In this video, we set out to evaluate Huell Melon hops using our standard SMASH beer approach. We wanted to isolate the hop character and understand what it really brings to a beer. Huell Melon is a German variety that often gets labeled as fruity and melon-forward. We have talked about it before, but never fully tested it this way. This batch gave us a clean way to break it down and see what stands out.

We brewed a one-gallon SMASH beer using a simple and repeatable process. The batch used two pounds of grain, two gallons of water, and one ounce of hops. We followed our typical hopping schedule with early boil, flameout, and dry hop additions. Fermentation ran about one week before cold crashing and packaging.

Our Huell Melon Takes

On the aroma, the first impression leaned strongly herbal with some surprising notes. We picked up white grape along with a cannabis or thyme-like character. The herbal intensity was noticeable and dominated the aroma profile. There was also a subtle fruit component, but it was not overly sweet or juicy.

The flavor followed a similar path with strong herbal and spicy elements. We noticed green melon rind, similar to honeydew, rather than sweet melon flesh. There were also hints of tea, floral spice, and a slight fruitiness underneath. The overall impression was more herbal and spicy than expected for this hop.

We also discussed how hop characteristics can shift over time due to growing conditions and terroir. Huell Melon may have originally leaned more fruity when released, but now shows more complex herbal traits. This variability makes small-batch testing like this useful for understanding real-world results.

Conclusion

Huell Melon turned out to be more complex and less fruit-forward than expected. The herbal and spicy notes dominated, with fruit playing a supporting role. It is an intriguing hop, but not one that delivers pure melon sweetness. This experiment reinforces the value of brewing small test batches before committing to a full recipe. It also shows that hop expectations do not always match real results.