In the world of men's bottled scents, when something comes along that purports to be inspired by the smell of a stallion after a gallop, you’re inclined to take notice.

After all, this is an industry that tends to find its inspiration in the cash register rather than creativity; an industry that sends forth bottle after bottle of concoctions so uninspiring they may as well be called Ubiquity Pour Homme. So the introduction of Peau De Bête, the new fragrance by boutique perfumers Liquides Imaginaires, is refreshing – until you pop its cork, that is.

Translated, literally, as ‘skin of the beast’, Peau De Bête aims to capture, of all things, the animalic smell of horse sweat. The press blurb, with descriptions of hands brushing against hot, still damp horse necks, is positively Equus. “A hot, enveloping and sensual fragrance through its fusion of animal and human,” it says. Imagine riding through the forest, bareback, possibly butt naked and you’re three quarters there.

Horses: so good you want to smell like them Credit: Alamy

It’s not all about horse though. If you’re wondering what the ‘human’ bit of the fragrance is, well – and there’s no polite way to put this – it’s pretty much the unmistakable smell of man bits (“ball musk” if you will), an odour recognisable to all men (and plenty of women) and one whose ‘attractiveness’ divides opinion even more than current series of the X Factor.

“Yes, it does kind of smell that way,” says Philippe Di Méo, who set up Liquides Imaginaires with perfume distributor David Frossard, when I pluck up the courage to mention it to him. “It alludes to a combination of nature, sweat and animality,” he says.

Peau De Bête: use at your own peril

In truth, the pair have form when it comes to concocting left-field fragrances (Succus – another of their unisex perfumes - is inspired by ‘treetop spirits’, whilst Bloody Wood aims to fuse the metallic smell of blood with the full-bodied aroma of your favourite glass of red) but this is the most overtly sexual one they’ve come up with. And whilst it has a raft of familiar ‘notes’ found in other men’s fragrances, like patchouli and black pepper, it also features a veritable orgy of musky, sweaty ‘animalic’ ones rarely used quite so overtly in commercial perfumery. Included are civet (originally obtained from the scent glands of the civet cat but now used in synthetic form) and castoreum, a synthetic version of the pungent aroma extracted from beaver scent glands which adds a sensual, leathery, slightly tar-like and odour.

"The result of these ingredients is an extraordinarily potent concoction whose overtly sexual notes come together to create something that's more pornography than perfumery" Lee Kynaston

If that wasn’t enough, it also features and ingredient called skatole. Don’t know skatole that is? Well, you’re probably more familiar with it than you realise because it’s the molecule which gives faeces it's characteristic smell. Yep, Peau De Bête’s secret weapon is the smell of a number two.

If you’re surprised this is used in perfumery you shouldn’t be. “Those who have heard about this molecule can have a preconceived idea of its sent because it can be found in faeces,” says Di Méo. “But you can also find it in the smell of jasmine and orange blossom too.”

"Peau De Bête is worth checking out if you’re looking for the ultimate weapon of mass seduction" Lee Kynaston

Those who’ve had a whiff of skatole neat say it’s a smell at once repulsive and curiously attractive and it’s probably what gives Peau De Bête its distinctly pull-me push me edge. Because that’s what it has. The first time you put it on your skin you’re both compelled and repelled.

The result of these ingredients is an extraordinarily potent concoction whose overtly sexual notes come together to create something that's more pornography than perfumery. So filthy is it that it makes fragrances that purport to be sexy and sensual, like Gucci Guilty Black, and Calvin Klein’s Obsession, appear to be the kind of scents you’d wear to a boring business meeting.

Certainly the women who’ve smelt Peau De Bête on me were intrigued, describing it, variously, as “intense”, “compelling” and “having a certain something” (I didn’t mention the skatole). Di Méo's take on it is a little more up-front: it’s a fragrance, he says, that “arouses a fantasy of flesh and sensuality, encouraging nudity and wild instinct.” Which can’t be bad if nudity and wild instinct are what you’re after.

At £230 a bottle it’s not certainly cheap - but then the niche, £200+ fragrance sector is booming at the moment (sales have increased four-fold in the last five years).

Peau De Bête certainly might be worth checking out if you’re looking for the ultimate weapon of mass seduction. And if you’re not impressed by horse sweat and man-musk, there’s always the notorious Sécrétions Magnifiques by Etat Libre d’Orange: that smells of blood, sweat and semen. But that’s a whole different ball game.

Peau de Bête is available from the Salon de Parfums at Harrods