at least to me.I use a water softener and I don't know if that's related but this lather is much slicker than the tallow based one and I really enjoy that.If we add that the skin care properties are also top notch and I don't even need to use pre shave oil , we have another winner.

And it's scent is perfect for summer.As a matter of fact the idea is Hemingway in Key West or Cuba and yes , smells very refreshing and citrusy with deeper notes of tobacco flower.

Do I recommend these soaps ? Yes , of course.The skin care and scents are excellent , specially the Vincent one , but I prefer the non tallow version over the tallow due to its slicker lather.

Well done Gentleman's Nod and I can predict that many wet shavers are going to enjoy your creations !

Thanks for sharing your impressions, Teiste! There’s been a lot of praise for the scents Gentleman’s Nod has created. It’s nice to read more about their performance, as well. So many soap options, these days…

Zzzzzzzzzzzz
No offense but wake me up when a new artisan comes along with a formula without lanolin.

Zzzzzzzzzzzz
No offense but wake me up when a new artisan comes along with a formula without lanolin.

Let’s not turn this into another thread about lanolin, but I have to say that it seems to be a default ingredient in just about every new soap that comes along. I always feel bad for those who have a sensitivity to it, since it is known that a good soap can be made without it.

Zzzzzzzzzzzz
No offense but wake me up when a new artisan comes along with a formula without lanolin.

Let’s not turn this into another thread about lanolin, but I have to say that it seems to be a default ingredient in just about every new soap that comes along. I always feel bad for those who have a sensitivity to it, since it is known that a good soap can be made without it.

Agreed.
Thank you for understanding.

The veggie version doesn't have lanolin as the label says.

I received one of the old tubs with the non tallow/lanolin version.

What is going to hurt this soap is the steep $27 price tag and that doesn't even include shipping. That's more than even Wholly Kaw and a lot more than A&E and a host of others. He needs to lower that IMO if he wants to compete. Just my 2 cents.