cachou a French term, possibly connected with the cashew nut, for a small, scented, hard sugar sweet sucked by tobacco smokers to freshen the breath. It is often perfumed with violets or other flowers. A popular French variety is cachou Lajaunie, invented by the pharmacist Leon Lajaunie in Toulouse in 1890. These, based on liquorice, scented with mint, and mixed with various secret ingredients, are a relatively modern example of a confection with a history that extends back at least to the 17th century, when ‘kissing comfits’, flavoured with musk, were served as part of the banquet course in England.
