Chiseled Face Groomatorium - Rhinoceros Island Bladeworks "Bullwinkle" | TGN Finest Ever-Ready SE | Gem PTFE (1) Homemade Alcohol/Witch Hazel/Aloe Splash w/ Rhinoceros EdP Zoologist Rhinoceros EdP Ron Wiebe, Chiseled Face Groomatorium proprietor and artisan, is apparently a fan of Zoologist Perfumes. Additionally, it would seem Zoologist's Rhinoceros is one of his favorites. The two companies teamed up, and we have the first in hopefully a line of Chiseled Face-Zoologist shaving soaps. I've been a fan of Chiseled Face for quite some time, given their consistently high-performance soaps and bold fragrances. If the guy that came up with Ghost Town Barber, Sherlock, and Midnight Stag is passionate about another perfumer's fragrance, it would seem Rhinoceros is a no-brainer for me. Unlike many wet shaving money-grab "limited edition" products, Rhinoceros seemed more like a pilot project. It's apparently expensive to make, so there was some risk involved with this venture. It would have been quite unfortunate for Chiseled Face to have a warehouse full of un-sold Rhino. It's my understanding that, depending on the success of Rhinoceros, more Zoologist-scented soaps would be forthcoming---including a revisit of Rhinoceros. The sales went better than expected, so don't fret if you missed out as the opportunity will most assuredly come around again. A $35 blind buy on a Chiseled Face soap is no problem in my mind. However, a $125 USD blind-buy of an EdP I've never experienced before is a little more daunting. That said, given Ron's passion about this project, and my alignment with his fragrance choices, I took the plunge. If for nothing else but to do my part in spiking Zoologist sales, thereby confirming the collaboration was mutually beneficial. Honestly, Zoologist may never have come up on my radar had it not been for this soap. While I was on Zoologist's site, I ordered a sample pack of their other offerings (8-2.5mL testers). I refrained from using the soap until the EdP arrived a few days later. The thick black glass jar and premium metallic black and gold labels are unbelievable. The presentation alone does a lot to mitigate the sticker shock. Then when the EdP arrived from Zoologist, I immediately understood the rationale for the soap's premium packaging. There would simply be no other way to present it up against the fine presentation of the Zoologist EdP. Aesthetically, the two products complement each other quite well. I took whiffs off the dry soap jar while waiting for the EdP to arrive. I already know that's no way to explore a shaving soap fragrance, but I can't express this more emphatically that it's completely useless with this particular soap. All I could get was a caustic alcohol and ammonia essence, so I quit trying until shave day. Upon lathering, I was rewarded with an unmistakable bold rum fragrance, verging on excessive. This was quickly filled out with leather and muted smoky vetiver notes and tobacco. Competing for the edge were distinct bergamot, oud, and cedar. Just as I thought the fragrance had stabilized, a swelling musk pushed through and sustained throughout the shave. For probably obvious reasons, there was no matching splash made for Rhinoceros. I therefore tried my hand at a homemade solution using isopropyl alcohol, Thayers Unscented Witch Hazel with Aloe, and the entire contents of the 0.08 oz. sample of the Rhinoceros perfume, all added to an unused 4 oz. apothecary bottle I had lying around. While I would prefer a professionally-made matching splash, this worked out quite nicely. Given the recommendations I've received, I may yet re-make this using ethyl alcohol to eliminate the brief harsh alcohol scent from the isopropyl alcohol. I've already ordered a second Rhinoceros sample because I don't see a safe way to extract it from the full-sized bottle other than to pump spray it in which I would imagine would result in some waste. The longevity of the homemade splash was about 4 hours. I estimate my ratio of alcohol to Thayers to be about 2:3. I refrained from using the EdP until the next day just so I could evaluate the longevity of the splash. Now, having had the opportunity to wear the EdP all day, I'm very happy with it. It turns out the soap does a great job of leaving the fragrance alone other than muting it, of course. So, if you're not into blind buying the fragrance (keeping in mind there are samples and even travel-size options available on Zoologist), you'll know what you're getting by having experienced the soap first. The EdP is aggressive, but well balanced. The initial rum blast is even bolder, but it calms down quickly. The leather, oud, soft smoky vetiver, tobacco, bergamot, and cedar are all still there. The perfume does seem to carry additional complementary elements I didn't detect in the soap, such as fir and a very subdued wet musky floral. Rhinoceros is a complex beast. I will absolutely be wearing this often. I also look forward to exploring the samples of Zoologist's other offerings. I hear good things about "Civet", "Badger" and "Bat". I'm very pleased with this Chiseled Face-Zoologist collaboration. I sincerely hope it was enough of a success for both parties as to facilitate future endeavors as they seem to share a similar model of bold elegance. Here are a few pics of the EdP presentation:
my position with Chiseled Face still stands....I may purchase something else with that company name, but it won't be from their website.
