First use of this soap for me this morning, and I too had extreme difficulty removing the lid. For whatever reason I was expecting something stronger in the scent department. From the tin itself I would class this soap as virtually unscented, however, once lathered up there is a faint herbal scent which I find quite pleasing. I bought mine from Barbiere di Figaro. A spanish friend has told me that he has bought two, one from BdF, the other direct. The direct one has a much stronger scent apparently. Whether this is purely down to batch variability, I do not know.
I have bought MdC in the past, twice, and on both counts sold them soon thereafter. Reason? Whilst there is no disputing MdC lathers incredibly easily, I have always found it lacking in post shave quality, leaving my skin feeling dry. Le Pere Lucien is just as easy to lather as MdC but also scores well for me on the after feel. I would pick this soap over MdC any day of the week (YMMV).