Thoughts on v3

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I thought about writing this for quite some time… Now, as my sixpack of v3’s is ending (vanilla + u/u even split), I finally pulled myself together to create this account and voice my thoughts, which is a rather unusual thing for me to do. So what drove me to it?

I’ve been a hueler for over a year. It’s something I’m constantly drinking and sincerely explaining to people. If Huel was a pyramid scheme, I’d be driving a Ferrari.

I had found a perfect formula. Vanilla v2.3 (2/3) + Unsweetened v2.3 (1/3) + Matcha flavor. Well, obviously everyone has their own special formula, but that’s mine.

I’m not kidding, I was truly looking forward to every morning to drink that. It was a lovely routine to open the package, smell the Huel and then create it.

Tbh, I was excited for the v3. I always like when things are being improved and so on. So I ordered a sixpack in the beginning of quarantine and it has lasted up to the point of writing this. Here are the key points:

  1. A piece of me died when I didn’t find a way to order matcha flavor pack. Vanished. Why?

  2. Every time I open the pack of Huel, a weird “sour” smell appears. Really, I try not to inhale anymore.

  3. Obviously the taste is not the same anymore. If I had to describe it, I’d say: “brings no emotions”.

So a bunch of first world problems.

My point of the story is this. I want the gods of Huel to understand that making drastic changes like this result in drastic results. Like I said, everyone have their own favorites formulas for drinking. So if you change your product completely, how can you be sure it fits for all of your pre-existing customers? It’s not like creating a new model of iPhone. It’s something people eat/drink and develop a taste for. I understand the 51% nutrition and 49% taste part, but… was the previous version nutritionally so much worse it had to be changed?

To be honest, I’m not sure what to do now when my sixpack ends. There’s no matcha flavor anymore. Nor do I think I will be ever able to achieve the same perfect taste and experience as before.

I tried using real matcha. It’s not the same. Flavor packs have something extra to fit well with huel. I tried substituting it with the peanutbutter flavor, but it’s simply… caramel. Which is something I would never order.

I’m curious what other people think. Have you found yourselves in the same position? What did you do?

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nobody bought it - at least not in any volumes to sustain it as a commercially viable product - same thing happened to Granola.

I really cant say as I noticed that difference between 2.3 and 3.0

with food and drink you can’t - look what happened to Coke when they tried. Fortunately for Huel it seems to have worked out and sales increased.

there are literally hundreds of different types of matcha so you should try experimenting with different grades - try the cheaper stronger ones often referred to as ‘kitchen grade’ and try adding some sweetener to approximate the taste.

try using PB2 powder it tastes like a very natural Peanut Butter.

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I really like the taste of the V3 vanilla. I look forward to it.

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correct me if im wrong- anyone that really knows…

the sour smell is the flaxseed, a negligible amount goes rancid. its very delicate. it is perfectly normal - you cant taste it.

i havent noticed it after the furst time u open a new bag.

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yes flaxseed can have a sour smell when it goes off but as you say, you don’t really taste this and its ok to consume.

I cant say as I’ve noticed this myself.

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its very subtle, like a brief puff of smell and then its gone.

its nothing wrong…

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Sorryyou aren’t loving v3.0. If I’m honest, I think there’s a time of adjustment, yes they do taste different since we changed to natural sources of flavourings, but I don’t believe either one taste better or worse but just different. Give it time!

We change our Flavour Boosts every now and then, changing out ones that aren’t selling so well for ones we think are better. Matcha certainly suffered because it had to be sold at a higher price (for us buying matcha is $$$). I loved it too, so am with you!

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Thanks for the replies.

I think I didn’t focus on the good sides at all…

It’s still THE best way to have proper nutrition. Every time if feel strange, hungry, either craving for sugar or salty food, I drink a Huel shake and I’m good. I could try to cook as healthy of a meal as I possibly could (which I do often), I can never be really sure I get all the nutrients right and if it’s balanced well. My knowledge of nutrition is limited and to be honest you can’t be an expert on everything. So Huel does that for me. It’s simple. I trust it. It works. So a big-big thanks for it. It’s a rock solid start for every day.

Since writing this post, I actually ditched the new scoop and started using the old one instead. 2/3 vanilla + 1/3 u/u. I like it way more. Not sure why I was so keen on using the new scoop and going fifty-fifty with vanilla and u/u. Also bought some peanut butter already and will look for a good matcha option soon. It’s looking bright. :slight_smile:

It’s good to know the flaxseed gives this smell. For a sec I thought I had gotten a bad batch… But yeah, it’s only when I opened the bag, NOT in the shake form. Good info, thanks. It’s kind-of similar situation when I had to calm people myself when they saw red pieces in their Huel.

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I have the chocolate. It’s not great at all. I have the taste of “not properly washed cup” about it. I have added everything to mask the flavour so I’m just hoping to get to the end of it to see if the ‘vanilla’ is better.

On the matcha thing… I have some matcha powder myself so I just use that.

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I have been a dedicated Huel user for a good couple of years. Sadly I think the time has come to part ways as I just can’t get on with V3. I just don’t like the taste. I’ve tried the chocolate version which if anything was worse, and I’ve tried all sorts of different flavourings to overcome it, but for me V3 just doesn’t work :frowning: I was hoping I would still be able to order v2.3 but it doesn’t seem available any more.

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I love it! i have 3-4 shakes every day, 1/2 vanillia + 1/2 unsweetend. This mix is just the right taste for me. It also helps me a lot with my digestion. this is especially interesting as i always had problems to stomach the 2.3 version. Just a great product!

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compared to black v1 the v3 is harder to mix

literally my only issue with it

i like mixing the two

flavours r fantabuloso