Friday, June 13, 2008

Building Lather/ "SOTD"



Well I must say, I am really enjoying this foray into traditional shaving techniques. I have been at it almost two weeks now, and while I have not achieved "Baby's Behind Smooth" shaves yet I can tell you that three things are true:

1) I enjoy shaving a lot more now than I ever did in the past, in fact I look forward to it on occasion now.

2) I can get about as good a shave now as I usually got with a Mach 3 Razor, and with less irritation in the end.

3) I am sure I will only improve with time.

I think one of my biggest problems to date is figuring out how much water to put in the shaving cream while lathering (I think I may be putting too much), and so for my benefit and your interest, I put another of our pal "mantic59" videos at the top of this post, this time the one that focuses entirely on lathering.

One of the common things discussed on forums for wetshavers is a persons "SOTD". That is their "Shave Of The Day". Many of these folks have been at it a lot longer than me, and can produce many variations of razors, blades, soaps, creams, and aftershaves. I cannot do this yet, so I will give you essentially the setup I have been using to practice technique with:

Pre Shave:
Warm Shower
Hot towel
Musgo Real Pre Shave Oil (Didn't Use Today)

Razor:
Gillette Knack (kindly gifted by a friend)
Derby Extra Super Stainless Blades

Cream:
Musgo Real (surprise, surprise)

Post Shave:
Musgo Real Classic Aftershave (I must say that I really prefer their Balsam for its skin protection, though the smell of the aftershave is amazing!).

Yeah I know its not very creative (yet), but I bet the collection of things to try will grow in time. I hear its good to stay consistent when learning shaving form, so we shall stick with this stuff for a while, and its a lovely combination, if you ask me. Now on to the Action Shots!

Soaking the brush in warm water while I take a shower.
It really does not take much of the cream to do the job at hand!
See, a little bit goes a long way! Though I think I may have put too much water in it this time. Some experimentation may be in order here.
Goes on the face nice and slick, providing a relatively close and comfortable shave! (I added a bit more after this shot was taken ;) ).

Needless to say I am hooked, so you may be stuck hearing about this more often. That said I have bored you all enough for tonight.

Hope all is well,

TomC

La Flor Dominicana "El Jocko" Maduro

Country: Dominican Republic
Length/Ring: 4 1/2" x 32/54
Shape: Perfecto
Wrapper: Maduro

Construction: I have never really had a construction issue with any LA Flor Dominicana cigars, and this one is no different. The construction on this perfecto was spot on. Both firmly and evenly packed, there were no soft spots to be found. The rich dark chocolate wrapper was smoot and without flaws, and glistened with essential oils.

Pre-Light: The clip was simple and clean. The pre light draw was just right. This draw yielded notes of sweet tobacco, earthiness, and dark roasted coffee.

Burn/Draw: The burn on this cigar was great. On occasion, perfecto shaped cigars will burn a bit funky at the beginning, but that was not the case with this cigar. The burn line generally stayed straight, and self corrected the few times it wandered at all. The draw was just as it should be, it offered a tiny bit of resistance, so that the burn stayed long and slow, producing volumes of smooth cool blue grey smoke. The ash was very light grey/white and firm. It held as long as I wanted it to.

Flavors: This cigar strikes me as the LFD Chiselito, Lite! The chiselito is one of my all time favorite smokes, but it is VERY STRONG, and not for all occasions. This cigar is a mellower version of that. More of a medium strength smoke, it still displays a lot of the great flavors I love in La Flor Dominicana Maduros. It starts with a light burst of pepper, and then settles in to a lovely earthiness, sweet maduro tobacco flavor that lasts most of the first half of the cigar. At the halfway point, the flavor ramps up a bit, adding a nice french roast coffee note. Over the last third or so of the cigar the flavors are more dry, with some cedar woodiness and the earthiness pushing more to the forefront. Overall, a pretty damn good cigar, and I think a great entry point into La Flor Dominicana's more robust blends. I recommend it, and might just have to buy a box myself!

TomC