See Prices

More

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

Jil Sander Man Absolute Jil Sander 2008

8.3 / 10 123 Ratings

A popular perfume by Jil Sander for men, released in 2008. The scent is sweet-woody. The longevity is above-average. It was last marketed by Coty.
Compare

More

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

Main accords

Sweet

Woody

Oriental

Powdery

Leathery

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Violet

Bergamot leaf

Grapefruit

Heart Notes

Vermouth

Lavender

Base Notes

Leather

Cedar

Oud

Perfumer

Thierry Wasser

Ratings

Scent

8.3123 Ratings

Longevity

8.484 Ratings

Sillage

7.276 Ratings

Bottle

7.794 Ratings

Value for money

7.920 Ratings

Submitted by MartinGE, last update on 03/06/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Althaïr

Jil Sander Man (2007) Eau de Toilette

Dior Homme Intense (2007)

Le Mâle Elixir

Kenzo Amour Le Parfum

Dior Homme Intense (2011)

Reviews

15 in-depth fragrance descriptions

04/08/2018

7.5Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

Smora
155 Reviews

Smora

3

The Softest Touch

Scentrack: Sting - Russians

When temperatures are going down and first snowflakes are in the sky this is my go to hidden gem. One of the softest scents ever, made in pre-Guerlain Wasser's phase. The bottle is really special, like some anthology of DDR design.
Just a touch of bergamot, violet and herbal wormwood in the sea of soft powder with some floral aspects. The base is beautiful, vanilla, amber, touch of medicinal oud and soft leather. Russian oriental. Soft and warm like a Slavic soul.
A perfect scene of bobsled in the dark tajga forest of Puschkin's tales.

Rating: 7.5/10

12/18/2012

6Scent 7.5Longevity 5Sillage

Apicius
1328 Reviews

Apicius

1

Purism Goes Oriental

Everybody likes the design approach of Jil Sander. Classic modernism, puristic and reduced to the essential – if there is such a thing like a Bauhaus perfume, Jil Sander fragrances would fit in.

Going oriental and keeping up this approach might be something difficult. Man Absolute is the woody oriental in their line up. Such perfumes tend to be opulent, warm, romantic, cosy and maybe even moony. For Jil Sander, Thierry Wasser avoided this trap by taking purism into extremes.

What we have here is a single accord reminiscent of tonka and vanilla, with only a very slight and fainting citrus in the top. There is a kind of ethereal dryness or woodiness which adds a powdery impression to what I would recognize as tonka and vanilla. Except, according to the known pyramid, there shouldn't be any of that in it. I do not know the origin of the notes we have listed here at Parfumo but can be found elsewhere as well, it is just that I don't smell any of these ingredients as such. Did the perfumer use all this to create a woody, powdery tonka-vanilla illusion?

Be that as it may, Man Absolute can be regarded as a role model for the typical woody oriental, and as such it is being far from eccentric or unique. What I smell here is more or less the core of such Guerlain perfumes like Cologne du 68 or Arsène Lupin Voyou. And below this price level, the essence of Man Absolute can also be found in Arpège pour Homme or, even cheaper, J'S Exté.

Is Man Absolute a complete perfume at all? Some people might praise this purism, but others might simply call it boring. Let me put it like this: if you like what all of the perfumes mentioned have in common then Man Abolute might be your fragrance. In this case you get the essence of it without having to compromise with any perfumer's further ideas. But with the same right, you could blame this fragrance for simply being incomplete and boring. I'd vote for the latter.

01/02/2022

9.5Scent 8Longevity 8Sillage

Dnf
10 Reviews

Dnf

1

Thierry Wasser the magician..

This scent is crazy! It goes through so many phases, a pure olfactory pleasure. it is a powdery paradise with a very high quality vanilla sensation. The leather and the oud are very subtle but they play their role perfectly. Bergamot is superbly overpowering and makes it even more versatile. I remembered the great reviews I read several years ago, and recently I was lucky enough to find a new one on the net so I didn't hesitate for a second, luckily! Being passionate for years I have been able to smell a large number of perfumes, chords, different notes, and believe me never anything like it. On the other hand, I can recognize at certain times the Thierry Wasser style and that makes me smile. One of my best discoveries, a big bravo Mr Wasser!

06/23/2013

9Scent 10Longevity 7.5Sillage

BackToBlack
112 Reviews

Translated · Show original

BackToBlack

Helpful Review 15

The Desire for Enjoyment

Just before the start of a business trip. I was totally stressed and my thoughts were somewhere in the void. Deep inside, my perfume conscience was screaming at me, wanting to make it clear that I absolutely needed a fragrance to take with me to this country. I quickly popped into the shop, didn’t even really look around, just smelled at the spray button. I took Jil Sander with me, basically a blind buy, without waiting for any development or anything else. I simply didn’t have time. Whether the purchase will have a positive effect on me, I thought, I would probably find out in the near future.

I unpacked the fragrance on the plane. The curiosity was too great to wait until arrival. When applied, I wondered what had driven me to buy it. I didn’t like it at all at first. The development phase bothered me a bit. Especially the grapefruit swirled around me and spread out on my skin. The man next to me made a face and turned away. I sank into my seat and tried to sleep. I eventually succeeded. When I woke up, the first thing I did was inhale the perfume. I literally drew the scent from my wrist with the tip of my nose. Moved my nose back and forth, up and down. The man next to me looked at me skeptically, shook his head, and turned away again. If only he knew what passion I have, he wouldn’t be staring like that :D. The scent had meanwhile developed positively...

Wonderful! The grapefruit was gone and I began to like the fragrance. Because it had completely settled on me and a light hint of bergamot was noticeable. I finally perceived the very distinctive vanilla. Very creamy, yet again fluid. A vanilla pod that you just cut open, sprinkle into a creamy yogurt, and spoon in piece by piece. Yes, that is satisfaction and enjoyment.

This very unique vanilla character ignites my fantasies. As much as I love cinnamon, vanilla can also be very unique and interesting. Man Absolute has its own vanilla touch and is bursting with enjoyment. I could dive into a sea of vanilla and soak up the aromas. As soon as I think of this fragrance, a desire for pleasure ignites within me. The desire to do something good for body and soul. I happily bobbed my head back and forth. Yes, it had already captivated me at the very first encounter! A blind buy!

Along with the vanilla note, there is also a warm, malleable leather. After a while, the scent becomes firm and envelops you like a second skin. It is never intrusive or sharp. It maintains a level that is pleasant for me and those around me. I find this gliding, fluid quality very interesting in this fragrance. It seems as if the fragrance ingredients are blending together in a vanilla flow that sweeps everything along with it. I can hardly perceive the oud. I would have to think about that. The cedar is very weak, but somehow it fits into the whole fragrance composition.

After a long flight, I was finally glad to feel solid ground under my feet. The scent was still noticeable on me after more than 10 hours. It had just become a bit quieter. The vanilla seemed to be pitifully suffocating in the heat, but somehow it always managed to come back to life. The end of the perfume makes jumps again and again. The vanilla then spreads its own carpet again at the end and ultimately suffocates in its infancy. All of this after more than 12 hours. The longevity is top-notch.

The next day I applied it again. Although I don’t like the beginning, I enjoy the fragrance development and the heart note even more. Even the dry down is a world of its own.

For me, Man Absolute is a true connoisseur's perfume. I can’t get enough of this vanilla scent, which is so unique, that ignites my fantasies, that drives me to enjoy the day with full pleasure and to savor everything that draws me in with immense power. The power of this fragrance is strong - it makes me smile and grin again and again. Even when I simply walk through the streets, past thousands of Chinese people who all look the same to me, it often happened in the last few days that I just walked around grinning. I also imagined that someone was looking at me from the side, I wanted it that way. Because here, hardly anyone looks directly at you. People pass by each other like the years of our lives. Quietly, but still with a message. They don’t see me, but they surely smell me, I thought. This thought calmed me in a way... From time to time, I caught a whiff of the scent on my wrist and closed my eyes, lifted my head, and felt like I was wrapped in a bed sheet that smelled of fine vanilla and supple leather. I banished the smog of the Chinese city somewhere into the dead scent cells. Surrounded by fine vanilla and a firm leather that melts into the note... No smell from the environment can overwhelm me. I have found harmony with myself and my fragrance.

I just wanted to be for myself - and take in Man Absolute for myself. I am enveloped in Man Absolute, waiting like every day for the bustling activity in China - even if no one looks directly into your face - but they surely perceive me in their subconscious.

02/25/2019

9Scent 8Longevity 8Sillage

Pepper81
96 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Pepper81

Very helpful Review 8

Vanilla Powder

The hobby of fragrances can be endless. Sometimes you think you've experienced it all, but then suddenly the desire hits you again. That's what happened to me recently. My collection had bored me a bit, and many of my perfumes were just sitting neglected on the shelf. I found that quite sad, and I was a bit upset about it... But then an acquaintance approached me; she had thoroughly cleaned her apartment and sorted out many of her unused fragrances. She brought them to me, and I didn't even know what to say, I was really very happy about it! While sorting through, many old, almost forgotten scents came back to me, and then it was all over for me. I knew what to do to give my hobby a bit of a boost, and so it happened that I focused from then on on the old vintage fragrances that you can no longer buy in perfumeries today. And lo and behold, there are really many wonderful classics that I simply cannot understand why they were discontinued. So I'm revamping my collection :)

I had, of course, also set my sights on this fine Jil Sander. Unfortunately, it's really almost impossible to find online, and if you do, it's only at horror moon prices! But I was lucky here at Parfumo and managed to get an almost full bottle at a somewhat reasonable price, so I naturally jumped at the chance. I didn't know what kind of scent awaited me; it was a blind buy, but it was totally worth it!

As soon as I sprayed it on, I felt like I had always owned this fragrance; it was so familiar! It reminds me of my childhood. Of visits to my aunt, who was a big fan of vanilla, and it always smelled like that at her place; I still don't know where that came from. But it's not just a simple, sweet vanilla; this one is incredibly clean and powdery. Additionally, it has a bit of warmth and maturity. I think violet, lavender, and leather play a wonderful role here; they make the scent absolutely unisex and seductive at the same time. It's a very light leather, nothing musty. I don't perceive oud at all, rather a hint of cedar, slightly fresh. A great candidate for cooler days, but it also fits perfectly in spring (just like it is now at +15 degrees and a bit more)!

What a gem, just 11 years since it was released and already discontinued in 2011. It feels to me as if it comes from the 90s. It has great longevity, on my skin up to 10 hours, and the sillage is very pleasant. I am really very happy that I was able to snag a bottle of this beautiful fragrance and will treasure it like my little treasure :)

More reviews