Green Tree Viper

[themerrybaker]

Snake Oil with four mints, bergamot, and green tea.

The mint evaporates within a half hour and leaves a sweet vanilla-pineapple(wtf?)-sugar-musk residue. Sweeter than Cottonmouth, but not all that different when dry. The decant will definitely get some rotation!

[puck_nc]

Origin: decant from eviltemptressdq's circle

 

Initial Thoughts: I haven't been bitten by the Snake Oil bug. The one time I tried it on I was underwhelmed, although I have no idea how old that particular oil was. But I enjoy mint and thought I would give this one a try. (Since then I have had the chance to sniff the entire Snake Pit, and I suspect that Coral Snake is more my thing and found Anaconda to be heavenly-sweet.)

 

In the Bottle: Sweet, almost honeyed mint. I immediately wonder if this would smell good on my husband--it's got a masculine feel to it.

 

Wet: A well-blended minty musk. The mint is sharp, but not too sharp, muted just enough by the Snake Oil base. (Husband sniffs my wrist: "That's nice.")

 

Drydown: The mint wins out, with the Snake Oil providing just a touch of sweetness below. But it's not the Lick It sweet...it's darker, more syrupy or honeyed. I definitely want to see what this does on my husband.

 

Verdict: Absolutely keeping the imp. There may be a bottle down the road.

[gingersnapp]

Hmmm. This was a chilly mint in the bottle and when first applied, but my skin doesn't really like mint. Now it's a green tea blend that smells a bit off. The Snake Oil in the mix doesn't really come out much other than to throw everything off.

 

This one really isn't for me.

[rivki8699]

This was the Snake Pit scent I was most excited about. I love mint and vanilla, so a minty Snake Oil sounded perfect.

 

In the imp: I have to say I was suprised that this oil was orange, I guess I was expecting it to be green. Mint, but more a natural mint than a candy mint.

 

Wet: Mint. This is incredibly light, I can barely smell it.

 

Dry: This is starting to throw more as it dries. The mint is lovely. It's not the peppermint of Lick it Again. Maybe it's a bit spearminty? Ooh, I just got a wiff of the vanilla. Mmmm. The Snake Oil is starting to show. But the patchouli has yet to take over, which makes me happy.

 

I think some of the tea is coming out. But this is so faint (after about half an hour) that I can barely smell it. I think I'm going to have to slather to get a better sense.

[euterpe414]

This is a prett straight forward scent, and an incredibly delicious one at that! On me I am getting mint + green tea+ Snake Oil. Mint ususally pulls a disappearing act on my skin, but here it is staying put . This is so fabulous, and to think, I thought I wouldn't like this one very much! I do agree with the green tea ice cream comparison. It does smell a bit of that after it has been on for over an hour. Love this one, and I definitely will wear it often.

 

[LittleGreyKitten]

Wow. This is one seriously yummy snakey. Initially it's strongly candied mint- not peppermint, or anything skin freezing, but a gentle soft sweet mint. Then the vanilla/snake oil thing comes on strong beneath the mint, and the mint fades some. It ends up as this delicious vanilla, hint of mint blend. Love! Sadly it does fade fast, so it requires reapplication. That's fine though. The Snake Oil base is hard to detect; I believe that's what the sweet base note is, but I wouldn't realize it was a SN variant without the description.

 

4.5 out of 5.

[rainbow]

This is one awesome scent. OMG, I totally love this, and I'm so happy I ordered it. Initially I was skeptical, as mint + snake oil just sounded weird. I like both elements individually, but couldn't really see them working together. But then the reviews were so good that I decided to take the plunge. And wow, this scent is so nice! When I first apply I get mostly mint- it's strong, tingly mint, and it tingles on the skin like Lick It does (not quite as strong as Lick It, but the tingle is there). But the Snake Oil notes start to come through pretty quickly too. They blend beautifully with the mint, and overall this is one very enjoyable perfume.

[empi girl]

I love mint, so had to try this. In the imp, it is pretty much a peppermint single note to me. But on, it is peppermint, with a hint of spearmint under, with wintergreen in the far distance. It has a subtle sweetness.

 

Eventually the mint softens, and a muted Snake Oil appears, but it is less the rich vanilla of SO and more the "exotic oils" part, but sugared. It is a soft, beautiful scent. A little later, a tea note comes through lightly. It is a soft tea note, not the more bright one that I usually notice.

 

I find it very different from Lick It, which is one of my all-time favorites.

 

I wasn't sure how the Snake Oil and the mint would come together, but it is beautiful. It is also light, as others have said. I will very likely be getting a bottle of this.

[copyshopclerk]

I'll admit, I didn't think I'd like this one, but I got the full Snake Pit from a decant circle so I could try them all, and I was pleasantly surprised with Green Tree Viper!

 

In the imp: Mint, but not too strong (nothing like Lick It Again, which is like sniffing a bottle of peppermint oil!) Behind that, there's vanilla and something else that's sweet.

 

Wet: The minty quality isn't as strong as I had assumed it would be for having 4 mints. It gives the blend a refreshing edge without actually coming across as "minty" Very summery-feeling. Reminds me of F5 without the citrus (I would've loved F5 had it not beaten me about the head and shoulders with lime!)

 

Dry: I find that I compare it to Lick It Again as that's the only mint BPAL I own now. This is not as sweet - this is a refreshing blend. Once again, the Snake Oil incense comes out more when dry.

 

A surprise hit - I didn't think I'd care for this at all and I really like it a lot!

[emzebel]

Very fresh - fresh like I had never imagined Snake Oil could smell. The mint is very light on me, and my nose is interpreting the tea and bergamont as citrusy. This is a light, slightly spicy, mint/honey/green earl gray tea to my nose. Quite lovely.

[Browneyes]

This was one of the Snakes I was looking forward to trying the most. I am going to have to test it a bit more to consider if I need a bottle, because Habu is kind of pushing this one off the spot of "ideal fresh summer-scent SO variant" - I am on a budget you see

The review:

 

Imp: Green, light minty-ness. Not as sharp and strong as I was expecting from reading the previous reviews

Wet: The green tea note emerges, and I recognise it as the same green tea note in Embalming Fluid (although not quite as strong, and of course, there is no citrus/aloe in this)

Dry: A very faint vanilla is evidence of the SO base. I wonder if it will come out more with aging? I also got a faint plasticy/fake twinge, which aging might cure. Will continue testing in any case

 

Throw was lovely though, quite tingly. The tingly, minty throw lasted for about 1½ hour, then the scent kind of faded.

[em_h]

This is a rich mint-candy scent, but like all mints, on me, it fades rapidly and completely. There's just a hint of syrupy Snake Oil remaining, but really it's almost entirely gone within half an hour. It's quite a shame.

[faifai]

Fresh mint leaves dipped in sugar, then dropped into smooth bone china cups filled with freshly brewed Earl Grey tea. That's what I get from this, no Snake Oil at all. I was a bit disappointed at the ultra-short lasting power (it's there and gone within an hour), but that's what all BPAL mints do on me so it wasn't exactly a surprise. I will just have to slather!

Edited March 3, 2007 by faifai

[melissadragon]

GREEN TREE VIPER: Snake Oil with four mints, bergamot, and green tea.

 

Imp: Hello there, Andes mint candies. - applied to back of right hand

Wet: Andes candies and green tea

Dry: More Snake Oil, less mint - yay!

1 hr later: Mint is gone, now it is bergamot and green tea Snake Oil.

Verdict: Not a keeper

[requieminblack]

Right out of the bottle- Mmmmmmminty! Green Tree Viper is Minty McMinypants.

 

On my skin- Strong spearmint. It smells just like a fresh spearmint plant on a rainy day as opposed to say, minty gum. As it fades the spearmint fades and the Bergamot and spices of the Snake Oil slither out. Bergamot = lime to my nose so this scent is bright green indeed!

 

As it fades it becomes a cup of mint spice tea. With a twist of lime and a tiny bit of cream. Delish!

[juniperus]

Bottle: ooh, minty! fresh! it's a gum commercial! (just kidding)

Wet: same, heavy on the peppermint. and I can catch the bergamot hovering in the background.

Dry: more of the bergamot, and it might be tempered a bit by the green tea, but I'm not really registering it as green tea...just, er...balance.

Later: the same, really, it's just fading, but not changing disposition as it's doing so. interesting, but not me.

[SultryWolf]

in the decant: Minty, like freshly crushed leaves.

on: The green tea develops through the mint and - waay in the back - the warmth of Snake Oil rises.

[Electra]

In the wet stage, there is an unsettling similarity to Cloister Graveyard in the Snow. Why unsettling? I like that blend. But part of the reason that I like it is because the blend itself IS vaguely unsettling. Anyway. I'm thinking that maybe one of the four mints in Green Tree Viper is the same mint that's in Cloister Graveyard.

 

As it dries down, it starts to change and almost immediately becomes a much warmer blend than Cloister Graveyard. The mint was the predominant note upon first application, but has receded into the background now, though I can catch a hint of it if I put my nose right up to my wrist. I think I'm picking up on the bergamot, because I'm smelling something that's trying to be citrusy but is held in check by the other notes. Good. I'm not a fan of citrus.

 

There's Snake Oil in this? Really? I never would have guessed. Snake Oil smells really awful on me, and this does not.

 

I'm finding this scent very hard to describe. It's got a bit of slink to it -- appropriate for a snake. No one note stands out above the others. The blend is quite seamless, which is why I'm having a very hard time describing what I'm smelling. (The best I can do is "a mesh of bergamot and mint -- which reminds me a bit of Shattered -- over a deeper base which must be the Snake Oil, though it doesn't smell like Snake Oil to me.") I think I like it, though. It seems like a good scent for summer evenings.

 

It stays very close to the skin. Someone would have to lean in very close to smell it.

 

Quick edit -- and today, the drydown smells distinctly Lolita Lempicka-ish on me. Go figure.

 

Edited 5/11/07 -- this scent has aged really nicely in the few months I've had the bottle, and I like it a lot. I get the "minty Lolita Lempicka" thing every time I wear it now -- the drydown is a strange blend of candied mint and an anise-like smell, which sounds odd but smells absolutely great. I'm contemplating a second bottle of this, which I don't do often. I still don't smell any discernable Snake Oil, FWIW.

Edited May 11, 2007 by Electra

[asciident]

Wet: Hello mint! Yum.

 

First on: Unlike the other snakes I've tried so far, Snake Oil is trying to pop right out on this one. It seems to be blending with the bergamot strangely. Green tea is in here somewhere...but it's swimming in Snake Oil.

 

Dry: My skin sucked out all the mint, and sadly all the green tea. I'm left with a sort of orangey Snake Oil, and it's really not doing much for me. Disappointing; I had really hoped to love this one.

[cal_steph]

My body has never cooperated with Snake Oil (it goes all nasty pepper-plastic on my skin) but had to get this one because green tree snake breeds are among my favorites and because I LOVE the smell of sweet mint gum.

 

In the bottle, this reminds me of Ultraviolet. Definitely not a sweet mint, but that sharp, chilly eucalyptus. I'm really not a fan of that scent, so I was disappointed.

 

It didn't change much on my wrists until about ten minutes into wearing. Whereas Ultraviolet tended to turn into this kind of nasty eucalyptus violet powder, this mellowed out into that nice Andes mint scent that a lot of people mentioned upthread.

 

But even though I get traces of that scent from far away, when my wrist is directly under my nose all I smell is that unfortunate plastic smell. Mm, this is not going to work. I guess knowing that my skin will amplify the Snake Oil base kinda ruins the rest of the Snake Pit blends for me too...which sucks because I was really looking forward to having some perfume named after snakes.

Edited March 12, 2007 by cal_steph

[delicate_fangs]

decant: mint mint mint MINT! More interesting than just peppermint, though -- I don't actually get much peppermint in here at all.

 

wet: mint mint Thin Mint chocolate?! mint... OK, now sugary faint bergamot over mint... now green tea with a little bergamot and fading mint with vanilla

 

drydown: a very, very faint green tea scent. No mint at all. Either it's gone or I can't detect it. No Snake Oil scent left either.

 

Interesting, but too fugitive on me to buy a bottle. Oh, well. Worth trying, though, definitely.

[slave1]

GREE TREE VIPER

 

In Bottle: Sweet mints

 

On Skin: This is so soft and minty!!! Yum!!! It’s not medicinal mint, or freezing cold in your face mint… it’s soft and comforting. A pick me up that clears my sinuses just slightly. So pretty… and fresh! Especially combined with the clean green tea note. It smells like a minty tea, very green in feel. I like the scent and would love to use it as aromatherapy, but I wouldn’t wear it as a perfume. I’d love to keep some in my desk drawer and have a sniff of it when I ever needed a booster to keep my energy going. The Snake Oil is also pretty silent in this blend, just a slight soft spice in the background and the vanilla keeping the mint in check. Light throw and short wearlength.

[crain]

I am not a huge fan of Snake Oil, but I am a huge fan of the Lab's minty scents. They are undoubtedly my single favorite category of Lab scents, so I had to try this one.

 

In the bottle: It smells like warm, spicy mints. Lots of mints. No vanilla, no citrus, no cream, but exotic spices and mints.

 

On my skin: Initially, the mint note is strong and warm. I love it. As it dries down and morphs, it changes into a spicy Snake Oil companion with a little bergamot and a little tea.

 

I understand the Dorian comparison although it is not as creamy, sweet or vanilla-y.

 

Nonetheless, this is a keeper for me. And, the little green snake on the bottle is adorable!

[metaldog32]

Ahhhh…Green Tree Viper. I received this decant from a generous forumite..and I have to say..the one thing that appealed to me were the mints…green tea I can take or leave..but the reviews really made me curious..could there be a creamy mint??? I wouldn’t mind having that as a fragrance so I snagged a decant. This is how it plays out:

 

Initial sniff from decant:My,my,my…this is beautiful…the mint is there but it’s not sharp or biting..but there is also the bergamot which is also kind of soft too..and the green tea. Very refreshing…but in a refined way. Wow.

 

Applied wet on skin: Swooning…goodness this is good. The mint is there..but it is indeed a creamy mint..that must be the Snake Oil interweaving in it..it’s got some sweetness but it still retains the wisp of bergamot/green tea. Holy cow..I love it and I only have had it on for one minute.

 

Couple of minutes on skin:The mint is still there..but its tandem with the sweetness of the Snake Oil..it’s kind of like a creamy sugary mint…and yet..just when I think it might be just a bit TOO sweet..there is that green tea/bergamot note in the back…keeping it fresh. Fabulous.

 

Fifteen minutes later: It’s all still a love-fest here..the soft creamy mint..sweetness tempered by the green tea. I am happy..so very happy.

 

For the record..I have never tried Dorian or Snake Oil.

 

45 minutes later: Softer now..but not invisible..the mint is much more subdued…and I can still get the tea note with the sweet notes.

 

Lasting power is 4+hours on me with the throw soft to medium.

 

Bottom Line: Green Tree Viper is a home fun for me..I will most definitely be getting a 5ml..maybe even two before the Carnaval packs up. I think it will be great in summer but could very well see me wearing it in the spring as well. Even though it is minty and refreshing the notes of Snake Oil allow it to be creamy and soft..which I love. Home run for sure!!!

[Tesseljoan]

Mint mint and mint. I don't get much Snake Oil, evne when it dries, but the scent as a whole is a bit sweeter then the wintery mint blends from the lab. After the mint dies down a little, green tea makes its appearance.

 

It lasts longer than most mint scents, but I still reapply and slather it on as often as I can.