Background (Eau de Toilette) by Jil Sander

See Prices

More

We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Background Jil Sander 1993 Eau de Toilette

8.5 / 10 334 Ratings

A popular perfume by Jil Sander for men, released in 1993. The scent is spicy-sweet. The longevity is above-average. The production was apparently discontinued.
Compare

More

We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Main accords

Spicy

Sweet

Woody

Floral

Oriental

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Aniseed

Raspberry

Bergamot

Lavender

Lemon

Tarragon

Heart Notes

Heliotrope

Cinnamon

Lily of the valley

Carnation

Jasmine

Lily

Rose

Base Notes

Benzoin

Sandalwood

Tonka bean Amber

Amber

Musk

Vanilla

Cedarwood

Perfumer

Jean-François Latty

Ratings

Scent

8.5334 Ratings

Longevity

8.3263 Ratings

Sillage

7.8245 Ratings

Bottle

7.7259 Ratings

Value for money

7.178 Ratings

Submitted by DirkDS, last update on 11/18/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Background After Shave

Relax Eau de Toilette

Dunhill London Eau de Toilette

No. 1 Extreme

Background by MyParfuem

Pi Eau de Toilette

Reviews

34 in-depth fragrance descriptions

04/12/2015

ColinM
516 Reviews

ColinM

Helpful Review 3

Bizarre fougère

Background opens with a thick, quite peculiar soapy-medicinal blend comprising fruity notes, almond (tonka), a true load of cinnamon blended with powdery notes (heliotrope above all), balsamic notes, something creamy like white flowers, and something balsamic-resinous which reminded me of pine and fir balsam. Balmy, spicy, medicinal, woody, powdery, kind of gourmand-ish and balsamic... and leathery too for me, a smooth, soft but bold leather note underneath, slowly arising as minutes pass. A really solid leather accord, actually: waxy, rich, realistic, bracing and totally compelling. A sort of bizarre, colorful, kind of queery hybrid halfway Cuir Mauresque and Helmut Lang EDP, spicier than both and overall kind of more “weird” and playful - in a good meaning though. Kind of flashy too honestly, with (no offense for Germans) a sort of typical German “boldness” (i.e., tackiness) I smell in many older perfumes from Germany. Fun and creative, a bit linear and a bit heavy too, but a really peculiar and overall compelling take on the typical mid-90s Oriental “powdery-spicy” fougère theme (where the “peculiar” feature mostly lies in the sweet-medicinal-balsamic side).

7/10

06/24/2013

10Scent 10Longevity 7.5Sillage

Chnokfir
214 Reviews

Chnokfir

4

Cannot deny its background

There were times when perfumes were an opulent multitude of components, an excessive accumulation of different ingredients that made pinpointing individual notes difficult. This gradually changed after the 1990s. The fragrances were not necessarily flat, but rather predictable. "Background" by Jil Sanders is clearly "stuck" in the Good Old Days. Even today I have a hard time just to guess at some fragrance notes.

Rather unimpressive is the box it comes in. A simple black color with a subtle silver and light blue print. The bottle has a flattened front and back, looks like a sturdy short column, and is made of smoky deep green glass. A solid black cap, plus a thin silver band, perches on top. So inconspicuous that one might overlook it, if one does not know the scent. But, once you have sniffed it, you will never let it go.

The opening of this fragrance comes with a Bang! in a rush of fresh spiciness. Bergamot, lemon, tarragon and above all anise forge forward, with just a hint of licorice. Gradually more diverse flowers and spices move in, impossible to detect them all. Lavender and carnation are present, along with a velvety-soft, almost balsamic cinnamon. There are lily-of-the-valley and jasmine, I believe. Slowly one feels wrapped like in a down comforter, feather by soft feather, with a sweet lasting softness. There is much tonka and more vanilla, but also sandalwood and cedar. I can make out amber and some musk.

Fortunately, this is such a soft and balsamic scent - the intense sillage would otherwise be too strong. Here, it remains a very pleasant erxperience. The longevity meets high standards, just sparingly applied, this scent fills the whole day.

The background of yesteryear with opulent aromas has become rare in the mainstream segment of today, but you can still find many in the niche section. You can look there and get lucky. Nevertheless, I am glad to know Jil Sander's "Background" and have the pleasure of applying a few drops once in a while.

(Translation: Pipette)

08/07/2015

LicoriceRain
57 Reviews

LicoriceRain

1

Raspberry Cola?

Such an understated name, Background, which appeals to me a little, but maybe a little TOO understated. I mean, who would want to try and/or buy this based on such a boring name? I personally think a name can make or break a fragrance. Maybe this has something to do with it being discontinued? But anyway, as I read the notes, I now realize it has quite a bit of anise, which I didn’t recognize during my first wearing, although I love the smell of licorice. It’s nice, but not Full Bottle worthy. As others have said, it does remind me of Noxema, but also has a slight COLA vibe, maybe a raspberry cola. (I love a raspberry note, if done right.) Nice enough, but my humble opinion is Background is a bit muddled, with too many unnecessary notes. It’s alright, but I think it needs to stay in the… background.

08/31/2021

8.5Scent 9Longevity 7Sillage

Pollita
384 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Pollita

Top Review 36

Background. Or maybe Tonkaverde or Dolcebosco?

This community here is simply incredible! Just this weekend I tested Métaboles Expressioniste by Ys Uzac and discovered a reference to Jil Sanders Background from the lovely Taurus1967. And today I was able to test this fine, discontinued fragrance.

Right off the bat, this amazing scent from my youth is unfortunately not Background. As much as I would have liked that. But I am by no means disappointed, because this green-sweet charmer from Jil Sander is beautiful and I immediately discover similarities with favorites from my own portfolio. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be for me, as it develops a very intense tonka sweetness despite all its spices and woody notes, which simply doesn’t suit me. You really have to like this. Personally, I am a bit critical of a lot of tonka, but that’s just me, definitely not the fragrance.

My test material seems to be intact, as I can discern a scent progression. The opening phase initially reminds me of Keiko Mecheris Paname, one of my favorites. This one is also unfortunately discontinued, but today I won’t complain about discontinued fragrances for once. Otherwise, it gets boring. Background starts off very green, and the sweet anise and the bitter tarragon are simply wonderful opponents that come together in very fine, olfactory harmony here. I also immediately recognize the lavender. The top note of Background somewhat resembles the lavender-scented pain oil Aconit by Wala. By the way, it works great for sports injuries or when you have classic back pain. But that’s only a side note in case someone knows the scent of the oil.

After that, the fragrance picks up speed and gradually becomes sweeter. Heliotrope, cinnamon, and especially vanilla and tonka gradually push to the forefront. The remaining flowers are not specifically discernible to my nose, as the composition is overall too harmonious. A bit of tarragon here and there still provides some green, herbal background noise, and a bit of wood also says hello, but in the end, the fragrance gradually culminates in a fine tonka sweetness with vanilla.

I understand why something like this couldn’t hold its ground in the nineties, especially in the designer sector, as it is quite special, especially for that time. If this fragrance were launched today, it would probably be found in the range of Profumum Roma. The vanilla note of Background reminds me of the Profumum Roma vanilla, which I love so much. There it would probably be called Tonkaverde, Dolcebosco, or something similar. Yes, it could be a Profumum Roma and would probably sell well. I personally don’t know of any Profumum Roma that offers exactly such a note combination, but I still recommend fans of Background who miss it greatly to take a look at the fragrances of this brand. It could be appealing.

A heartfelt thank you to Lenka85 for the testing opportunity.

11/14/2017

9Scent 10Longevity 9Sillage

Ajlen
122 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Ajlen

Top Review 14

One's Relax is Another's Background

I have already praised the great Relax here some time ago. Now it is high time to do the same for the slightly younger brother from the house of Jil Sander.

I was quite surprised that the two are listed as fragrance twins here on Parfumo. I find that apart from the sweet-spicy base theme and the same decade, they have little in common. I remember Background more as a counterpoint to the Relax that was released a few years earlier. Perhaps brothers in spirit, but always fierce rivals in the market. Nevertheless, it makes sense to compare the two, not so much because of the parallels but rather because of the differences.

Characteristic for Background, in my view, is the strong floral note, carried by a robust, fruity raspberry sweetness right from the start. The already mentioned references to Joop Homme cannot be denied. I see significantly more connections to that scent than to Davidoff. Overall, it comes across very creamy and smoothly balanced - this may be the biggest divider from Relax, which is clearly more scratchy and edgy. Only towards the dry down do the two come a bit closer with their benzoin-tonka-vanilla base. However, for me, this is still far, far from being fragrance twins. Overall, Background plays much more with feminine aspects and could, in retrospect, easily be classified as a unisex fragrance.

Even in marketing, the two competitors took very different paths. Davidoff worked with a lot of eroticism, which naturally complemented the slightly sweaty scent impression. In contrast, the rounded Background was sold in a typically Sander-esque noble manner with cool understatement. Remarkable back then and still intriguing today: Actually, Background with its opulent design does not fit at all into the portfolio of Jil Sander, who has always represented classic minimalism in her fashion like no one else.

Both fragrances share the fact that they are undoubtedly great classics and rightfully hold cult status. Personally, I wore both at the time, but always preferred Relax. Background was perhaps just a bit too smooth and perfect for me. Here and there, the attitude remains unforgivable.

More reviews