A distiller's philosophy of never compromising. If that means going broke looking cool, so be it."
Gin distiller. It is rare to see such a beautiful distiller.
In addition to the ingredients, another aspect of Monkey 47 that must be mentioned is the distilling philosophy of the brand's founder, Alexander Stein, a native of Schwarzwald.
Alexander Stein, founder of Monkey 47 .
He is a descendant of the founding family of a long-established German brandy brand and was a manager at Nokia . He was inspired to start Monkey 47 after discovering an old recipe. It was a unique recipe created by an Englishman who had moved to the area in the past, and who had created it by trial and error.
Fascinated by this recipe, which was rich in natural spring water and rare herbs from the Schwarzwald, Alexander was inspired by the idea of producing gin with ingredients from his native land and began working to revive the recipe.
A view of Schwarzwald in summer. The building in the center is the distillery of "Monkey 47".
In winter, Schwarzwald is covered with a light dusting of snow.
Originally interested in perfume making and interior design, Alexander's first priority was to create a gin that looked and smelled beautiful. He also wanted to make sure that even the interior of the distillery, where the gin is made, was refined to the last detail. He believed that "in order to make the best gin, it is also important to create the right environment for the distillery.
The Monkey 47 Barrel Cut is produced in small quantities, painstakingly handcrafted several times a year.
Monkey 47" is a unique bottle. It was custom-made by a glass manufacturer using a medicine bottle as a motif. A person at the distillery told us the following story: "When we had just launched the brand, Alex (Alexander) suddenly had 50,000 bottles. When we had just launched the brand, Alex (Alexander) suddenly ordered 50,000 bottles. When I asked him if he was okay with spending that much money, he said, 'If I go bankrupt as a result of not compromising my ideas, that's fine too. He is very sensitive and nervous, but he is also free and bold in his ideas.
The length and size of the distillate should be even. Colors should be beautiful.
Mr. Alexander has been thorough in every detail of it , and it continues to this day.
The most eye-catching feature of the spacious distillery is the shiny copper distillation vessel. This is where Alexander's desire to "not only make the best tasting gin, but also to make it look exciting" is most evident.
. always in search of new tastes while respecting the originals.
. We also do not forget to explore new recipes. A laboratory is located next to the distillery, where botanicals are mixed and recipes are developed on a daily basis. They also take walks in the Schwarzwald to look for new botanicals.
Flasks in the lab. Trial and error is repeated daily with these instruments.
, a jar in the lab filled with scents of all kinds of things.
And several times a year, in small batches of 500 bottles each time, we release a new gin under the name of "Experimentum Series. In the past, we have employed one of Japan's most popular spices, sansho (Japanese pepper), and even released one that was flavored with Kobe beef tallow.
Alexander says, "The keywords for Monkey 47 are 'sophistication' and 'quality,' and I would rather have four people making something with thorough attention to detail than 1,000 people cooking together. I'd rather have four people making something with thorough attention to detail than 1,000 people cooking together, and I want to pursue the value that can be found only in a small distillery," he says. This has been his philosophy since the establishment of the distillery.
In normal times , distilleries in Germany can be visited by anyone.
Monkey 47" is a gin made from the nature of the Schwarzwald in Germany and the philosophy of the distiller, Mr. Alexander. Now that it is difficult to go on a trip, you may want to think about the Black Forest in faraway Germany while sipping such a craft gin.
