If you’ve been keeping up with the shaving blogosphere lately, you might notice that the lads over at The Bluebeard’s Revenge have been busy distributing sample tubs to esteemed shaving bloggers, for their informed review.

First Shave: The Setup.

And even I got one! So they clearly don’t mind sending some love to not-so-esteemed shaving bloggers.

The Review
Let’s start with the science: Bluebeard’s Revenge contains an ingredient they call Decelerine. This is supposed to inhibit beard growth giving you more time between shaves. It’s also paraben-free.

Couldn’t care less.

What I want to know is: Does it make good lather, and do I get a good shave with it?

The answer to both questions is a resounding yes.

I usually shave with soap, and face lather. It sticks in my mind that one should make cream lather in a bowl, and that’s what I started to do with my first The Bluebeard’s Revenge shave. But TBR is so dense, it just kind of smeared around in the bottom of my mug. I quickly abandoned the bowl mixing idea for normal face lathering. It might work better in a scuttle with the grooves in the bottom.

This cream made lather like you wouldn’t believe. It reminded me of those snake fireworks, you know the kind where you start with a little lump and the snake just keeps growing and growing? I had to offload excess lather into the mug while I was mixing on my face.

It will take a couple tries to get your starting product amount figured out with The Bluebeard’s Revenge. Like Brylcreem, a little dab’ll do ya. This stuff is thirsty. It takes a lot of water to get your lather going.

And the lather is thick. This isn’t foam. It’s a creamy, cushiony, dense lather that lasts a long time. I would recommend this to straight (cutthroat) razor guys, who are always looking for good cushion. For shaving, I mean.

Seen below, my lather after four passes and a touch-up. It’s probably twenty minutes old here, and has been whomped in the bowl a number of times (I face lather, but charge up the lather in the bowl, which also keeps it warm). It’s beginning to break up a little. Most lathers would be gone, sucked into the brush by this time. Note the peaks still showing down in the bowl (Long-time readers will note that I still use my poor-man’s shaving scuttle).

TBR lather after twenty minutes.

I’ve used TBR with both a Tuckaway razor with an Israeli/Crystal blade, and a Red Tip with a Feather. I got outstanding, close irritation-free shaves with both setups.

Now, if you like to be transported to tea with Alice and the Mad Hatter on a soft breeze of dreamy lavender when you shave, or imagine yourself running through exotic jungles of sandalwood, TBR is going to disappoint. Scent is not its long suit. It’s light, and just a touch, well, to me citrusy. I’m thinking Wool Fat meets Arlington. Really more of a soap scent than what many chaps associate with cream.

Bottom line: The Bluebeard’s Revenge is a dense, thick shaving cream that produces one of the best lathers I’ve ever shaved with. Don’t object to the price, because it doesn’t take much product to get the lather blooming. If your beard growth slows as a result of committed use, hey, it’s all to the good. You’ll save even more.

Two snaps up. Loved it.

P.S. You can lose the battle-drum-Klaxon horn sound effect on the website, blokes. That’s just annoying.