Hanewald-Schwerdt Monkey Morio

Talented young winemakers, Thomas Hanewald and Stephan Schwerdt, have created this fun wine from a forgotten hybrid grape variety, Morio Muskat.
It gets its name from the little stuffed monkey the pair found in their vineyard in Pfalz, Germany. It was tied to the end of a row of vines in the hope that the owner would find it again, but no such luck. He hung around from pruning through to harvest, becoming the Morio Muskat Mascot that you see on the label.

A fabulous fun summer wine from Stefan Schwerdt. Its made with a now unfashionable hybrid cross called Morio Muskat, which despite having no direct relationship to Muscat it is very similar in character. Wonderfully perfumed grapey nose with elderflower, apple and hints of pineapple.

The family owned and operated estate Hanewald-Schwerdt was founded in 1955 in Leistadt. Today Thomas Hanewald & Stephan Schwerdt took over the family business which was established by their grandfather. The two cousins focus on Riesling and Pinot Noir. Pinot Blanc is the second most important white variety. The secret of their handcrafted wines is a unique lime-stone reef which dominates all the sites around Leistadt. A hidden treasure away off the beaten track. The vines are old and surrounded by a protected natural resort in the shade of the Haardt mountains.

Morio Muskat is an old, today very rare variety which came up in 1928. Nowadays only 250-300 hectares are left in Germany. The vines are 32+ years old and grow on a limestone slope with clay. Grapes are aple to really ripen. After picking they crush the grapes they leave everything on skins for 6 hours. Fermentation occurs in temperature controlled stainless steel.