Thread: Tryphon Alpino Shaving Soap

This review is for a glycerin-based shaving soap sold by Tryphon Enterprises. The purveyor is Giovanni Abrate (aka Tryphon on the board), and these soaps are a recent offering of products to the wet shaving community. While a website doesn't exist right now, you can review this thread for additional information about the vendor and their products:

http://straightrazorpalace.com/showthread.php?t=9763

The scent that I am reviewing is Alpino. Here is Tryphon's description of the soap and scent:

Originally Posted by Tryphon

Formulated in Italy and made in the USA, this luxury shaving soap offers the cooling effect of menthol and eucalyptus, blended with other alpine herbs. This soap uses exclusively Essential Oils for its distinctive scent. The scent is reminiscent of an Alpine forest, with natural, balsamic herbs, pine and evergreen undertones. This signature scent is minty fresh, without having the sweet perfume of a candy cane or the medicinal smell of a skin cream; it is subtle, refined and understated.

The scent for me is a nice fresh, minty scent; it is neither cloying nor medicinal in scent (ala Proraso shaving soap or Listerine). The “alpine” notes are a little too mild for me, but are evident nonetheless. Note that I am not a “nose” when it comes to scent identification or description. The soap provides a gentle tingling and cooling sensation when applied. The scent is not overpowering, allowing it to be used for layering of scents (I did so with Penhaligon's English Fern, and liked the combination).

The container is a simple plastic tub with a decal label. It is consistent with the current market's packaging. The use of Italian & English language with simple graphics is attractive without being overdone or gawdy. The soap is poured into the container, and the bowl is tall and wide enough to allow a brush to work the soap inside it. The cost is higher than some, but isn't outrageous or unreasonable.

The soap feels a little harder (pushing my thumb into the soap) than similar glycerin soaps. I lathered up with it several times, and got very good results. I used various brushes, building lather in a bowl, and building lather directly on my face. The lather has an atypical texture/appearance, but still provides a close and clean shave. It may look airy, but maintains a good level of cushion and slickness; it can also be quite creamy feeling in texture (even when appearing to be dried out). It maintains its volume when applied, and rinses away easily without leaving a residue. I found I could lather the soap into a “dry” lather, or make a wet/hydrated lather, and still maintain shave quality.

C&E BBB (Best, 22mm) lathering up in a bowl. Photos #3 & 4 show lather built after 20 sec. in tub, then 1min. total in bowl, and addition of 1/2Tbs of water...

Savile Row SR-208 (Super, 25mm) lathering up in a bowl. Lather built after 20 sec. in tub, then 1:10 total in bowl, and addition of 1/2Tbs of water...




Savile Row 3722 (Silvertip, 22mm) demonstrating lather in brush, and on face, after building it on the face.



Overall, I like this soap. It provides a great shave with minimal workup. I think it is a nice addition to my rotation. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to someone looking for something new.