When is Sandalwood really Sandalwood?

The only sandalwood I like is the Proraso red. I am glad to hear from those that have held the wood in their hand verify that it is close, if not the actual true scent of sandalwood.

I'm quite familiar with the scent of the Mysore wood carvings. Indeed, Proraso Red is close; I like it, but to be honest, the scent is dull/muddy, in comparison to the real deal.

In fact, the Indian government owns a soap factory and that is the main soap they make, Mysore soap. So when I found it at a international store, of course I bought it. Horrible. Yuk. Smelled to high heaven...It was the most chemically contrived detergent scent, worse than lysol, that I have ever smelled in a soap.

I don't know which one you've tested, but I've smelled the government's ubiquitous "Mysore Sandal Soap," and it smelled nothing like Sandalwood - the soap is loaded with other fragrances which are horrid.
On the other hand, their "Mysore Sandalwood Millennium" soap, according to someone I trust, is spot-on sandalwood.

The only sandalwood soap I have in my den right now is Parker's with shea butter. It was actually my first soap and I'm pretty happy with the scent.

primotenore asked that I report back on my thoughts regarding Cyril R. Salter Indian Sandalwood shaving cream/soap. Well, I used it this morning and it was wonderful. For those of you who haven't tried the Cyril Salter soap you should know that it is very soft and likely could be squeezed out of tube. It doesn't take much of it to make a profusion of rich, thick lather that in this instance smelled very much like the best of the sandalwood I've come to associate with shaving products and not so much like actual sandalwood (i.e., the wood) that I've smelled in the past. It would probably be better if I had an actual piece of sandalwood with me so I could do a side by side as I'm comparing the smell of the lather in my nose to a memory. Likely not entirely accurate. Never the less, this is a really nice lather, very slick and cushiony and it lathers very easily. I used a new Semogue Owners Club boar brush - second use actually and it lathered like mad. Nice brush too by the way There was enough lather for 4 passes plus a polish with lather to spare. I really like the Cyril Salter soaps and have several, my hands down favourite has to be the French Vetiver. I think its the strongest pure vetiver scented soap I've ever experienced and it can be polarizing. I've read some nasty comments about it (not on DFS) which is fine from a free speech perspective but just plain wrong from a personal point of view
Cheers,

Confusing the matter, amyris, a totally different plant, is someone's called "west Indian sandalwood" and used as a substitute for real sandalwood. From what I understand, it does bear some resemblance, but has its own distinct scent.

Update (attn. Freddy and others who may be curious): I'm getting the hang of lathering Caswell-Massey Sandalwood. Squeezing excess water out of the brush before loading, and loading the brush for a longer time seem to be the keys. The lather is still somewhat fluffy, but thicker than before, and nicely slick and protective. And oh, that scent!  

Update (attn. Freddy and others who may be curious): I'm getting the hang of lathering Caswell-Massey Sandalwood. Squeezing excess water out of the brush before loading, and loading the brush for a longer time seem to be the keys. The lather is still somewhat fluffy, but thicker than before, and nicely slick and protective. And oh, that scent!  

I am glad you are almost there with the soap, Viseguy, but it has been quite a few years since I have had a puck of it and since then I have discovered so many other soaps and creams that I like more.  I definitely agree with you about their scents, limited though they are.