Guys, I recently placed a big order for this soap. I have been watching this soap for awhile and finally jumped it. This soap left a great first impression. I'm using Mike's Natural Soap as a benchmark, because I see a lot of similarities between the two soaps. Price: 10/10. I got the MITA as a sample with my order. Rod is a class act. Also, the soap costs $5 per puck. It's a big puck too. It's bigger than MWF and is easily almost as big as Tabac. Quality: 9/10. It's a very well made soap. I understand that QC in the early models were iffy, but he has it down pat now. Scent: 10/10. It smells like a fresh lime to me. It is just like the real thing. I don't usually like citrus scents, but this has me singing a different tune. Lather: 10/10. The most common complaint about this soap is that it sucks at lathering. I had no problems. I would even go as far as to say that for me it lathered as good as Mike's. It's a thirsty soap, but was easy to dial in the lather. I spent maybe a minute and a half lathering this soap. Efficacy: 10/10. This is what won me over for sure. My face was well moisturized after the shave. I didn't need aftershave, I put some on because I wanted to. The tallow and the lanolin took good care of my skin. This soap has menthol in it and the cooling effect was medium. IMHO, I think it's middle of the road as far as menthol goes. Moisturizing: 10/10. Efficacy to me is in the same category as moisturizing. Guys, this soap is too cheap not to try. Rod has something here that can hang with the big names of the shaving world. I wish I would have tried this stuff sooner. Rod had a tough road at the beginning, but who said making a good shaving soap would be easy? If there was one thing that disappointed me, it would be the menthol level in this soap. I am a menthol junkie, so I was sort of expecting a menthol blast. Even though it didn't happen for me, it doesn't mean it won't happen for you. I still like this soap for all the moisturizing capabilities and the price. I will keep this soap in my rotation.
Ryan-Great review. Margaritas in the Arctic was my first Stirling soap. I am on my second puck now along with three others. I agree with your summation. If I can easily lather a soap in our rock hard south Texas limestone water, it will lather anywhere. The performance is great: smooth, slick, cushioning, conditioning! I like the menthol level in the MITA, but as always YMMV. I like to finish with Krampert's Frostbite to top it off. I am currently using the Scots Pine Sheep...........another winner. I have Coniferous ready to go soon. MITA is going to be my "go to" menthol (not that I won't slip in some Palmolive cream or Proraso White tub, etc. too!)
To me, Palmolive Menthol is way colder and about even in skincare. I think the MITA is slightly colder than Proraso White, another soap I love very much.
Certainly a great soap! I don't have a lot of menthol loaded soaps, but I do love the cooling of this one. The scent is awesome as well, actually smells like a Margarita topped with fresh Lime. I'll probably break mine out again later this week, before it starts cooling off outside!
I'm pretty used to extreme menthol, so YMMV is very big here. I still have my Orange Chill, Frozen Tundra, and a sample of Barbershop to go through.
Boys, I don't have any Stirling menthol soaps yet but I do have a Mama Bear Lemon Ice soap as well as a vintage Tryphon Mentolo soap. Both of these soaps are damn cold and nice. Which one should it be for tomorrow - let's see now.............
Love the soap! Scent is amazing. It actually smells just like a margarita...The menthol had a pretty decent punch for me. Froze my face very nicely!
I have been trying out the Sterling Soaps for a few days now and the later is pretty good. It's awesome at first, then by the third pass it really starts to thin. I doubt it's my water, MWF lathers like a champ for example, so I'm not sure what the problem is. The soap is still totally useable, but it would be great if the third pass lather was thicker. Any suggestions?
Ordered! I'm also going to try the Black Ice. I've been (quite happily) using Palmolive Classic shave sticks, shredded and pressed into my shave mug for a couple of years, but I cannot resist trying stuff that is not made in a giant factory yet is sold for a reasonable price. Thanks for the review!
Here's my review on the MITA. Ease of lathering: 10/10--Explodes into lather off the brush easily and effortlessly. Longevity of lather: 9/10--No problem that way either. General skincare: 9/10--Excellent. Ryan sure knows what he's talking about. This soap is very moisturizing. Scent: 10/10--Very mentholy/citrusy and tropical. I love it. Price: 10/10--It was a most generous gift from Ryan, but I know the price. It would be a steal. Would I buy again: Do birds fly? Do fish swim? Damn right I'd buy it again! I just finished my first shave with this wonderful soap and already I'm most impressed with it. The lather is so easy to build and yes, the soap likes water a lot but it's very easy to figure out the soap/water ratio. The menthol effect is actually quite strong - in fact I would rate it as close to Proraso Green. It also moisturizes and protects the skin very, very well. Welcome to my rotation, MITA - it's great to have you!
I knew you would like the MITA Jeff!! It is one of my favorite soaps. You also need to try the Glacial when Rod gets it reformulated and back on deck.
A nicely-written, thorough review, Ryan! I appreciate you took the time to give a scoring evaluation (as Chris has done in his soap reviews) plus a benchmark. you now have considering ordering a few pucks, even though I'm trying to work down the load of soaps I currently have in stock. "Must…….resist…….temptation!…."
Ryan, great review very through too. My initial response to Stirling has not been positive, I would be willing to give it another chance.
It's worth a shot. $5 a puck is incredibly cheap! This soap doesn't work well being built in a bowl or scuttle. It works best with being built on the puck and then finished being built on the face. Try that. Oh and don't forget, this soap is thirsty.
