# Please recommend a woody, masculine shampoo **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 21, 2007, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857 "2007-12-21T19:45:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/1 "2007-12-21T19:45:59Z")
I’m looking for a shampoo whose scent is based around woody, masculine smells like sandalwood or pine rather than the typical perfumey or cologney smells that seem to dominate. Is there something relatively mainstream that’s directed at men and takes that approach (i.e. nothing I have to spend $30 a bottle on and go to a special store for)? ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/2 "2007-12-21T19:48:48Z")
Especially for [you](http://www.geeyourhairsmellsterrific.com/content/)! ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/3 "2007-12-21T19:56:12Z")
You want a manly smelling shampoo, you have to forget wood…go with [coal tar](http://www.denorex.com/)!! ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/4 "2007-12-21T20:06:49Z")
I’m not sure if there’s a mainstream shampoo with a wood scent. I’ll look at the semi-alternative grocery next time I’m there and see if there’s something. There are a fair number of cedar/sandalwood/musk bar soaps around. If you’re wanting to come out of the shower with that fragrance, you might have better luck switching your soap than your shampoo. Also, putting cedar blocks in your dreser and closet, and/or a bar of Bee and Flower sandalwood soap, will lightly scent your clothes. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/5 "2007-12-21T20:16:44Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] You want a manly smelling shampoo, you have to forget wood…go with [coal tar](http://www.denorex.com/)!! [/QUOTE] I was gonna say Neutrogena T-Gel, made with coal tar, which is kin to creosote, which comes from burning wood (it’s the stuff that makes chimney fires). So just slather some coal tar on your head, it don’t get no more manly. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/6 "2007-12-21T20:17:41Z")
From Seinfeld: “Who needs misty herbal rain water crap they sell in the health food store. I use Prell, the hard stuff. A hundred proof - takes your roots out.” ---
**Author:** ![Solfy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@Solfy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Solfy)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/7 "2007-12-21T20:19:23Z")
You’re in luck. Suave makes a designer knock-off of Matrix’s “Amplify” (IIRC - the shampoo is light green in a semi-translucent bottle, one of their “Professionals” line). It’s not directed at men that I can tell, but every time I smell it I think of cedar. It’s less than $4.00 a bottle, but I don’t always have an easy time finding it. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/8 "2007-12-21T20:20:40Z")
Okay: [Caswell-Massey Sandalwood Shampoo](http://www.amazon.com/Caswell-Massey-Sandalwood-Shampoo-8-oz/dp/B000F7R3YE)–currently unavailable from Amazon, but you might find it elsewhere. [Shampoo Sandalwood 7.8oz from Monoi Tiare](http://www.ihealthtree.com/shampoo-sandalwood-7-8-fl-oz-monoi-tiare.html)–McAfee advisor says the site generates a lot of spam. [Taylor’s Sandalwood Shampoo](http://www.gentlemans-shop.com/acatalog/taylor-sandalwood-shampoo.html)–UK. [Bee and Flower Sandalwood Bar Soap](http://www.amazon.com/Prince-Peace-Chinese-Flower-Sandalwood/dp/B000K74USQ)–You can beat the combined price + shipping by just going to your local Asian grocery. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2007, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/9 "2007-12-21T23:05:11Z")
The most manly shampoo is the blood of your enemies. ---
**Author:** ![mazirian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@mazirian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mazirian)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/10 "2007-12-22T03:20:31Z")
And the lamentations of their women as a conditioner? ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/11 "2007-12-22T05:05:14Z")
[This](http://www.amazon.com/American-Crew-Citrus-Mint-Shampoo/dp/B000BJUNPW) is my all-time favorite smelling shampoo. If you stop by your local SuperCuts or something, you’ll probably be able to find it cheaper than 15 bucks for a pint. Which is ridiculous, but it foams really well, so it doesn’t take much. I used a small bottle for over a semester, with every-day washing. I have since made a token nod to the environment by switching to hippie all-natural house and self-cleaning products. (In that vein, Dr. Bronner’s peppermint soap is wonderful, and I really love the [Lemongrass Zum Bar](http://www.amazon.com/All-Natural-Bath-Soap-Lemongrass/dp/B000DIN3BW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=hpc&qid=1198299620&sr=8-1), and they also make some more woody scents. I really love the brand, I I just lean towards fruitier scents. And this only applies if you can handle the stigma of using bar soap to wash your hair (which I can)) ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/12 "2007-12-22T05:38:02Z")
My father shampooed his hair with Ivory bar soap through college. He was poor, and it was cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/13 "2007-12-22T05:56:37Z")
Shampoo schmampoo. Don’t use the shit. Just wash your hair with pine tar soap or castile soap or something. Go get some Dr. Bronner’s or [this stuff](http://www.grandpabrands.com/pinetar.html). ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/14 "2007-12-22T12:33:33Z")
Off to IMHO from Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/15 "2007-12-22T13:12:46Z")
[Suave Balsam and Protein](http://www.brunosmarkets.com/7940071870.html) not work for you? Suave also has, apparently a product line for men according to their [site](http://www.suave.com/). Maybe their shampoo for men smells manly? I’ve never smelled it, so I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/16 "2007-12-22T13:30:03Z")
I was on a business trip last spring and the hotel had Gilchrist and Soames ‘London Collection’ shampoo and hand soap. It’s got an earthy, woody sort of smell. I think it’s a masculine smell, my wife thinks it’s feminine-smelling, so YMMV. Anyways, I really like the smell and buy the stuff once in a while. The stuff is kind of expensive, I think. It’s $12.50 per bottle for the shampoo and $12.50 for the soap (four bars). Maybe that’s not expensive. I don’t know. It’s subjective. Then again, one of the main reasons I buy it is because it conjures strong recollections of my trip to London. I spent three days gambling, sightseeing, getting hammered, and taking over-the-counter codein tablets. It was the second-best weekend of my life. But I digress. If you call them they will send you some free samples. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/17 "2007-12-22T14:29:50Z")
So, now you have some starting points for your search. As you scamper from one to another, I’ll warn you NOT to shampoo with **Pine-Sol**. It’s woody, and maybe it’s masculine, but don’t do it. :smack: :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/18 "2007-12-22T15:02:16Z")
_Manly_ men use [this](http://www.wd40.com/Brands/lava_faqs.html), on their body _and_ their hair. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2007, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-a-woody-masculine-shampoo/430857/19 "2007-12-22T17:15:18Z")
The shampoo I use has a snorky, brambish smell. When the humidity goes up however it smells a little brunky.