Strike Gold Shave is mainly themed on U.S. political and patriotic themes. I recently tried their Ike shave soap.
Strike Gold Shave Ike Shave Soap
From the Strike Gold Shave website:
THIS WAS ONE OF JFK FAVORITE COLOGNES. Inspired by eight and bob.
Soap Ingredients: Stearic acid Tallow goats milk water, Shea butter, kokum butter sodium hydroxide,potassium hydroxide,fragrance, castor oil,glycerin tussah silk..Aftershave ingredients:2oz Denatured Alcohol, Water, Fragrance, Rose Water, Red Clover Blossom, Chamomile Extract, Calendula Extract, Witch Hazel, Aloe, Vitamin E
Scent Description: Citrus, spice accord, violet, iris, cedar, sandalwood, gaiac, ambergris. (Patriots base)
I asked Frank of Strike Gold Shave about the Patriots base:
“The Patriots base was developed in 2020. Originally are base was Vegan. We realized the wet shavers were moving away from Vegan soaps so we decided to start working on a Tallow base. I believe I sent you Hoover. Hoover is our simple tallow base which is a less expensive option then the Patriots base.
“While developing Patriots base we reached out to wet shavers and asked what improvements they would like to see in our soap bases. Majority of the answers were post shave,slickness and lather quality. We made three different batches to address those concerns. Three bases were sent to random wet shavers for testing.The overall winner was what is now known as the Patriots base.
“What makes the Patriots base is we added Goats milk to address post shave feel and added tussah silk fibers to increase lather and slickness. Once we knew which base we were gonna use it came to naming it. Our brand is centered around USA history. So we thought why not name it the Patriots base.
“The Patriots base is five ozs. The original tallow blend is four oz. The cost of the Tallow blend is 15.99 and respectively the Patriots base is 23.99.”
Eight And Bob?
From the Eight And Bob website:
TOP NOTES Cardamom – Lemon – Pink Pepper
HEART NOTES Dried Wood – Labdanum – Violet Leaves
BASE NOTES Amber – Sandalwood – Vetiver
The web page also has the background story on the John F. Kennedy connection. Personally I’m a little skeptical of the tie-in: JFK would have been just 20 years old when he met Albert Fouquet on the French Rivera. At least one source thinks the whole thing has been…embellished:
“A disclaimer in fine print in the brochure that comes with the bottle…states: ‘The story of Eight & Bob is based on a family story transmitted verbally over time. For its final narration, fictionalized facts and characters were introduced.’”
My Experience With Strike Gold Shave Ike Shave Soap
[I received a selection of shave soaps from Strike Gold Shave unsolicited with no obligation that I write about it. My opinions here are my own and have not been reviewed or approved by Strike Gold Shave.]
Scent
While my admittedly insensitive nose gets neither the Eight And Bob vibe nor most of Strike Gold Shave’s scent description, I get a moderately strong, distinctly oceanic/marine note (from the ambergris element no doubt) followed by the floral (violet and iris) notes. I don’t get the citrus and spice notes. Subjectively though I rather like it (Your Mileage May Vary).
I find the scent persistent, lasting through pretty much my entire shave.
But I do wonder why this scent wasn’t called “Kennedy” instead of “Ike.” 🙂
Lather
Building the lather on Ike for me is much like other premiums shave soaps. I get a relatively thick, creamy lather quickly and easily, even in my “hard” water. The consistency for me is a little more dense than a meringue but not quite at the yogurt level.
Performance
Again, I find Strike Gold Shave Ike shave soap performs as par with other premium shave soaps. Both the glide/lubrication and cushion/protection elements are excellent. Post-shave face feel is also noteworthy.
Conclusion
Strike Gold Shave Ike shave soap joins the crowded artisan market that makes updating Sharpologist’s best shave soap list more and more difficult. Strike Gold Shave products are available on their website and also The Razor Company, Top of the Chain, Pastuers, and Murphy McNeil.
