Rasasi – Raqiya – Cashmeran

Like the other bakhoors, this sample comes from my friend Povilas, who sent me a generous selection of samples from his collection and regularly complements these with new samples.

Raqiya Cashmeran is a dukhoon pressed into tabs.

Rasasi lists the following fragrance notes:

Cashmeran is a synthetic musk, as sold by Firmenich for example. I suspect something similar applies to White Amber.

Although the scent of Cashmeran is very potent and has a strong spicy aspect, I find it soft in a special way, caressing. In this regard, Cashmeran shares similarity with Khadlaj – Kashmeeri not only in name.

The spiciness of the fragrance can be interpreted as both warm and fresh, which I find intriguing. A little saffron sharpness paired with spicy coolness. Without actually detecting the jasmine, I perceive a fine, floral aspect in Cashmeran. Perhaps it’s the fresh aspect of jasmine that combines with the cardamom to create this difficult-to-describe dichotomy.

I don’t smell anything that makes me think of agarwood or oudh in particular, but whatever Rasasi is using here certainly contributes to the depth of the composition. Like Kashmeeri, I don’t perceive Cashmeran as musky, but both have this special softness that I can only attribute to the ‘cashmere musk’. Apparently, I also like musk fragrances when I cannot identify them as such.

Raqiya Cashmeran has a usual intensity for a bakhoor fragrance, which can be mitigated by using it sparingly.
It’s a feel-good scent with inviting softness, pepped up with spicy and tart notes. A seductive perfume that I enjoy smelling both in my rooms and on myself; I love it when the scent clings to my clothing.