Soap Commander: Courage Review

I’ve come to love Reddit. Aside from it having everything imaginable on the Internet, there’s a large wet shaving community that not only provide tips and recommendations, but there’s also a sub-Reddit where users purchase, trade, and give away products. I happened to be at the right place and the right time and managed to “win” a give away that included a few soaps. In the hopes of being fully transparent, this review of tub of Soap Commander Courage is one that I received in the giveaway for free.

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been wet shaving for over a year now, but time flies. In that time, I’ve learned what artisans work for my face and which ones don’t. Soap Commander, as I’ve come to learn, is a top-tier soap that I enjoy using.

I’ve reviewed the artisan’s lime scent – Respect – before and found it to be a steal at $2.50 per ounce. The large, sturdy tub offers plenty of room for loading, while the hard soap should last wet shavers, even with daily use, a long time. The lather from Soap Commander’s products is rich, thick, and adequately slick enough. Courage wasn’t the slickest soap I’ve tried, but the cushion is there. And the post shave, oh man the post shave is just incredible.

As far as post shave goes, Soap Commander is one of the few soaps that leaves my face moisturized enough to where I don’t have to use any aftershave or balm. For shavers with sensitive skin, like my self, Soap Commander is a must-have in the den.

Now onto the scent. Courage, according to Soap Commander, “contains fresh, daring notes of Japanese grapefruit, bergamot, and lemon; followed by middle notes of peppercorn, ginger, jasmine, aquatic marines notes, and a hint of peppermint…” The description continues on, but you get the point – it’s a manly, complicated scent.

Out of the tub, the smell is an interesting one. At the front, it’s sweet and spicy and then tapers off to a woodsy scent. It’s hard to pick out exact notes from the soap, but I mostly get the citrus, the slightly floral hit from the jasmine, and the cedar. The scent strength is bang on at average when smelling the soap out of the tub.

When lathering, the predominant scent profile of the soap doesn’t change, while the scent strength went down to below average. The scent quickly disappeared after the shave, making it another great choice for those that enjoy using aftershaves.

I wasn’t a huge fan of Courage. After using the soap a handful of times, I just couldn’t get behind it. People that enjoy complicated scents that mix citrus and wood together will surely enjoy the soap, though.

Scent Pleasantness: 6/10

Scent Strength: 6/10

Lather Quality: 8/10

Price: 8/10

Soap Commander Courage is a hit and a miss for me. The soap created a lather that had me questioning why I don’t have more soaps from the artisan, while the scent put me off. My advice would be to try a sample of this soap before springing for a tub.   

Overall: 7/10