I finally got around to cracking open the first sampler from Truefitt and Hill, the third of the “big Ts” of British shavery (alongside Taylor of Old Bond Street and Geo F. Trumpers). And I must say, I’m rather impressed; I might end up not being quite as much of a TOBS fanboy.

The scent is a sweet floral and citrus concoction (accent on the florals) with a little bit of a woodsy aroma thrown in (I see it described most other places as “Oceanic”. Frankly, I’m not sure what that’s supposed to mean, doesn’t really smell like any ocean I’ve sailed upon, but hey, sometimes terminology is weird). Named after the year the company was founded, it’s apparently their best selling fragrance. Personally, I really quite liked it, although the girlfriend though it was too flowery (so I guess I won’t end up getting the cologne).

Strength-wise, it was pretty good. The cream itself is quite strongly scented, although it gets muted somewhat once lathered. When applied to the face, it initially comes on quite strong, however rather quickly fades to something that’s weak but noticeable.

As for the performance of the cream, it’s definitely quite nice. It lathers up to a quite thick luxurious cream, while being reasonably slick. Not too much water is needed, so be careful not to over-do it. It left the face feeling quite nice afterwards.

10/10 Scent Pleasantness

8/10 Scent Strength

8/10 Lather Quality (reflects new scoring as outlined here)

Overall, I give it a 8/10. Great shave, nice scent, probably woulda given it a 9 if it was a bit stronger.

Gear used:

Ingredients: Aqua, Stearic Acid, Myristic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Coconut Acid, Glycerin, Parfum, Triethanolamine, Sodium Hydroxide, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Limonene, Linalool, Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde, Benzyl salicylate, Eugenol, Citronellol, Geraniol