Siberian Musk

[liquidtrance]

Our vegetal musk blend that emulates the scent of Siberian musk deer gland secretions. The description doesn't sound sexy, but the scent sure is.

This is a vegan, cruelty-free perfume. No animals were harmed, fondled, squeezed, prodded, or in any way violated in the making of this accord.

Upon first sniffing this blend, I too was astounded and instantly thought "Snake Oil!". So of course, this requires side by side comparison!

At a side-by-side comparison, aged Snake Oil is powdery vanilla with a hint of musk. Mostly sweet, but very soft. On my skin, Snake Oil is very one dimensional and powdery. The vanilla usually seems to turn artificial and warps in coupling with the other ingredients. Usually someone asks if I'm wearing baby powder.

Siberian Musk is crisp and almost spicy. At first sniff, I do definitely get the cola references some people have mentioned. But upon deeper smelling, it is much more complex than that. Siberian Musk has all the right bits to evoke Snake Oil, but is in reality much more swarthy, animalistic, and complex. (I think it is likely much closer to Snake Charmer, but I don't have my bottle to compare to at the moment.) The scent stays rich and clear on my skin. Some whiffs play coy and sweet, and others are much darker and animalistic. This is a pretty naughty musk, that masquerades as something more innocent. This could be worn as something sophisticated or something smutty, depending on your desired outcome. The scent definitely keeps me enthralled, and is not so aggressive as to drive me to complaint.

Throughout wearing the scent and into the dry down, the scent really makes me think of many things. This is one of the first BPAL blends that really evokes that "Ah ha!" moment, realizing the genius of smells. It's like a roller coaster of playfulness, anticipation, nostalgia and security.

Overall, I'm pretty amazed with Siberian Musk. I expected something all right, but I can really only imagine how beautifully this will age!

Disclaimer: This is definitely a musk, though. No doubts about that. If you are not a fan of musk, all the Snake Oil references in the world won't make this blend amazing for you. (But it IS pretty effing amazing!)

[stellamaris]

It finally came to me what this was reminding me of, the old Khiel's Musk Oil that I used to buy from the original store in the East Village, back when they sold perfume oils, like a hundred of them, in little brown bottles, like the Black Phoenix ones. You could get bigger bottles too as I remember.

Kheils, like so many other cosmetic/perfume companies was bought out a few years ago, now it is a "brand", sigh.

 

But I still remember the smell of that Musk...

[neuilly]

Khiel's! You're so right. My SO used wear that (yep, we're in NYC) but I couldn't place the familiarity of the scent. It's not quite the same.

 

For me this is a tad sweeter than I would have expected (but I like it). I'm actually not a Snake Oil wearer, but I enjoy the sexiness of this scent/note. I'm just not sure I would wear it on it's own and I've never been much of a layerer. Hmmm. Very sultry though!

[AuroraLlew]

I definitely get the Snake Oil element. The Vanilla/spice combo in Snake Oil make it a much smoother scent in my opinion. This has a grittiness that make it much more similar to Spawn of the She Demon, less the fruitiness.

 

After a while that sexy dirtiness calms down and I am left with a smoother musk. It still has a little grit, but is sweeter with an undertone of vanilla, much closer to snake oil after a couple hours, but still less sweet and rich.

 

Definitely a keeper, but it is so similar to She Demon on me that one bottle should be enough.

 

I don't layer too often but I do agree with others this one might be nice in a combo.

[Cinder and Smoke]

Everyone is comparing Siberian Musk to Snake Oil, but for me, this is straight up Old Demons of the First Class. When I sniffed the SN bottle, I realized that the note in Old Demons that I had originally attributed to an amalgam of black pepper and other spices was actually Siberian Musk.

Old Demons is a tad spicier, but the two are so similar that I may not keep both bottles.

[Melenass]

I'm not a fan of Snake Oil, but Siberian Musk is nice. It has the personality of Snake Oil, without overpowering output. Its scent is leather, dirty and slightly spicy, subtle, intimate and sexy. I like this.

[gaai]

Siberian Musk reminds me more of Smut that it does of Snake Oil.... To my nose (and with my chemistry) it smells like a less smutty, non-sweetened Smut, although I can definitely tell it's probably the same musk used in SO. There, to me, is just a lot more going on in Snake Oil that it kind of loses any real resemblance to this Siberian Musk.

 

It's a very nice, simple, but not ordinary musk! I'm glad I decided to go for a bottle!

[ljaylh]

I must confess that I'm pretty underwhelmed by this Siberian Musk.. maybe it's because the hype has been so OMGWOW about it, I expected more? Or maybe it's just not that great.. I don't know, but I just don't feel all that excited about it.

 

As others have said, it definely has a strong similarity to Snake Oil - but without the sweetness of the vanilla, the complexity of the spices, and overall less oomph. Where I find Snake Oil to be multi-dimensional on my skin, Siberian Musk is pretty simple.. it's a sweet, fuzzy red/brown musk and that's about it. It's also not like Smut at all for me - on my skin, Smut was boozy and dark and way heavier on the brown sugar than this.

 

I dunno.. it's not horrible or anything, but it's not really anything special on me either. And considering I have a nice little hoard of Snake Oil bottles, I just can't see myself ever reaching for this

[killerklown]

Mmm this is really good! I get no SO from this, but a less sweeter Schwarzer Mond or maybe Luna Negra. It goes a little powdery on the dry down, but comes back nice and subtle after. A good close to the skin scent for me, I can't wait to play with this and see what it can do.

[Lethran]

In bottle: It smells like a medium weight musk, lusty and heady. Wet: Okay, the musk is much lighter on my skin than I expected from the bottle, delightfully feral, and nuanced. I am not sure I strictly need a musk single note, but I think it will be fun trying it with other things. Dry: Fades into a delicious soft musk.

[Suusje]

This starts as Snake Oil light and then the lemon start showing up. After that the lemon moves into the background and makes room for something a bit nutty. It's a nuttier Snake Oil light on me.

[Aldercy]

I'm slightly underwhelmed, but I think that's just because I was expecting Siberian Musk to be like an OMG TOP TEN! kind of scent, and it's more just average good on me. It's a lot like Snake Oil with all the sweetness stripped out. Yet there's that dark brown, syrupy "cola" note that I get from fresh Mme. Moriarty... that may sound like it should be a sweet note, but it's really not. I wonder if that element will reduce with aging as it does with Mme. Moriarty? I don't hate it, but I find it slightly jarring and unnatural. Overall, it's a very thick, strong scent. Not something I would ever wear to work, but it's strangely cozy and comforting on a cool night.

[zankoku_zen]

Dark, syrupy, musky. It reminds me to Spawn of the She Devil the most (Snake Oil second). It's very wearable, but probably not by itself and I'd definitely use it to make any scent "sexy muskier".

[milo]

This is my first bottle of SN, and I am not disappointed! At first, I'm getting the musk I recognize in Snake Oil, but what this really reminds me of is Wilf, Panther Moon, and Black Temple Burlesque Troupe. I'm wondering if the Siberian Musk is the same as Black Musk. If it is not, it is very similar. Later on, it does fade more than any of the said comparisons, so yes, a Snake Oil or Wilf lite. Maybe age will make this scent last longer and become more robust. I can't wait to try this with soft, sweet blends, to give them more of an edge, and with other vanilla's, like Celeste and Lyonesse. So happy to have this, and will treasure it as long as it lasts!!

[pinkgyrl]

This is softer than I expected. It's just a soft fuzzy musk on me reminiscent of one of the notes that I recognize in some of the blends that I love - like Snake Oil - but not nearly as strong. It's very interesting getting to smell all of the single notes in blends; it will be much more fun picking out notes in blends as I get used to certain individual notes and how they smell on their own.

[abejita]

It's very nice to now be able to pinpoint exactly what Siberian Musk is, in comparison to Beth's other musks. I get that "cola" character I've heard others mention now, when before I couldn't pick it out and recognize it over notes in blends. And it's definitely part of the unique make-up of Snake Oil. I can recognize that very clearly.

 

This is a sweet and wearable (though I don't recommend slathering) musk. I like applying it under other scents, or in tiny amounts for a nighttime perfume.

[yeahbutnobut]

In the imp: definitely reminiscent of Snake Oil/Charmer, but it also reminds me of WILF and Smut and the other sweet and darkly sexy musk scents.
Wet on skin: this sweetens and starts to develop hints of black musk.
Dry on skin: this is very similar to the first incarnation of Siberian Musk I tried, except there’s something a bit sweet here, almost like it has a tonka or vanilla component. Like that, it seems like the perfect balance of red and black musk (though I think the previous SM was more like red and dark musk, which is less sweet than black musk). I find this much more intense and syrupy than Snake Oil and the black musk aspect of this musk smells a bit like sweet cologne (in a nice way) with a touch of something resinous. It reminds me of the black musk in Minotaur. I am also reminded of Luna Negra, in that there’s an almost fruity feel to this. It’s a very rich, heady musk but I fear it will turn to powder or manly cologne (though that doesn’t happen with Old Demons or Smut).
After a while: the lovely fruity/dark berry scent from before has gone, and it doesn’t turn powdery, but it does smell much more animalistic, more like an untamed dark musk than a sleek black musk or spicy red musk. Not pungently animalistic like civet, but in that feral way that’s found in some of the heavy musk scents or some of the furry, mammal themed scents-though I wouldn’t call this scent ‘cuddly’. I am sure that this is the main musk in Satyr.
Verdict: I think this is slightly stronger and sweeter than the original Siberian musk, but that could be down to aging? They do smell very similar in that ‘blend of red and black musk’ way. Even though I love heavy musky scents similar to this and these blends I feel are the kind Beth really excels at, as a single note I think that this particular musk is a bit too intense? I think it works better in a blend, but without other notes it becomes too much, and there’s a slight cologney/perfumey aspect I’m not sure I’m keen on, as well as a heavily animalistic backdrop which is very sexual and heady but a bit overwhelming too. I think I prefer red musk anyway, which tends to have spicy, fruity or incense-like aspects in addition to being intensely musky.
Is it a keeper? I like it but I prefer this note in blends. It’s too intense on its own, I’d rather it was tamed by other notes.
If you like this, try: Old Demons of the First Class, Smut, Satyr, Snake Oil, Luna Negra, Enraged Orangutan Musk, WILF

[mymymai]

ITB: I was expecting something slightly animalistic, but also a little woodsy from this scent. What I get is a powdery resinous tone with deeper, muskier hues underneath the powder and resin. Interesting.

 

Wet: Gosh, this is gorgeous. It's airy, powdery in the best way, slightly florid, and deeply resinous. This is a fabulous musk!

 

Dry: It's certainly more animalistic and musky now that it has dried, but it's still beautifully powdery, resinous, and just gorgeous!

[mermaidsdream]

I was lucky enough to receive an imp of this from my Switch Witch. I normally do really well with the darker, deeper musks (with red musk being a clear winner for me), so I had high hopes for this.

 

I was not disappointed.

 

In the imp: it's love at first sniff. I get the deep, the brown, the warm, and almost fuzzy that people are mentioning. I get the comparison to Snake Oil. This is simply lovely.

 

Applied, wet: a little strong, but still divine.

 

Drydown: Oh there we go ... softer now, with almost a vanilla undertone (no sugar, though). The similarity to Snake Oil fades, and I'm left with ... I don't even know how to describe it, other than to say I must buy a bottle.

 

This is one of the few oils I've worn 2 consecutive days. I mean, I have so many imps to try, but this works so well on me. Not quite as sharp as red musk, but still sensual.

[MCS4096]

When this first goes on I feel like it's a combination of red musk and the animal fur musk from blends like Ivanushka. It's good, but not as good as the blends that are heavy on these musks but with some other oomph present. As it wears it becomes a little more prominent in the fur musk for me, with a hint of added spiciness, and I do really like it at this stage. In the far dry down I unfortunately get a very slight whiff of armpit musk Not really noticeable in the throw though. I'm a HUGE musk fan, but somehow I dont really think I need a bottle of this because there are so many other blends that are primarily musk that I like better

[Zii]

It's very clear to my nose that this is a vegetable based musk because there is an intense spicy green to this. That being said the oomph of this is just incredibly sexy. It smells almost exactly like a head shop I loved and is just remarkably rich and sexy. There is something a bit sweet in this (other reviewers have been saying cola and it does smell a bit like the cola syrup we put into our soda machines at the movie theater I worked at) but it doesn't lose that musky grr that I love. First thing that's happening with this is a vetiver musk sandwich.

[Ava Lux]

I've tried so many musks in my parfumed life that I can say for sure it is one of the best ..

 

It's salty, animalic in not a bad way, no fecal notes, only a mature and quite masculine skin scent salty and vaguely sweet, not powdery at all on me...it ha s a great longevity and it 's a comfortable parfume , you can wear everyday layered with some other bpal...but I like skin scents so I'll wear it alone...for a musk lover a must have!

Edited November 17, 2014 by Elmifra

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Wow. This absolutely smells like the musk from Snake Oil to me. Which I had always sort of thought was a red musk, but now that I smell it solo, it's more of a sugary black musk on me. It's lovely. Sweet and sexy. Mmmffffggg.

 

 

Dry: Beautiful and a bit sexy. It doesn't morph. I find it plenty feminine enough for me (and I generally like fairly feminine scents) but I can also envision that it would smell good on a man, especially if layered with some woods. Myself, I am already thinking what I might like to layer it with...wonder if it would be good with French Tobacco??

[Lucchesa]

I have a half decant of Siberian Musk I have been putting off skin testing because it kind of scared me. It had leaked a little in transit, and the plumber's tape was brown and oil stained and you could smell it through the tape, kind of dark and animalic like the olfactory version of a horror movie... Anyway, I finally decided to try it this morning because it's on the love list of someone I'm swapping with and I thought I'd test it then frimp it along. Sorry, dear. I'm not letting this go. Siberian Musk is yowza on me. Just grrr. Dark, sexy, smutty, NOT work friendly. Gotta go rut in the forest now. Grrraowhh.