The Club - Midnight Kush
DrivenLegend Red & Black | APShaveCo Tuxexo 30mm
Ever-Ready SE | Gem PTFE (2)
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With a name like "Midnight Kush" and the iconic pot head Bob Marley emblazoned across the label, one might anticipate a specific dominant note from this Diamond Exclusive soap. If subtlety isn't your bag, the first three advertised scent notes are, "…Cannabis, Cannabis, and Cannabis…". Now, that we're on the same page, you're expecting this to be a cannabis-forward fragrance, right? Prepare to be disappointed. Take a whiff off the tub, and you've got a pretty good representation as to what you'll experience when lathered, and that's patchouli, musk, and vanilla---in that order. You may notice something missing. That's right, no cannabis. I tried very hard to detect even a faint cannabis note, flower or otherwise, and I came up bupkis.
That's not to say this isn't an pleasant accord, if not a bit contrived. The patchouli is forward, but it's used well and, it's balanced with musky vanilla. This fragrance is just this side of my floral/sweet threshold, so despite my disappointment by the absence of cannabis, I will use this again. If for no other reason than that of the performance. It's a vegan formula, and I'd love to know the identity of the artisan that made it (PM me. I won't tell. I'll buy all your products.). I'll stipulate the usual, dense, slick lather, blah, blah, blah. Let's be honest, given the playing field, if I encounter a soap that's not dense and slick, I'll quit mid-shave and grab a stand-by. Post-shave is a quality that's not quite as prevalent, but I can abide that. It's what a good nourishing after-shave product is for. However, the base in Midnight Kush excels in the post-shave department. I mean such that I messaged the artisan I was certain was responsible for it, but he denied it. The fragrance is not his style anyway, but the base is his caliber.
Midnight Kush's matching splash has the same profile, but it's brighter initially. The dry down is more reminiscent of incense, but no cannabis there either. This is a nice concoction, though. I like it when an artisan decides to decrease the alcohol without completely eliminating it. I could feel the alcohol, but it was very light. Again, my skin already felt great just from allowing the pulled lather to stay on my scalp while I cleaned up the gear. You do need to shake this splash right before using it because there's not enough alcohol in it to emulsify the oils as evidenced by the obvious separation.
Overall, I'm quite pleased by this Diamond exclusive, but not for the reasons I'd anticipated. If you have an opportunity to pick up Midnight Kush, do so for the bold and pleasant patchouli/musk fragrance, but more so for the performance. It totally redeems itself of the misleading name with the post-shave. If you're looking for a good cannabis soap, I recommend the artfully done "Quatre Cent Vingt" by Catie's Bubbles for the floral side or even "The Dead Sea" by RazoRock for faint warm cannabis notes.