The Highlander Mack Butter Review
From Vellus & Terminal
3/6/2020
I can think of no new brand who has taken the beard-care game by storm, quite as much as The Bearded Mack. In the few short months since this company came on the scene, they've racked up more accolades than just about everybody else to emerge from the second half of 2019...and it's easy to see why, with a full suite of products (now including wash and co-wash), made from top quality ingredients that you just don't see in a lot of other beard-care products, The Bearded Mack has set themselves apart. This particular scent is one of their newest additions, bringing an all new and very unique profile to that great whipped butter that we've all quickly come to know and love. Will this unseat the superlative 18th Mack as my favorite offering from the Northern Virginia based company? You already know that there's only one way to find out...let's give it a try!
Scent...
Definitely unique, and in the best possible way...a provocative olfactory adventure through a majestic, earthy dreamscape. A rugged carpet woven of pine needles and redwood bark rolls out gracefully across a damp forest floor, musty and slightly vegetal with just the slightest tinge of something floral lingering in the distance. The natural, easygoing feeling is quickly interupted by a luminous bolt of vetiver, so full of brilliant green energy, perched atop a deep musky redolence that bellows like a clarion call echoing through a rocky valley. Sweet, spicy tonka bean and bright, sharp pink pepper collide brilliantly to wrap the entire scent in an exotic Eastern flourish that settles into a comforting almost umami, gourmand chord that isn't so much a literal representation of sesame seed candy as it is reminiscent of biting into one. At once a picture perfect representation of a rugged, outdoorsy scent, and also an enigmatic implacable presence, as mysterious as a ghost hiding out on some frequency that resonates in the back of your conscience. Strength is a solid medium plus, and staying power is incredible, lasting all day long and even still detectable in my beard when I give it a bed time brushing, all from a single morning application.
For a real treat, I highly recommend the combination of this butter layered over Royale Black oil by Husky Beard...I had to run some errands this afternoon, and I must say, every time I got a whiff of those two on my beard, it was something of a magical, uplifiting experience. They combine to create such a deep, rich accord that you can honestly skip wearing cologne on the days you rock them together.
How does it work?
Sporting the same great whipped texture as the previous butter I reviewed from this company (although when I put the two side by side, this scent seems juuuuust a little bit more stiff, but this is just me being nitpicky. It's honestly not enough of a difference to impact the overall experience), with a similarly fantastic level of absorption. The ingredients list is just as jam packed with extremely beneficial, exotic stuff as The 18th Mack butter I reviewed earlier (check that review out here for a detailed rundown of what each of these awesome components brings to the party). In-beard feel is brilliantly lightweight and in no way greasy, and of course I find myself once again positively blown away by how healthy this stuff leaves my beard feeling (especially on days when I skip subjecting it to the blow dryer, and just rock a natural curl). Staying power is also phenominal, leaving my beard feeling as touchably soft as a cloud spun of the finest silk, all day long on a single application.
The bottom line
I already knew that I would be impressed with this stuff, the question was how much? Well...quite a bit actually...another expertly blended scent in a light, airy butter that performs at such an ultra-elite level, I can't praise it highly enough. While my personal preference still skews slightly in the direction of The 18th Mack (seriously, I know I'm talking about that stuff a lot, but it's one of the absolute best whiskey based scents on the market today, hands down), I couldn't imagine anybody out there who wouldn't be instantly wowed by this scent as well. The Bearded Mack has done a phenominal job of setting the mark so high by investing in such exacting levels of quality, and top-shelf scents, that it's almost unfair to other new companies out there. If you are still on the fence about trying this amazing company, you need to hop off and order something (the longer you wait, the angrier you'll be at yourself when you finally do decide to treat yoruself to this awesomeness), and if awesome, earthy scents, brimming with masculine appeal are your thing, then look no further than The Highlander Mack.
Overall Score:
95
Scent...
Definitely unique, and in the best possible way...a provocative olfactory adventure through a majestic, earthy dreamscape. A rugged carpet woven of pine needles and redwood bark rolls out gracefully across a damp forest floor, musty and slightly vegetal with just the slightest tinge of something floral lingering in the distance. The natural, easygoing feeling is quickly interupted by a luminous bolt of vetiver, so full of brilliant green energy, perched atop a deep musky redolence that bellows like a clarion call echoing through a rocky valley. Sweet, spicy tonka bean and bright, sharp pink pepper collide brilliantly to wrap the entire scent in an exotic Eastern flourish that settles into a comforting almost umami, gourmand chord that isn't so much a literal representation of sesame seed candy as it is reminiscent of biting into one. At once a picture perfect representation of a rugged, outdoorsy scent, and also an enigmatic implacable presence, as mysterious as a ghost hiding out on some frequency that resonates in the back of your conscience. Strength is a solid medium plus, and staying power is incredible, lasting all day long and even still detectable in my beard when I give it a bed time brushing, all from a single morning application.
For a real treat, I highly recommend the combination of this butter layered over Royale Black oil by Husky Beard...I had to run some errands this afternoon, and I must say, every time I got a whiff of those two on my beard, it was something of a magical, uplifiting experience. They combine to create such a deep, rich accord that you can honestly skip wearing cologne on the days you rock them together.
How does it work?
Sporting the same great whipped texture as the previous butter I reviewed from this company (although when I put the two side by side, this scent seems juuuuust a little bit more stiff, but this is just me being nitpicky. It's honestly not enough of a difference to impact the overall experience), with a similarly fantastic level of absorption. The ingredients list is just as jam packed with extremely beneficial, exotic stuff as The 18th Mack butter I reviewed earlier (check that review out here for a detailed rundown of what each of these awesome components brings to the party). In-beard feel is brilliantly lightweight and in no way greasy, and of course I find myself once again positively blown away by how healthy this stuff leaves my beard feeling (especially on days when I skip subjecting it to the blow dryer, and just rock a natural curl). Staying power is also phenominal, leaving my beard feeling as touchably soft as a cloud spun of the finest silk, all day long on a single application.
The bottom line
I already knew that I would be impressed with this stuff, the question was how much? Well...quite a bit actually...another expertly blended scent in a light, airy butter that performs at such an ultra-elite level, I can't praise it highly enough. While my personal preference still skews slightly in the direction of The 18th Mack (seriously, I know I'm talking about that stuff a lot, but it's one of the absolute best whiskey based scents on the market today, hands down), I couldn't imagine anybody out there who wouldn't be instantly wowed by this scent as well. The Bearded Mack has done a phenominal job of setting the mark so high by investing in such exacting levels of quality, and top-shelf scents, that it's almost unfair to other new companies out there. If you are still on the fence about trying this amazing company, you need to hop off and order something (the longer you wait, the angrier you'll be at yourself when you finally do decide to treat yoruself to this awesomeness), and if awesome, earthy scents, brimming with masculine appeal are your thing, then look no further than The Highlander Mack.
Overall Score:
95