Cashmeran

International Flavors & Fragrances, better known as IFF, is an international company that manufactures perfumes for the fragrance industry and flavors for the food industry. A true giant in its sector, it ranks among the most important companies in the market. It is also the company behind the name cashmeran, a name derived from its tactile sensation reminiscent of the softness and smoothness of cashmere wool.

What is cashmeran?

Cashmeran is a trade name registered by IFF for a chemical ingredient whose scientific name is DPMI. It was discovered in the 70s by doctor John Hall. Moreover, cashmeran resulted from research into inexpensive chemical transformations from other ingredients. It is an alicyclic ketone, an organic compound, with a melting point of 27°. It is described as a polycyclic musk. In other words, cashmeran is a synthetic product, also called cashmere wood. What is more, it is a particularly recent material on the scale of perfumery. Cashmeran is a material apart since it is as much tactile as olfactory. Indeed, it has a surface that immediately invites touch, much like cashmere. Thus, cashmeran is a raw material in which anyone would dream of curling up, both for its sense of comfort and for its bewitching scent.

The woody, sensual scent of cashmeran

Cashmeran releases a fairly complex odor and its olfactory facets are rich. It proves to be an ingredient that is predominantly woody and musky. Nevertheless, it is also spicy, fruity, chypre, balsamic and vanilla-like. It releases a sensual, soft sensation and has a characteristic scent that makes it immediately identifiable. What is more, it is a synthetic product whose fragrance is very different from natural wood essences. Many consumers thus share their personal, and sometimes divergent, impressions of cashmeran. Some say its scent is musky and evocative of the undergrowth. For many, it reveals the same breath as concrete when struck by rain. In this sense, it evokes an urban landscape on a gloomy day. Others, however, say it is very spicy, while some find it elegantly powdery. Generally speaking, perfumers like to describe cashmeran as a complex product that subsequently reveals a light scent of apple paired with pine. In any case, cashmeran remains an excellent way to support the floral notes of a fragrance, and jasmine in particular.

Cashmeran first appeared in the famous Amarige by Givenchy in 1970. Since that day, it has become an essential ingredient in perfumery. As such, it is present in fragrances such as Acqua Di Gioia Essenza by Armani, 1881 Blanc by Cerruti or Bang Bang by Marc Jacob. Likewise, it appears throughout the entire Alien collection by Thierry Mugler.