Hebén

Hebén
Grape (Vitis)
Color of berry skin	Blanc
Species	Vitis vinifera
Also called	Gibi, Mourisco Branco, Passerille blanche
Origin	Spain
Notable regions	Andalusia
Formation of seeds	Complete
Sex of flowers	Female
VIVC number	5335

Hebén is a very rare white grape variety grown for wine and table grapes in Spain.

According to a hypothesis that has not yet been verified, the old grape variety came to Spain during the Arab occupation.

History

It is an ancient variety found to have originated as a table grape in North Africa as Gibi. It is the parent variety of a large number of grapes grown in the Iberian Peninsula and the wider Mediterranean. It has paired with Alfrocheiro to produce the rare Portuguese varieties Trincadeira das pratas, Tinta grossa, Castelão branco, and Malvasia fina, as well as the Spanish Allarén. With Muscat of Alexandria it has produced Moscatel nunes/Nuno gomes in Portugal and Moscatel de Angüés in Spain. In Spain, it has a parent relationship with some very widely grown varieties: Airén, Cayetana, Viura, Xarel·lo, and Pedro Ximénez. In total, around 60 offspring varieties have been identified. Its sparse bunches are an attribute that can be seen some in children varieties such as Pedro Ximénez and Xarello. It produces solely female flowers, unlike the majority of self-pollinating vinifera varieties grown for wine today.