Understand the grape
Getting to know the grape
Muscat is unusual because the wine tastes of the grape. Most wines smell of other fruit, flowers or the cellar, but a Muscat usually smells of fresh table grapes first, with orange blossom, honeysuckle, mandarin and peach behind. That scent survives fermentation, so a dry Muscat can seem sweet on the nose even when it is not. The grape is a large family rather than a single variety. Muscat à petits grains, with small berries, is the best known and is found in white and pink-skinned forms. Muscat of Alexandria and Muscat Ottonel are different members of the family. Moscato is the Italian name and Moscatel is the Spanish and Portuguese one.
Sweetness is the first thing to check, because the same grape covers every style. Alsace makes Muscat dry, and its growers' body describes it as crisp and intensely fruity. In Piemonte, Moscato Bianco is fermented only part of the way, which leaves a sweet, lightly sparkling wine of around five per cent alcohol. In the south of France, Portugal and Australia, grape spirit is added during fermentation to stop it, which keeps the sugar and raises the alcohol: these are sweet, fortified wines. Do not judge by scent. Read for dry, sweet, sparkling or fortified wording, and for the place.
Where Muscat (Moscato, Moscatel) changes
Grape to place
Compare how the grape grows and tastes in these places. Each guide explains the local wines; the Atlas shows where they come from.
Monferrato and Asti
Hills east of the Langhe where Moscato Bianco makes Asti and Moscato d'Asti. Both are sweet. Asti is fully sparkling, while Moscato d'Asti is lightly sparkling and lower in alcohol, from 4.5 to 6.5 per cent. Both must be at least 97 per cent Moscato Bianco.
Alsace
Alsace Muscat is made dry and puts the grape on the label. It may blend Muscat à petits grains and Muscat Ottonel. Its late-harvest names, Vendanges Tardives and Sélection de Grains Nobles, are sweet, so check that the bottle in your hand is the dry one.
Southern Rhône
Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise is a sweet, fortified wine made only from Muscat à petits grains. Grape spirit is added during fermentation, so some natural sugar stays in the wine. White versions are pale to gold with flower and tropical fruit scents.
Roussillon
Muscat de Rivesaltes is a sweet vin doux naturel, a wine fortified during fermentation. It may use Muscat à petits grains, which is lighter and fresher, or Muscat of Alexandria, which is fuller with ripe fruit and roses.
Setúbal
A small area south of Lisbon whose designation is reserved for Moscatel de Setúbal and Moscatel Roxo. Moscatel de Setúbal is a sweet, fortified wine, and the producers' description of it centres on aromatic Muscat character.
Rutherglen
North-east Victoria, known for sweet, fortified Muscat aged in barrel for years. Rutherglen Muscat has four tiers, Rutherglen, Classic, Grand and Rare, and each step brings more richness and age. Wine Australia says some wines mature for up to 100 years.
What changes the result
Vineyard and cellar
The ripeness of the grapes, contact with their skins, and time in tanks or barrels all help shape the wine. Here is what to look for.
Dry Muscat
Fermented fully, Muscat gives a dry wine that smells of grapes and flowers. Alsace is the clearest example. Cool, early drinking suits it, and the lack of sugar lets the fruit and the crisp finish show.
Stopped fermentation
For Moscato d'Asti, fermentation is halted early, usually by chilling, while sugar remains and alcohol is still low. Some of the carbon dioxide stays in the bottle, giving a light fizz. The result is sweet and fresh rather than heavy.
Fortification
A vin doux naturel, such as Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise or Muscat de Rivesaltes, is stopped by adding grape spirit, a process called mutage. Beaumes grapes must reach at least 252 grams of sugar per litre at harvest. Sugar stays in the wine and alcohol rises well above a table wine.
Barrel ageing
In Rutherglen, fortified Muscat spends years in wood. Producers blend older and younger wines in barrels as solera systems. Time darkens the colour and moves the fruit towards raisin, toffee and nuts.
Read the label
On the bottle
A label may name the place instead of the grape. These names and terms help you work out what is in the bottle.
- Moscato d'Asti and Asti
- Two Piemonte names for sweet wines from Moscato Bianco. Moscato d'Asti is lightly sparkling and low in alcohol. Asti is fully sparkling, with a mushroom-shaped cork to hold the pressure.
- Vin doux naturel
- A French sweet wine fortified with grape spirit during fermentation. Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise and Muscat de Rivesaltes are two examples. The name does not mean the wine is natural in the modern sense.
- Alsace Muscat
- A dry white from Alsace, with the grape on the label. Late-harvest bottles carry Vendanges Tardives or Sélection de Grains Nobles and are sweet.
- Muscadet
- A Loire white wine from a different grape, Melon de Bourgogne. It is not made from Muscat and is not aromatic in the same way.
At the table and in the cellar
Practical use
Serve
Serve Moscato d'Asti and other light sparkling wines well chilled, around 6 to 8°C. Dry Alsace Muscat is best cool, a little warmer than that. Sweet fortified Muscat suits light chilling, rather than fridge cold, so its scent and texture can open.
Eat
Dry Muscat is one of the few wines that suits asparagus, and it works with salads and fresh goat's cheese. Moscato d'Asti goes with peaches, fruit tarts and lemon cake. Fortified Muscat can sit beside blue cheese, nuts, fruit cake and caramel puddings.
Keep
Moscato d'Asti and dry Muscat are for drinking young, within about two years of the vintage. Fortified Muscat is far more patient. Rutherglen's older tiers are made to last, so check the producer's drinking advice.
Taste it in three steps
Three bottles
You can try these bottles on separate occasions. Keep a note of the name, vintage and what you notice, then use the steps below to decide what to compare.
- 01
Begin with dry Alsace Muscat
Start with a dry Alsace Muscat. It shows the grape without sweetness. Notice the fresh-grape and blossom scent, then how dry and crisp the wine tastes.
- 02
Compare with Moscato d'Asti
Taste a Moscato d'Asti next. It has the same grape character, but it is sweet, lightly fizzy and low in alcohol. The comparison shows how much sweetness changes the same aromas.
- 03
Try a fortified Muscat
Finish with a small glass of Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise or Muscat de Rivesaltes. They are sweet and stronger than a table wine, so a small pour goes a long way. Rutherglen Muscat is the richer, darker step after that.