I thought I would give my 2 cents on what is possibly one of the most expensive shave soap brands on the market today, Martin De Candre. If you know just one thing about MDC; it’s the price of this brand of soap. Depending where you buy it from and what scent you choose; a 7 ounce jar costs anywhere from $70+ and up! You might ask yourself “is it worth the price and how does it perform?” I currently own 3 of their shave soaps: Original, Agrumes and Fougère and am waiting on their Rose scented soap; so yes I am a fan but my review is 100% honest and I’m not getting compensated for this in any way. My review will only focus on the following: price, performance and scent. I’m not going to talk much about its packaging or presentation as my focus is mainly how it performs, smells and is the price worth it. Let’s start with the price. A 7 oz jar of MDC can cost anywhere from $70 and up depending where and who you buy it from. At the $70 price tag, that’s $10 an ounce! So the price is very restricting for many wet shavers. However I will admit I’ve bought my 3 soaps at discounts from time to time when various web stores had promotional sales going on. I was lucky to buy Agrumes from WCS during a clearance sale of theirs at about $54; so keep an eye open for promotional sales from websites like WCS, Maggard and others. Performance: The performance of MDC is the stuff of legends; with in mere seconds of beginning your lathering of this soap you have enough lather for one pass in 5 seconds load time. It’s also very slick and fairly protective lather. Even if you have a dry lather with MDC it is still slick enough for the razor to glide with extreme ease. The MDC website says that if you follow their instructions one soap can last over a year; I can see this lasting much longer than that. Even though it’s not triple milled; it is a very hard soap due to the months of drying from the company’s farm and thus it feels triple milled even though it’s not. This is a soap that I feel will last a few years with semi regular use. I’ve had the Agrumes for about a year and it looks brand spanking new even though I’ve used it many times; I lather this soap the same way I lather any soap. With a fairly wet brush adding water as needed then face lather. I can see these shave soaps being something you inherited to someone when your time has come; especially if you use many different soaps. I’m still impressed with the quality of the lather as it’s very slick and with a wet brush quite protective, thick and dense. Scent: My favorite among the Martin De Candre soaps so far is Agrumes; so I’ll speak on that one. Agrumes is described as their citrus scented soap; great for spring/summer time. I say this could be an all year scent as Agrumes has a scent that I describe as a “happy scent”. It just brightens my day every time I sniff it, but the same can be said for Original and Fougère. MDC’s scent is simple yet very enjoyable to the senses. So now you must think I’m going to tell you to go out and buy a jar of MDC; you’d be mistaken. While I love these soaps I will not say that you MUST BUY THEM. If you’re curious about this brand of shave soap ask a friend to scrape you out a sample or even buy a sample from Maggard Razors; their MDC samples are a few bucks and trying a sample will let you know if this soap is for you. This is a very hefty purchase but I feel the scent, performance and long lasting nature of this soap justifies purchase in my opinion; you may feel differently thus why I recommend sampling MDC before making a full purchase. I do feel that if you haven’t used this before you’ll be quite surprised how well it works and smells but that’s my opinion. I hope my review helps in any way. Thanks for reading.
fine review Angelo.if you break down the cost per shave it is very budget friendly.just a larger outlay for some to spend.i only have the agrumes and it was a late purchase in my wetshaving adventure.but very happy.i also buy laundry soap in big tubs once a year for x $..i understand the cost savings.
A good review. I owned the Fougere and now have the original scent, I loved the Fougere, the original scent is just nice to me.
As I begin to finally use up some of the many soaps I bought in my new person frenzy a few years ago I'm considering replacing them all with a couple of soaps this is one of them. Thanks for the review.
By combining these two data, in the end it is not expensive. I consider it an investment ... in pleasure, as well as in the q/p ratio. Mainly for the fragrance, that is outstanding. I truely love the Original scent. A few years ago, before the explosion of handmade shaving soap fashion, there were few noble soaps. And among these, very few artisans proper. Just to understand how much the expense was worth, I tested a few ... spread over the years. In 2013 the Martin de Candre In 2014 the Saponificio Varesino Beta 4.0 In 2015 the Meissner Tremonia The method was simple. With a 10 gram weighed sample, I saw how many days it lasted. Always with the same brush, the excellent Liojuny "Tampa" Finest 3-band 23mm. Always with the same load, directed in a bowl for 10 seconds. Then considering the results, extrapolate an average statistical data as a reference. These are the results: MdC|15 days|paste 200g in glass...|about 300 days|€41.50|about €0.138/shave MT |17 days|paste 200ml in glass..|about 340 days|€24.90|about €0.073/shave MT |21 days|hard 95g in cardboard.|about 200 days|€19.90|about €0.100/shave SV |23 days|hard 150g in cardboard|about 345 days|€25.00|about €0.072/shave Not happy, I wanted to compare it with the best selling of the cheap products (10g) ... to see how much you save. Palmolive Men|4 days|100ml red tube|about 40 days|€1.90|about €0.048/shave So the real advantage is about €0.024/shave ... or about €8.75/year on daily use. But the quality is definitely different. It is true that the price is high, but for the best products it is to be considered as an investment. In fact, it is necessary to know how to evaluate the general yield, not just some details. And it is also a very good investment, since as you can see the q/p ratio is absolutely advantageous. This is why I have been saying for years that those products are cheap !! About SV, now its price is higer, but the composition is more durable. New generation add waxes, Alba Wax and Carnauba Wax (Copernicia Cerifera) or both. Beta 4.0 No Wax ............ Dolomiti Beta 4.1 No Wax ............ Settantesimo Anniversario, Tundra Artica Beta 4.2 Carnauba + Alba ... Cosmo, Stella Alpina Beta 4.3 Carnauba .......... Cubebe, Desert Vetiver Carnauba + Alba ... Felce Aromatica, Manna di Sicilia, Mirto di Sardegna, Opuntia The MdC is a soap with exceptional mechanics. But for those who have (real) skin problems, it has a poor conditioning function. The conditioning of the skin is a counterintuitive detail. The more evident it is, the more the situation is compromised. I always advise not to go looking for the miraculous product. Normally there is a loss in the q/p ratio. Not for the soap, but for the lack of user discernment. Rarely is a product more valuable than investing in technique. On my skin, I get the best results (decreasing order of effectiveness) with these products: - Frankincense Giardini La Mortella - Grooming Dept Formula Nai - Saponificio Varesino Dolomiti Black - G&G Grooming Formula V3 Mithra - Meissner Tremonia Rasierpaste Indian Flavor - HTGM Synergy 1.0 - Phoenix Shaving Formula CK-6 - Freelander Base Superingrassata With the former, my dermatitis disappears in a few days. With the second after about a week. The others, except the last one, block the beginning of the return phase in the bud. The latter maintains the stable situation without problems. I use others for the pleasure of the fragrance. Grooming Dept Formula Nai V1 (Aion) was a revelation for me. http://www.ilrasoio.com/viewtopic.php?p=336378#p336378 Being a product not designed for a specific scenario, being in second place is already a small miracle. My first place was created ad hoc by a pharmacist colleague, for my exact clinical condition. Inside it has powerful functional consistent with my type of dermatitis. What is more, Formula Nai V2 (Otium) is an advancement. https://damnfineshave.com/thread-nai-v1-vs-v2 This is why today I consider three categories of products from a technical point of view: • Grooming Dept Formula Nai, the future * • Saponificio Varesino Beta 4.3, the present • the others, the past * The use of deep-acting amino acids characterizes the product intimately. http://www.ilrasoio.com/viewtopic.php?p=337984#p337984 Personally from Proraso upwards I find they are all mechanically good products. Normally more than valid for shaving needs. But not everyone manages to handle particular needs. Not only if they derive from an imperfect technique. But above all if they are deeper and more demanding. These are my €0.02. I apologize for the length.
