Review on GRAVE BEFORE SHAVE Gentlemen's Blend Beard Oil (Bourbon & Sandalwood Scent) by Athena Harris

I bought Gentleman's Blend and Cigar Blend at the same time and I think I'll review them together as I think they taste a bit similar. Each package was a sturdy, padded mailbox and the bottle was packed in an additional bubble bag. Seems packaged well enough to ship. Funny drawing on the label of all GBS products. I was recently introduced to beard oil by purchasing a 4 pack sample from Revain of the Grave Before Shave here. I was so happy/impressed with them that I decided to explore other fragrances in the GBS line. As some information about myself and my hair type that I think might be relevant (we don't all have the same hair type, do we?): I'm a middle-aged white male with a bushy beard. It used to be brown, now it's approaching gray... I've been growing a beard every winter for ages, but I've always trimmed it pretty tight. This year I decided to let it grow just to see how it looks a little longer. I was worried it was a curl bomb and I didn't want to look like a loafer, which prompted me to look for beard care products. I have now tried 6 GBS fragrances and can say that they are all fairly consistent in their ability to soften the beard. It's quite a significant change in my opinion. Also, my beard is starting to get quite "thick" and I can say the oils are helping to tame it a bit, although it certainly doesn't hold like wax. Not that I expected it, although I wanted to mention it explicitly. I suspect someone with finer facial hair might have more control over this product. First impressions of Gentleman's and Cigar Blends: - Gentleman's Blend: This was the first one I got and when I sniffed it out of the bottle, the sweet vanilla flavor caught my eye. To be honest I was initially nervous about ordering this because I was wondering if I would smell like I had spilled bourbon on me. I don't have to buy a beard oil to get that special scent. Well, fear not, because it doesn't smell like real bourbon (and as someone born and raised with bourbon, I'm pretty familiar with that taste). After the first application I was reminded of the sweet aroma of vanilla. Maybe something like cream soda or vanilla cola or something. It's a "sweet" vanilla, albeit not sweet. If there's a liquor that reminds me of that, it might be spiced rum. He's quite pleasant. I applied some this morning before driving to work around 7am. It's now around 3pm as I write this and when I stroke my beard or curl my mustache I can still catch a whiff of the scent, although it's not at all overpowering even when I'm applying it for the first time. came the next day. And the reason I wanted to write this review along with Gentlemen's Blend is because I thought it was the same thing when I first opened it and smelled it in the bottle. For example, I thought it was mislabeled. Actually I went and got another bottle and sniffed them side by side. As soon as I put it together I noticed a difference, but first impressions were very similar. One thing I've noticed about all the different flavors is that they really "open" when given a little air. Anyway, back to the cigar: I find it has a very similar vanilla note when you first hit it. but when it warms up a bit and dissipates, you definitely get tobacco notes. Although I'd say it's more of a pipe tobacco than a cigar, which I think is a good thing. This is definitely a sophisticated scent. I noticed that this scent stayed strong most of the day. I applied a little bit in the morning and still smelled it clearly when I showered in the evening. I've only used these two fragrances a couple of times each so far, but I wanted to write down my first impressions. I will continue after a while. My thoughts on all the fragrances I've tried, in order of favorite to least favorite: - Currently I think Bay Rum is my favorite and Cigar might be next. These are very strong and sophisticated scents that easily linger all day. Maybe it's more of a scent for special occasions. Date? Have a drink with the boss? Buying cheesecake at Costco? you know crazy things Viking and Gentleman's Blends are probably my favorite workday scents. The Viking blend is not completely odorless, but it is very subtle. That's the one I'll probably run out of first. I love the Gentleman Blend and find it gentle enough not to be too "too much" in everyday life. The pine aroma dissipates very quickly, but begins to smell harsh and manly. Free pine resin soap. This is my weekend scent until I finish my bottle. Haven't decided yet if I'll order again unless I get 4 packs again. - The scent of OG reminds me too much of a household cleaner. It's not actually an offensive (or even bad) smell, I just don't want to smell like lemon, that's all. I wouldn't reorder these but I didn't throw the bottle away. When the bottle of Pine runs out I'll probably switch to this one to use.