SOTD Saturday 18 April - Friday 24 April 2026

Randy

Randy

Legendary Member
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Grooming Department - Corretto (Mallard Base)
Alexander Simpson - Trafalgar Sovereign "T3"
Yaqi Mercury
Gillette 7 o' clock "Super Stainless" (Black) #2
Ariana & Evans - Tobacco Road Splash


Ingredients: Water, Stearic Acid, Duck Fat, Kukui Nut Oil, Goat Milk, Castor Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Cupuacu Butter, Kokum Butter, Glycerin, Jojoba Oil, Myristic Acid, Shea Butter, Sodium Hydroxide, Fragrance, Coconut Milk, Tamanu Oil, Lauryl Laurate, Carnauba Wax, Beeswax, Allantoin, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Betaine, Sodium Lactate, Silk Amino Acids, Oat Amino Acids, Sesame Oil, Macadamia Oil, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium Gluconate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Tocopherols, Silk Peptides.
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Third try with this formula from Master Mohammad Abed (former Grooming Dept, now Aion Skincare) from 2021. The rotation wasn't proper because these soaps are used only on special occasions. Kinda "Unicorn" situation too, every time they came out, we were with the finger on the trigger to buy them like crazy. The hype was all over us back then. Probably because we felt more "privileged" to own such a rare soap and feel more "experienced" users when shaving with it. Mo has some talent in soapmaking though. It's just the glorious hype that bothered me, but didn't stop me from getting almost anything from him.

This is how I also got the other bases too (Pomp - DonkeyBase2022, Chypre D'Ananas - Kairos, Vertu - Nai Vegan x2, OUSIA II - Kairos Special Edition).

Scent Notes: Coffee, Brandy, Plum, Berries, Honey, Cacao Dust, Vanilla, Patchouli.

While it's not that bad, it's not for me. Weird smell, high acidity and has this sharpness, probably from the also weird mixing. Who blends berries, honey, with Brandy & Plum? Dear Lord forgive this artisan and send him a sample from Saponificio Varesino to realize himself how a real soap should smell. Amen.

Lather: 20-25 seconds of loading with the Sovereign knot and the soap dried instantly on the face. More water needed. Tonight I brought with me the automatic sprayer, a real innovation in hydrating artisan soaps. Equal distribution of water and easier to build up a great lather. I found that the final lather (even though I overhydrated it) looked and felt very very similar, almost identical, with Grooming Cult's - Veil Of Shadows (Prometheus R). Not so heavy but very creamy, with top class slickness and not difficult to work with, at all. You must add water only, can take it, but it's not overly thirsty.

WTG: The razor glided effortlessly, without any dragging. Looks scary, it's effective but has this blade chattering especially on the moustache and chin area that almost ruined the shave. Nothing very serious though. Bulky, heavy head, not ideal for the details, huge blade gap but smooth. It's very easy to press down though with this weight. There was a reason I didn't buy this head before...

ATG: The lather was thinner, the T3 has some issues with the release but nothing serious, soap has excellent properties, especially in residual slickness, but it's difficult for a shaving soap that costs a small fortune including shipping not being slick enough. The razor is noisy, exactly similar as you blowing an empty whistle, if you get my point. On this pass, it's wasn't exactly smooth and it was very easy to lose some small hairs under and around the nostrils. Not so easy to control it and although the building quality is good, I didn't like much the way it shaved. Tends to bite without any warning first, although it doesn't feel aggressive. The blade alignment was good, the exposure is scary but the guard keeps it safe enough from cutting yourself badly. Still a mediocre razor, not for everyday use and definitely heavy as I said.

Conclusion: Good soap obviously, behind Omnibus, Ultima, Orion though. This isn't the flagship of Grooming Dept and it's not considered a full fat soap. Good lather stability, but in overhydration falls definitely behind the above-mentioned bases. Having these options available in my country in the local shaving stores, I wouldn't buy again Mallard with ease. The scent is a riddle with Mo, as always. Post shave and general face feeling is top class though, it's more of a hydrating balm than a shaving soap.
The splash gave some sting, no heat or redness, a good DFS and no sore face. I added later a Cerave cream, the skin was a bit tight and dry.

The Mercury razor in some cases felt like a cheese grater, especially in ATG buffing or when overshaving with no visible hairs. No clogging, easy rinsing, efficient and effective for 7 days or even more growth. The blade feel is present all the time, needs light touch and shallow angle.

Having tried the original Freyja & OC heads just before this one, feels like a blasphemy and sure is unfair any comparison with a cheap Chinese product, a blatant rip-off of Timeless or even Fine Marvel. And I'm telling this as a person who isn't against Chinese products, I have many of them, mainly because of the price. But many times there's no planning behind these products. There are some expensive razors from Yaqi though which seem to be much better, but I refuse to pay this amount of money even if they shave well in the end. Especially in razors, I strongly believe that Yaqi must stop copying from others and build its own identity one day.

Thanks for reading, if you reach that far. I promise to write less next time.

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Last edited:
Ram57

Ram57

Forum GOD!

Sunday SOTD
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Razor: GEM Junior Bar/Elite Razor Turkish Walnut
Blade: Gem PTFE (7)
Brush: Rubberset 49-4 w 26mm G5C
Bowl: Black Ship Grooming 4.5"
Pre-Shave Scrub: PAA Ice Cube 2
Pre-Shave Balm: Proraso Single Blade Wood and Spice
Shave Soap: Wm. Neumann 1911
Balm: Proraso Single Blade Wood and Spice
Aftershave: Small Batch Shave Tonic​
 
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