- Latin name
- Cinnamomum cassia
- Family
- Laurel family (Lauraceae)
- Origin
- China, Vietnam, Indonesia
- Parts used
- bark, leaves and twigs
- Raw materials
- cassia essential oil
- Extraction
- steam distillation
- Olfactory group
- spicy (warm)
- Position in the pyramid
- heart
- Synthetic substitutes
- cinnamaldehyde, cinnamon oil
Cassia is Chinese cinnamon, a close relative of Ceylon cinnamon. Its bark is thicker and coarser, and its aroma stronger and sharper. Cassia is what is most often sold around the world as “cinnamon” in sticks and powder.
How it smells: hot, sweet and spicy: bright cinnamon, a light resinousness, a faintly bitter and woody note. Cassia sounds hotter and more direct than Ceylon cinnamon, without its delicate floral softness.
The main substance of cassia is cinnamaldehyde, of which it contains even more than Ceylon cinnamon. It gives a fiery sweetness, so in perfume cassia is used carefully — as a warm spicy accent in floral and amber compositions.
What it pairs with: with rose and carnation — spicy floral bouquets, with honey and vanilla — warm amber fragrances, with orange — Christmas spice, with incense and labdanum — a resinous-spicy base, with sandalwood — warm wood.
Good to know: in perfumery it is easy to confuse “cassia” (Chinese cinnamon) with “cassie” — the flowers of Acacia farnesiana: the names are almost identical, but they smell completely different.
