Melonal

Note Profile

Molecule

About

Melonal is Givaudan's melon aldehyde. It smells of melon and cucumber at the same time, with a hard green edge and a lift of ozone behind it. It is very strong and is used far below one percent. Above that it reads chemical rather than fruity.

Scent Profile

Fruity and green are almost level, and that is the point of this molecule - every source lists melon and green in the same breath, and Perfumer's Apprentice puts them together as the headline. Green carries the cucumber and the watermelon-rind terms, which are the two most repeated qualifiers across all three sources. Aquatic_ozonic is the marine claim: Givaudan's copy names marine notes as its main use and ChemicalBook lists 'fresh ozone... fresh air'. Aldehydic is both what the molecule is and the 'waxy' term ChemicalBook gives. Below the naming line, cooling_mentholic is the cool cucumber effect, floral is ChemicalBook's 'floral nuance', sweet_vanillic is the repeated 'sweet', and tropical is the ripe-melon edge.

ScentWheel

Breadthbroad

EnvelopeTop · ~2h lasting

Family Fruity, Green & Aromatic, Fresh & Citrus

Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.

Origin

Melonal is a synthetic aldehyde made by Givaudan (2,6-dimethyl-5-heptenal). It is a yellow liquid. It is not extracted from melon. Two independent resellers quote the same Givaudan line word for word, which is what makes the house copy quoted here trustworthy.

Usage in Perfumery

Givaudan's own copy says it is 'invaluable in the creation of natural smelling marine and fruity-melon notes' and works in all fragrance types. In practice it is the molecule behind most melon and cucumber accords and a common lift in marine compositions. It is a top note and it is powerful, so it is dosed in traces.