Soap is an essential part of the wet-shaving experience. Along with a good brush, soap makes or breaks the shave. Yet there are thousands of soaps to choose from and many independent soap makers. Most soaps today are made from glycerin. While good, there is something about tallow that makes for a better lather for straight shaving. Tallow soap is slicker and adds a layer of cushioning. The slicker the lather, the better the shave. And there is just something about the tallow that leaves the skin feeling better.
If you don’t already use tallow soap, we highly recommend you buy a puck. Not too many makers still use tallow shaving soap. Only a handful of major manufacturers still list tallow as the main ingredient. Tabac is certainly one of the cheaper brands, very reliable, but it has a very strong and unique odor. That said, tallow isn’t for everyone. It is made from the fat of animals, so it is not vegetarian friendly. But if you can get past that, it makes an excellent soap.
List of Current Confirmed Tallow Soaps
Arko – Shaving Stick
Cella Crema – da Barba Shaving Soap; Sapone Shaving Soap
Czech and Speake – No 88 Shaving Soap; Oxford and Cambridge Shaving Soap
DR Harris – Hard Shaving Soaps & Sticks
Mitchel’s Wool Fat
Palmolive – EU & Fiji Shaving Sticks
Ralph Lauren Safari Shaving Soap
The Art of Shaving lists glycerin as the main ingredient in their soap on their website, but instore boxes still list tallow.
Erasmic Shaving Stick lists glycerin as their main ingredient on Amazon.
Wilkinson Sword has glycerin listed as an ingredient at West Coast Shaving.
