Catie's Bubbles | Vintage for S.E.R.F.
Ever-Ready 100T | Elite Razor Manchurian
Radio 1912 | Gem PTFE
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I haven't used my Radio in a while, but it just seemed to be the right tool for the inaugural use of Vintage, a group 3-part set for the S.E.R.F (Single-Edge Razor Fans) Facebook group. The full set includes Catie's Bubbles' Luxury Cream Soap, Before and After Splash, and Eau de Parfum, all of which could be purchased separately.
Catie's Bubbles is my first love in artisan shaving soap post-shave. It was the first soap to introduce me to jojoba and what it means in terms of healthy supple skin. As a head-shaver, this is an especially important aspect to wet shaving, and Catie's Bubbles always leaves my skin feeling like slick glass for about 4 hours.
Vintage's documented scent notes are: citrus, geranium, cedarwood, suede, musks, and amber. There's really nothing extraordinary in that profile, and newcomers may even assume that given its target is a group, it was meant to be a safe crowd pleaser. However, those of us who are privy to the Cullenary arts, knew there would be much more to this. The brain behind the likes of 322, Confiant, V, and Quatre Cent Vingt doesn't do pedestrian.
Forget off-the-tub dry scent assessments. You'll learn nothing of this fragrance until you hit it with a damp brush. Vintage offers an off-label kick-off that completely took me buy surprise. I almost feel like a spoiler alert is warranted here in that I hate to ruin the magic that you'll experience upon initial lather. It opens with vivid image of an industrial era by way of brief but specific valve oil. Some may associate this with the clean fresh "3-IN-ONE" oil or tapping oil. I associate it with the fragrance of my trumpet valves when they're warmed up. To others, it may lend to a pre-plastic age or even a steampunk-ish vibe, with a flinty, metallic note. I'm spending a lot of time describing this single aspect, when in reality, despite its impact, it's quite brief. This note's native sweetness naturally carries over to the sharp, bright citrus. When the lather is fully formed, the accord acquires more depth and warmth with thoughtful use of musk and woody resin to round this out to a truly elegant fragrance. And that's just the soap. In many cases, the soap base blunts the full vision of complex fragrances such as this. However, Vintage unfolds nicely, even within this often stifling medium. The splash---and more so the EdP---certainly broaden the spectrum thereby unveiling the complementary details and an unabridged muse that is Vintage. The EdP is still detectable 10 hours out, maintaining a rich and robust woody resin base lifted by a well-controlled musk.
Not since Barrister and Mann's "Promises" have I experienced a fragrance that evokes such a specific memory. Vintage is without question much more interesting than its profile suggests. It may yet be a sleeper, but I suspect as others experience this, the demand will direct Catie's Bubbles back to the well.
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