Australian Copperhead (2006)

[abejita]

Snake Oil with acai berry, amber, cardamom, neroli, and smoked vanilla.

First impression in the bottle: Whoa, açai and neroli!

On, wet: The açai is bright and vivid, berrylike without being at all candyish or cloying. It's just like the real thing. What a great note, I hope to see it in other things. The neroli is also bright and herbal. There is some sweetness and vanilla here, I suspect it will emerge more fully any moment...

Dry: Oh, yes. Here is the vanilla and it is definitely smoky. The amber isn't so prominent, just adding a richness and a complement to the vanilla. The açai is calmer, but still a major player. The cardamom seems less spice and more round and full. Kind of like the cardamom in Bastet, as opposed to it in, say, Pumpkin Queen. As time goes on, I can pick out more Snake Oil-ish elements, but they are a backdrop. To me, this is more a scent in its own right than just a "Snake Oil variant."

The Verdict: I am so happy with this. Predictably, I can see it aging beautifully, but it is more than wearable now. It's not like anything else I have tried, thusfar, but it still has that recognizable SO feel to it. I hope very much that this scent is representative of the beauty of the rest of the Snake Pit. If they are all this good, my wallet is sunk.

ETA: Strong throw.

[Tramp]

Wet: Dark juicy fruits

 

On: The red berry note hangs around for a while then the gentle amber comes out to play. There is an almost raw sugarcane note in mix that settles into a spicy vanilla. It's funny, in Snake Oil I almost don't get any vanilla at all, this level of "vanillaness" is much more to my liking. It is a cassia/cinnamon sort of vanilla spiciness and the berry has almost completely faded into the background.

[dawndie]

I love the Carnaval Noir throwback labels!

 

In bottle: fresh apple juice

 

On skin: fruit and herbs. No Snake Oil that I can tell

 

Half-hour later: very creamy fruit, with a bit of dusty amber. I can barely pick out the Snake Oil base, it's not as strong as I'd like at this point, but I'm impatient

 

In conclusion: it took a couple of hours for the Snake Oil to become recognizable -- there's no "where'd it go?" disappearing act with this one! I'm so glad these many variants are being released and I want to try more!

[clover]

Unfortunately, this is the first of the Snake Pit scents that doesn't work on me. But, seriously: acai berrry? What the heck was I thinking? I hate berries. Actually, I love to eat them, but they are the very last thing I want to smell like. I think I was seduced by the prospect of smoked vanilla.

 

But no, this is predominantly a berry scent on me. C'est la vie.

 

I know that it will have masses and masses of adoring fans out there, I just can't be one of them.

[forspecial_plate]

See, I wouldn't have guessed that this would be one of my favorites from the Snake Pit...but it is! I'm not big on berry scents either, but this is really working for me. I'm a little familiar with acai berry from an outrageously expensive acai smoothie I get every once in a while at the health food store. It's rich, dark, brownish purple with a hint of chocolate in its flavor. This note stands out in Australian Copperhead. It's not a very strong scent on me (although my skin is pretty dry after testing and washing multiple scents last night) but it's delightful. Dark, spicy berry with some sweetness. I'm glad there's smoked vanilla, because I think that's giving this more 'Snake Oil' than other Snake Pit scents. I also love cardamom, and I'm not sure I can pick it out but I'm sure it's contributing to the spiciness. As for neroli, I'm not sure I have learned exactly what that smells like. Floral, I guess...which isn't coming out much in this blend, as far as I can tell. Maybe it's part of the sweetness that I'm smelling. This is a great scent, I really like it and I think it will age well too.

[bibliophile]

This is not at all what I would have expected, but it is intriguing just the same! It started off strongly fruity on my skin (like dawndie, I got apple juice at first from it) but now the amber and vanilla are much stronger, with the fruit toned down a bit and the cardamom peeking out. No Snake Oil "feel" from it yet, but I have only had it on for 30 minutes or so, and can see from the reviews preceding mine that I shouldn't lose hope yet. Even without any snakey goodness, it's a lovely blend. It will indeed be interesting to see what aging does to this blend!

[The_Witching_Hour]

How surprising! I get an 'applejuice' burst right out of the bottle and for the first 30 minutes, as well. Then the spices and amber start to warm it right up.

 

This is another one of the Pit blends that I don't get a Snake Oil feel from but I'm sure that will change upon aging. Until then, I'll enjoy the fruits, amber and vanilla!!

[Bagfish]

This little critter has confused me as he smelled all berry and fruits and no amber, cardamom, neroli or vanilla to start with

 

Throughout the day this chap morphed from Eat Me-like sweet berryness through to an almost aquatic amber, very, very similar to Lyonesse.

 

I'm not sure whether I actually like the Australian Copperhead, he seems like a tricksy sort, slithering between scents and I just can't pin him down. At the moment there is no Snake Oil to be found in the scent, but I'm reckoning if I hang on to this Snakey critter for a few weeks, the spiciness of his true nature will come slithering to the fore, and then I can make a decision on his future.

 

But I'm still confused by this scent and I will probably edit this review as I don't think I've done him much justice......

[zenvodunista]

Whoa berry! Sweet, sweet berry.

 

Now that it's been a few hours, I have some powdery amber but no Snake Oil, a slight hit of vanilla, and berry.

 

The Boy liked it, but I thought I smelled like a box of Mom's Potpourri (not my favorite).

 

I'll keep my decant and wait and see.

 

N.

[savage_rose]

The Carnaval Noir throwback labels are amazing. And that they included pictures of the snakes slithering across the labels...so cute and right. Very cool!

 

Okay, this is really lovely. Very berry, but not in that "Leggo my Eggo" waffle kind of way. In the Yuletide way, balanced out with the smoky vanilla, backed by Snake Oil. So perfectly layered. This oil has me whimpering with happiness, and wanting to write gushy schoolgirl things like "OMG Copperhead + me = 4 Ever !11!!!1!!!". Damn, you never know what's going to grab you, and this sure grabs me. It makes me happy, and causes involuntary smiling and nose rubbing. Ooh, and there's a greenery note morphing in. Mmmm. Happy happy joy joy.

[Ina Garten Davita]

This is a very soft, berry like scent. It's pleasant, not overly fruity which is a very good thing. I don't get any smokiness or spiciness that I was hoping for. Australian Copperhead stays very close to my skin, not much morphing or throw going on. I'm wondering if some aging might bring out some depth and smokiness.

[edenssixthday]

Australian Copperhead - Even before I applied it, I kept catching wafts of the scent from the imp that was tucked in my pocket -- that's how strong it is! When I first apply this, it's a very bright fruit scent that is very fresh -- like apple. It's also slightly spicy and creamy, and upon drydown, the smoked vanilla comes out to play and is one of the stronger notes. After about 45 minutes, the fruitiness fades and it's less bright and more mellow and creamy. At this point, it's a nice blend, but nothing really special. I can definitely smell the Snake Oil in this blend, which I couldn't in some of the others. It's a nice scent, evocative of late-Spring, but not really unique enough for me to seek out more.

[Blood onmy hands]

In the bottle, this smells delicious. It smells like someone took a branch with healthy green leaves and red berries on it, and crammed them into this bottle.

 

On my skin, this is refreshingly fruity, without being all fruit or obnoxious in any way. It's still giving me an impression of tart red berries and thick green leaves. In the drydown, a bit of the smoked vanilla comes out and this is deliciously foodie and unique.

 

I don't get any spice, and (thankfully) there's no amber in here mucking things up for me. After about fifteen minutes, I begin to recognize hints of the smoky, musky Snake Oil underneath the vanilla & berries, and the impression of green leaves has faded away entirely.

 

The drydown is smoky vanilla, hints of smoky Snake Oil, and wafts of the delicious berry scent every once in a while. I like this. I might need a full bottle before the carnaval leaves town.

Edited June 26, 2008 by Tania

[SmileCat]

OH YUM! This, this is just lickable. Rich, smoky vanilla and yummy acai berry. I can only imagine that this will get better with age like plain SO and since it's positively delish fresh from the Lab...hoo boy. I keep wanting to eat my arm as it is.

[QueenFae]

God, this smells fabulous!! I don't know what acai berries are, but I guess I like them!! This is snake oil with a berrilicious, creamy smooth undertone. It sort of reminds me of raspberry cremesicles with a soft vanilla ice cream. I can't stop sniffing, it smells so yummy! The smoked vanilla really gives this a sweetness that is missing from the original snake oil. It's like snake oil has been massively amped up with berries and creme. Although fruity, this is still very sexy. This is the first of the Snake Pit that I have tried, I am sooo looking froward to all the rest!! Gorgoeus!!

[euterpe414]

This was the first one I tried from my order. The tart berry scent from the bottle just seemed to grab my attention. For a good long while, that's all this scent is on my skin- tart, juicy berry. As it dries, the other notes seem to come forward more- especially the smoky vanilla and amber. This is positively scrumptious! I am not getting a lot of neroli or spice. mostly a creamy sweet berry/vanilla with a smoky edge. After it's been on for about an hour or more I can detect some of the Snake Oil spice. It adds some wonderful depth to what was already there.

 

This is just amazing. I can't even imagine how much better this could get with age, it is just so "eat my arm I smell so good" perfect now.

 

Edited February 9, 2007 by euterpe414

[melia]

the acai berry is brightly fruity, but the blend with amber (mmm, I love amber) and vanilla makes this a great snake from the get-go. much sparkier and less languid than the hit I usually get from snake oil -- really the energy from the acai is terrific.

[miss_rynn]

Oh, how I wanted to love you. Call it national pride, but it was really my love of vanilla which spurred me to buy Australian Copperhead. To me, freh from the lab, it is something of a disappointment. In the bottle is is bright and fruit-sharp, like fresh cut fruit rather than preserved berries. On the skin, though, it becomes a dryer sheet/dishwashing liquid blnd. I don't get any exra vanilla, I don't get any Snake Oil, just that odd chemical-like perfume of laundry products.

 

I am hoping that with aging it will mellow out a little, that Snake Oil will come out to save it. To a dark box it goes!

[LiberAmoris]

Australian Copperhead's really such a berry blend, and the acai note is really interesting---not a sweet berry so much, but more tart. It smells like the dried goji berries I keep around for snacking. As much as I like the note, berry-prominent blends aren't usually ones that I enjoy wearing on my skin. And although the smoked vanilla and Snake Oil do emerge on the drydown to dim and darken the berryliciousness of this, it's still too much for me right now.

 

I think I'll also be setting this one aside for a little aging, to see if that acai note can come down a little bit.

[shelldoo]

in the bottle: berry. sweet.

 

wet: almost all berries. yet this has a spicey edge, i am assuning due to teh snake oil

 

this has moments that remind me of a berry shampoo, then it occassionally reminds me of my trip to hawaii, which i have no clue why. basivcally this is a sweet, sometimes spicy, berry blend. fresh, innocent in nature, and not alot of snake oil to be found.

[themerrybaker]

At first Australian Copperhead is pretty fruity but it dries down to a sweet aromatic substance that reminds me a lot of Southern Comfort. Since I associate Southern Comfort with Janis Joplin, I am surprised and pleased by this oil.

[cuervosueno]

Wow! Super fruity, and while at first it is really intriguing, the fruitiness overwhelms it a bit. At the end, it smells like fruit cereal--like crunch berries or something. With snake oil. It is intriguing, but not me.

[smallvoice]

This is GORGEOUS! The berries stampede out of the bottle and nearly trample my poor nose, but once they are on my skin, they calm down quite a bit. The amber and spices come out with a hint of that smoky vanilla and..... wait a sec........ isn't there supposed to be Snake Oil in this? Heh. I'm absolutely not getting any hint of Snake Oil. Did the berries kill the patchouli? Those are some tough berries. Patchouli doesn't go down easily with my chemistry. So far, I'm really liking this one, and it is very unique- I can't think of anything comparable that I've smelled so far.

 

EDIT: It went soapy. It dries down to something wearable, but it's not my first choice.

Edited February 17, 2007 by cordia

[blu°]

I'm getting completely different results on this one. While the berry is recognizable and steady, it's not overpowering the scent for me.

 

The quality of the berry is tart, high-pitched, but kind of pale, and just lends a tart fruity tinge to the blend. It's not a deep deep berry scent on me.

 

I think I must be amping the cardamom, because this becomes a very dense breeze kind of a scent on me. Slightly citrussy, but with that almost woody smooth thing going on which transports the scent about half a mile around me. (This aspect has an ever so slight masculine edge to my nose, but not too much so.)

 

Still, it's not overpowering or anything. It seems to be a pretty good work scent, and I go complimented on it being a pretty nice work scent, too.

 

It also feels extremely energizing to me, in a good way (read: it's not making me feel hectic or nervous). It makes me work steady and calm, and also kind of effective I think.

 

This weekend I'm working because there's an international workshop on Atlantic languages at our department at uni, and I think Australian Copperhead will be the perfect companion.

 

Scentwise, I'm reminded of Ra and Moxie. There's not really any Snake Oil base that I can make out, but I guess it might show up after a bit of aging.

 

Love it, will probably get more than one bottle, if my financial situation allows for it.

Edited February 16, 2007 by blu°

[keltic]

In the imp ~ super strong berry with a hint of sweet spices

 

wet ~ the berry is still there with its sweetness, but it isn’t overpowering or cloying as i would expect from it’s strength in the imp. the rest of the notes warm up, giving it a far more complex smell than i expected. i can’t pick them out individually, instead i get a soft, gentle, soothing scent that is perfectly light. it's like a spiced cream has been poured over a bowl of sweet summer fruits, and you are now tucked in fron of the fire, spoon in hand. . .

 

dry-down ~ amazing, the “wet" scent holds. the berries mature slightly, as if they have gone almost over-ripe, giving a slightly intoxicating sharpness to their soft, sweet note. my skin is trying as hard as it can to eat this, and i hope it is just the dry weather. something in this blend makes me want it to hang around, strengthen it’s throw and play all day.