When you touch cashmere fiber, it feels like a cloud in your hand. A warm and fluffy texture that is so light, you don’t even notice it. But that snuggly comfort will stay in your memory for a long time.

Not many people know which animal provides us with these golden fibres. Cashmere is wool that comes from goats. Specific goats that live in the extreme continental climate and adapted to survive. The colder and rougher the winter is, the better the goats’ coates develop to fight the weather.

Cashmere fiber

There is a number of unique attributes that cashmere wool is popular for. Specifically, the lightness, warmth and softness of the fiber. Light and soft yet still warm- that is an unusual combination and is what makes cashmere stand out amongst other types of wool.

The fiber that is actually used to make cashmere garments is the goats’ inner coat which is guarded by the second layer of the coat. The outer layer protects softer and warmer fibers.

Where are cashmere goats from?

The best cashmere comes from Mongolia where winters are long and summer are hot but short. Most of the Mongolia is located on a plateau at an altitude of 1,000-1,500m.

Having -20°C during winter is normal, and temperature can drop to -40°C during the coldest month. Low temperatures combined with strong winds reaching around 70kph can easily give you a frostbite if going there without proper warm clothes.

This climate dictates the requirements for animals to survive. Goats have adapted to the weather by growing those light but warm coats.