Bay rum choices

chazt

…knees
The classic bay rum, Clubman Virgin Island Bay Rum is the essential all purpose fragrance. It is formulated with a unique blend of exotic spices and essence of bay tree.
Clubman aftershave says aftershave on the label, it doesn't say that on the bay rum.
Here’s the full text. Notice it says, “not just an aftershave…” which to me suggests that it is an aftershave and so much more :wink:

The classic bay rum, Clubman Virgin Island Bay Rum is the essential all purpose fragrance. It is formulated with a unique blend of exotic spices and essence of bay tree. Not just an after shave, Virgin Island Bay Rum instantly cools, refreshes and tones the skin.
 

TobyC

Patriot
That's not aftershave any more than Chanel No 5 is. If it doesn't say aftershave it's just skunk juice.



CM04020_B.jpg
 

Estariol

Forum GOD!
I use it as an aftershave and enjoy it immensely, the fragrance lasts long on my skin. The Lustray Bay Rum smells the same, but the fragrance is a bit weaker. Both are great as aftershaves.
 

chazt

…knees
So out of all the Bay rums you have tried, what ones came out as the best for you?
I’ve settled on a few preferences so far. The ones I like are probably best listed in alphabetical order, as I enjoy them all. Barrister and Mann has a robust citrusy component, likely orange of some sort. I find myself going back to the bottle 30 minutes later just for another shot. D.R. Harris also has a citrus thing going on, which smells more lime-like than orange. There’s also an element of something green and herbaceous which I can’t quite put my finger on, but like a lot. DRH is the weakest and shortest lived scent of the bunch. Fine Accoutrements smells more like a “bay” than the others - literally. There’s something in it that evokes walking along the shore in my nosebrain. That fades pretty quickly and then the pimenta racemosa steps forward. This one changes the most before it fades away. No citrus detected in this one. I’m also enjoying Ogallala, which was in a 5 pack of 2 ounce samples. I kept the cologne, the regular splash and the sage and cedar. I’m thinking of blending the Ogallalas together for a real hearty experience.

Two I didn’t get on with, St Johns and Barberry Coast, had sweet components that I wasn’t fond of - primarily vanilla and musk. I think many people like the added complexity found in those formulas, it just wasn’t my cup of tea. That said, I have to tell you that the owner of Barberry coast dot com went way above and beyond what I could have ever imagined an artisan/vendor would ever consider doing. A few days after the bottle arrived I received an email asking me to leave a review on his website. I replied to the email and explained that I couldn’t leave a fair review because I didn’t actually use his splash, as I found the vanilla to be not to my taste. So this nice man offered to exchange, replace, refund, you name it. His willingness to provide total customer satisfaction was both surprising and refreshing. I wound up opting for a replacement with another of his scents, and PIFfed the bay rum splash. PSA: They have a number of scent options, so if anyone is looking to try something new and different, why not check them out; barberry coast dot com - one word, not “dot.” Got it? :)

The Virgin Island Bay Rum smelled very sharp and syntheticky and was not enjoyable to my nose. Captain’s Choice Cat O’ Nine Tails I didn’t understand. It was trying too hard to impress, know what I mean? Too much effort involved, I couldn’t be bothered, being that there are others that didn’t require such an olfactory break-in period. Then finally, I have a bunch of samples still to try, the regular Captain’s Choice splash, as well as a bunch of varieties from PAA. Frankly, I may not get to all of them for a while, but plan on doing so at some point in the near future.
 
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Johnny Bravo

Love Guru to the stars.
I’ve settled on a few preferences so far. The ones I like are probably best listed in alphabetical order, as I enjoy them all. Barrister and Mann has a robust citrusy component, likely orange of some sort. I find myself going back to the bottle 30 minutes later just for another shot. D.R. Harris also has a citrus thing going on, which smells more lime-like than orange. There’s also an element of something green and herbaceous which I can’t quite put my finger on, but like a lot. DRH is the weakest and shortest lived scent of the bunch. Fine Accoutrements smells more like a “bay” than the others - literally. There’s something in it that evokes walking along the shore in my nosebrain. That fades pretty quickly and then the pimenta racemosa steps forward. This one changes the most before it fades away. No citrus detected in this one. I’m also enjoying Ogallala, which was in a 5 pack of 2 ounce samples. I kept the cologne, the regular splash and the sage and cedar. I’m thinking of blending the Ogallalas together for a real hearty experience.

Two I didn’t get on with, St Johns and Barberry Coast, had sweet components that I wasn’t fond of - primarily vanilla and musk. I think many people like the added complexity found in those formulas, it just wasn’t my cup of tea. That said, I have to tell you that the owner of Barberry coast dot com went way above and beyond what I could have ever imagined an artisan/vendor would ever consider doing. A few days after the bottle arrived I received an email asking me to leave a review on his website. I replied to the email and explained that I couldn’t leave a fair review because I didn’t actually use his splash, as I found the vanilla to be not to my taste. So this nice man offered to exchange, replace, refund, you name it. His willingness to provide total customer satisfaction was both surprising and refreshing. I wound up opting for a replacement with another of his scents, and PIFfed the bay rum splash. PSA: They have a number of scent options, so if anyone is looking to try something new and different, why not check them out; barberry coast dot com - one word, not “dot.” Got it? :)

The Virgin Island Bay Rum smelled very sharp and syntheticky and was not enjoyable to my nose. Captain’s Choice Cat O’ Nine Tails I didn’t understand. It was trying too hard to impress, know what I mean? Too much effort involved, I couldn’t be bothered, being that there are others that didn’t require such an olfactory break-in period. Then finally, I have a bunch of samples still to try, the regular Captain’s Choice splash, as well as a bunch of varieties from PAA. Frankly, I may not get to all of them for a while, but plan on doing so at some point in the near future.
Thank you for the in depth reply, I will pick up some Barrister and Mann to try and Personally I love the St johns Bay Rum, I love the burn and will have to pick another bottle up sometime.
 

chazt

…knees
Thank you for the in depth reply, I will pick up some Barrister and Mann to try and Personally I love the St johns Bay Rum, I love the burn and will have to pick another bottle up sometime.
It’s been a lot of fun trying all the makers’ versions. I know there are others out there still, that I would like to investigate. There are two barber shop brands in particular I’m interested in, Stephan and Gabel’s. Their small size bottles are somewhere near a pint. The other option is the gallon jug :eek:.
 

Johnny Bravo

Love Guru to the stars.
It’s been a lot of fun trying all the makers’ versions. I know there are others out there still, that I would like to investigate. There are two barber shop brands in particular I’m interested in, Stephan and Gabel’s. Their small size bottles are somewhere near a pint. The other option is the gallon jug :eek:.
I nominate you as our professional Bay rum tester and hopefully save myself s few quid by avoiding the duds.
 
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