Petra The Nose Behind 2025

Although I (so far) stand quite alone among the praises of new account holders and few reviewers, it must be said clearly: Petra is the weakest release to date from Herbert Stricker. I sincerely hope that something went wrong in the production, because I cannot imagine that such an immature and short-lived fragrance could have emerged from the house of Nose Behinds. This was not the case with any of the 11 other TNBs I tested.

One step at a time:
With "Petra | The Nose Behind," I have now been able to test the latest creation from Herbert Stricker. After the Alpine flower (Fleur Alpine), there is now a homage or an olfactory travel report to the ancient rock city and one of the new seven wonders -> Petra, in Jordan.

The test: Freshly washed from the shower with 4 sprays on the upper arm.

After spraying:
Dark (bitter) chocolate with a floral note and slight sweetness. About five minutes later, mint slowly joins in from the background.
The scent has hardly any projection and presence. I had already felt this during my first test on the strip ...

After 15 minutes:
Chocolate becomes a bit less, but the mint now comes through more. Light sweetness still noticeable, I might attribute it to coconut or incense?! A certain "floral veil" rounds off the scent profile after 15 minutes.

After 45 minutes:
Chocolate is gone. Mint is now at the forefront with the flower. It is rounded off by a rather vanilla sweetness. The incense is hardly perceptible and will be part of the "sweet mixture." No 'smoky' incense. Nothing sacred, nothing dominant.

1.5 hours:
Light incense sweetness with very subdued, not intense mint spice in the background. The floral note (=Magnolia!?) is still there. Sillage is almost completely gone. I can already imagine with a tear in my eye that I will have to reapply in at most 3 hours - "long lasting" will not be the case here ...

2.5 hours:
Petra has diminished immensely in the last 60 minutes. Immensely!
The scent is now just a light, sweet breeze. For me, the spectacle is already 90% over. I seriously wonder if something went wrong here. I am not used to such poor performance from the fragrance house The Nose Behind, on the contrary.

After 4 hours:
Finito. Game over.
Either you spray again to survive the second half of the workday or you choose another, stronger fragrance.

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Conclusion:
After Silk! Oud being the olfactorily worst release, I now have the weakest fragrance right in front of me with "Petra | The Nose Behind."

Herbert is known for his special, sometimes even more experimental fragrances. Especially at The Nose Behind, they do not aim to capture the mass market - the fragrances must primarily please Herbert and be mementos of experiences. This is extremely commendable and a great attitude.

The fragrance, as it is now (namely not very exciting, very generic, and with no power), does not carry the "Nose Behind" DNA for me. I rather assume that something was off in the production of the first batch. It feels like "50% finished" only.

Definitely (!) not a blind buy and no recommendation for it in its current form.