The Sweet Smell of Rain: What is Petrichor?
Tell us if you relate – nothing compares to the anticipation of a fresh Spring rainfall. Set the scene something like this: windows perched open just enough to hear the start of the light pitter-patter on the roof, maybe you’re accompanied by a good book or your favorite genre of music playing, and your senses are greeted by a pleasant, distinctive, and earthy aroma from outside.
You know the captivating smell, but did you know that this definitive scent has a name, and that it’s caused by a naturally occurring chemical reaction? We’re getting into the details behind how we incorporated this primal, earthy smell into our Limited Edition Spring. Follow along as we get sciency.
What is Petrichor?
Petrichor is the smell of rain hitting the earth. When the first drops of water hit dry soil, a bacterium in the soil releases a combination of a fragrant chemicals called geosmin.
Geosmin, which means “Earth odor,” is the main chemical compound that makes up petrichor. Us humans are actually super sensitive to geosmin, hence why we can pick up on petrichor so well, and why you may be able to “anticipate” rain just before it occurs. Some scientists even believe that people inherited their affection for the rainy aroma from our ancestors who relied on rainy weather for survival.
Where it Gets Sciency
Pit Liquor only uses natural processes in our scent creation. “Rain smells” are popular in fragrances, but they are often mimicked with synthetics and toxic fragrances. When we set out to include it in our scents, we knew that we would need to find the non-toxic and natural way to do it—the Pit Liquor way. We found out that you can replicate geosmin’s chemical process in a lab, using naturally occurring, healthy bacteria. This makes it possible to literally bottle up the smell of rain!
The immersive experience you get in your bottle of Pit Liquor is a completely natural process with fully safe materials. You’ll never have to compromise the health of your body or your pits to smell great.
What are you waiting for? Go stop and smell the geosmin!