I was grabbing some last minute food items to prepare for the days before, during, and after Christmas, when I ran across this at the local Foodmaxx: Usually, I avoid latherless creams--like the plague. The results, for me, are typically pretty poor: rough, jumpy shaves accompanied by the ubiquitous irritation and dry face feel that always seems to follow. I have recently developed a soft spot for the Clubman brand, so in spite of my past history with products like these (and because it was Christmas Eve day and I was feeling splurgey), I bought it. I tend to see the world through rose-colored glasses when I try new things, so I thought I'd put this shave butter through it's paces by keeping things gritty and down-to-earth: Gear Razor: MMOC. I have sworn to tame this beast by shaving with it for 2-3 months straight. I'm only a few weeks into that resolution, but one thing I've already learned while using this razor is that I pay dearly if I use a sub-par lather. A month ago, I wouldn't have even dreamed of using a shave butter with the MMOC. Even now, I was feeling... uneasy. Blade: CVS carbon steel (4th shave). Honestly, I should have used a new blade if I was going to be completely fair here--but I'm a jerk. Pre-shave: I prepped with the Walmart Equate version of Noxzema. In hindsight, I left it on a considerably shorter time than I normally do with a regular shave. I didn't have bowls, brushes, soaps (and etc) to grab and prepare while my pre-shave does its thing. And I was impatient. I pretty much just washed and rinsed my beard and neck, then jumped right into... The Shave Scent: I was expecting this to smell like Clubman original AS, and so was a bit disappointed upon first whiff. This is a VERY light, fresh scent that is nothing like Clubman original AS. The scent, however, is not at all bad. In fact, to my nose, it falls somewhere in between Stirling's Sharp Dressed Man and Mountain Man. It does, I would later discover, pair quite nicely with Clubman original AS. Shave: plenty of slickness, but still not as smooth as I get with a shave brush and lather. A bit rough and jumpy around the goat-zone, and I had to attack that area with more thorough touch-ups than usual. As per usual with the non-lather shave. I will say this, though--it did outperform any of the other products of this nature I have tried, and I walked away with a shave that was BBS along the cheeks, DFS along the jaw, chin and neck, and CCS on the upper lip. Not bad, really. Just not as enjoyable as my regular shaves. Post-shave It is after I'm done shaving when I usually start to notice the things about a shave that I regret. The surprising thing about my shave with Clubman Shave Butter, is that I have very little post-shave regrets here. Normally, when I have what I consider to be a rough shave, I feel it afterwards; however, aside from some light irritation at the corners of my mouth, I walked away (from what I thought would be a train wreck) relatively unscathed. Face feel is actually quite nice. Soft, smooth, and not at all dry. The scent really pairs up well with Clubman original and accentuates those brighter top-notes. I did follow up with Stirling's Glacial Unscented shave balm, but only because I wanted a little menthol kick. I could have walked away from this shave without it and been just fine. Final Thoughts My face and beard are the perfect storm: sensitive skin, with wiry and thick facial hair. Even under optimal conditions things can go sideways pretty quick. The surprising thing here is I'm feeling pretty good right now. The shave, for me, was typical of a latherless cream--not the smoothest of experiences. Several times, as I kept after particularly stubborn areas, I was dreading the post shave consequences where I tend to really reap the whirlwind. But, miraculously, there was no whirlwind. I'm feeling pretty darned good. So, will this replace my shave soap? No. Was this an enjoyable shave? Yes and no. The shave itself, while not fantastic, yielded a smooth, comfortable, and mostly irritation-free result. Considering how greatly I stacked the deck against this product in my choice of razor, blade, and rushed pre-shave routine, I'm pretty pleased with how things turned out. I like my soaps, brush and bowl, but for those occasions where I need to shave quickly and be out the door, I won't hesitate to use Clubman Shave Butter.
