two layers of cloth tape, but you have to do it the hardest way possible....
Cloth tape works for me, but I do wear gloves with modest padding.
One of my bikes has modern "cork" tape, so there is a bit of padding there. Not sure that it is any more comfortable, though. I tend to think that comfortable bars are mostly determined by how much weight is on your hands, and that this is largely determined by bike fit. Getting the seat back far enough will help get the weight off of the bars.
Steve in Peoria