You have no idea how good this smells! After buying it from Wenger's produce at the Worthington Farmer's Market, I could smell it while I was driving and it was in the trunk of my car! According to the Penguin Companion to Food, the delicious flavor of melons is masked by refrigeration, so I plan to eat this one at room temperature, with just a little salt.
How can you tell if a melon is ripe? Press the end opposite the stem end; it should yield to pressure. Summer melons, such as this muskmelon, will not ripen very much after being picked; "winter," or late autum melons, will continue to ripen after being picked.
