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Muscat(grape)
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

TheMuscatfamilyofgrapesincludeover200grape
varietiesbelongingtotheVitisviniferaspeciesthathave
beenusedinwineproductionandasraisinandtable
grapesaroundtheglobeformanycenturies.Theircolors
rangesfromwhite(suchasMuscatOttonel),toyellow
(MoscatoGiallo),topink(MoscatorosadelTrentino)to
nearblack(MuscatHamburg).Muscatgrapesandwines
almostalwayshaveapronouncedsweetfloralaroma.
ThebreadthandnumberofvarietiesofMuscatsuggest
thatitisperhapstheoldestdomesticatedgrapevariety,
andtherearetheoriesthatmostfamilieswithintheVitis
viniferagrapevarietyaredescendedfromtheMuscat
variety.[1]
AmongthemostnotablemembersoftheMuscatfamily
includeMuscatblancPetitsGrainswhichisthemain
grapevarietyusedintheproductionoftheItalian
sparklingwineAsti(alsoknownasMoscatoAsti)made
inthePiedmontregion.Itisalsousedintheproduction
ofmanyoftheFrenchfortifiedwinesknownasvindoux
naturels.InAustralia,thisisalsothemaingrapeusedin
theproductionofLiqueurMuscatfromtheVictorian
wineregionofRutherglen.Young,unagedand
unfortifiedexamplesofMuscatblanctendtoexhibitthe
characteristicMuscat"grapey"aromaaswellascitrus,
roseandpeachnotes.Fortifiedandagedexamples
(particularlythosethathavebeenbarrelaged)tendtobe
verydarkincolorduetooxidationwitharomanotesof
coffee,fruitcake,raisinsandtoffee.[2]

Muscat
Grape(Vitis)

MuscatblancPetitsGrainsandMuscatnoir
showingthewhiteandblackskinnedcolormutation
ofthevariety
Colorofberryskin

varied

Species

Vitisvinifera

MuscatofAlexandriaisanotherMuscatvarietycommonlyusedintheproductionofFrenchvindoux
naturel,butitisalsofoundinSpain,whereitisusedtomakemanyofthefortifiedSpanishMoscatels.
Elsewhereitisusedtomakeoffdrytosweetwhitewines,oftenlabeledasMoscatoinAustralia,California
andSouthAfrica.InAlsaceandpartsofCentralEurope,MuscatOttonelisusedtoproduceusuallydryand
highlyperfumedwines.[2]

Contents
1 History
2 OriginsofthenameMuscat
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3 Closelyrelatedvarieties
4 Characteristicaromasandconfusionwithothergrapes
5 Keyvarieties
5.1 MuscatblancPetitsGrains
5.2 MuscatofAlexandria
5.3 MuscatofHamburg
5.4 MuscatOttonel
6 Othernotablevarieties
7 Synonyms
8 Seealso

WhiteMuscatearlyripening"July"
variety

9 References

History
TheoriesabouttheoriginsofMuscatgrapesdateancestorsofthevarietiesbacktotheancientEgyptians
andPersiansofearlyantiquity(c.30001000BCE)whilesomeampelographers,suchasPierreGalet,
believethatthefamilyofMuscatvarietieswerepropagatedduringtheperiodofclassicalantiquity(c.800
BCEto600CE)bytheGreeksandRomans.However,whiledomesticwineproductionhadalonghistory
inancientEgyptandPersiaandclassicalwriterssuchasColumellaandPlinytheElderdiddescribevery
"muscatlike"grapevarietiessuchasAnatheliconMoschatonandApianaethatwereverysweetand
attractivetobees(Latinapis),thereisnosolidhistoricalevidencethattheseearlywinegrapeswere
membersoftheMuscatfamily.[3]
Thefirstdocumentedmentionofgrapecalled"muscat"wasintheworksoftheEnglishFranciscanscholar
BartholomeusAnglicuswhowroteofwinemadefromMuscatgrapesinhisworkDeproprietatibusrerum
writtenbetween12301240whileAnglicuswasstudyinginwhatisnowmodernSaxonyinGermany.
Anglicus'LatinworkwastranslatedintoFrenchin1372withthewinebeingdescribedbyAnglicusas"vin
extraitderaisinsmuscats".[3]

OriginsofthenameMuscat
BecausetheexactoriginsoftheMuscatfamilycannotbepinpointed,thetheoriesastotheoriginsofthe
name"Muscat"arenumerous.ThemostcommonlycitedbeliefisthenameisderivedfromthePersian
wordmuchk.SimilaretymologyfollowstheGreekmoskos,LatinmuscusandFrenchmusc.[3]InItaly,the
Italianwordmoscaforflycouldalsobeonepossibilitywiththesweetaromaandhighsugarlevelsof
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Muscatgrapesbeinga
commonattractantfor
insectssuchasfruitflies.[4]

Whiletherearetheoriesthatthe
originoftheMuscatfamilydateback
toancientantiquity,thereisnosolid
historicalevidencethatMuscat
grapevineswereamongthegrape
varietiescultivatedbycivilizations
suchastheancientEgyptians
(papyrusimagefromthe15thcentury
BCtombofNakht).

Othertheoriessuggestthat
thegrapefamilyoriginated
The"musky"aromaofripeMuscat
intheArabiancountryof
grapeshavebeenknowntoattract
Omanandwasnamedafter
bees(pictured),fliesandother
thecityofMuscatlocatedon
insects.
thecoastoftheGulfof
Oman.Anothercitythatis
sometimessuggestedasapotentialbirthplace/namesakeisthe
GreekcityofMoschato,locatedsouthwestofAthensinAtticawith
MoschatobeingacommonsynonyminGreeceforMuscat
varieties.[3]

Closelyrelatedvarieties
Ofthemorethan200grapevarietiessharing"Muscat"(oroneofits
synonyms)intheirname,themajorityarenotcloselyrelatedtoeach
other.TheexceptionarethemembersoftheMuscatblancPetits
GrainsandMuscatofAlexandriafamilies.Intheearly21stcentury,
DNAanalysisshowedthatMuscatofAlexandriawas,itself,a
naturalcrossingofMuscatblancPetitsGrainsandablackskinned
tablegrapevarietyfromGreekislandsknownasAxinadeTres
Bias.RarelyseenoutsideofGreece,AxinadeTresBias(also
knownasHeftakilo)isalsogrowninMaltaandSardinia.[3]
MuscatblancPetitsGrainsandMuscatofAlexandria,themselves,
havecrossedandhaveproducedatleast14differentgrapevarieties,
5ofwhicharemostlycultivatedinSouthAmericaand9stillfound
inItalythoughnoneareofmajoruseinwineproduction.More
notableandwidelyplantedoffspringhavecomefromMuscatblanc
PetitsGrainsandMuscatofAlexandriacrossingwithothergrape
varietiessuchastheArgentinewinegrapesofCereza,Torronts
RiojanoandTorrontsSanjuaninocomingfromacrossofMuscat
ofAlexandriawithListnnegro(alsoknownastheMission
grape).[3]

MuscatofAlexandriahasalsobeencrossedwiththeGerman/Italian
winegrapeTrollinger(alsoknownasSchiavaGrossa)toproduce
MuscatofHamburgandMalvasiadelLazioandwiththeItalian
winegrapesCatarrattobiancoandBombinobiancotoproducethe
MarsalawinegrapeGrilloandMoscatelloSelvatico,respectively.[3]
MuscatOttonelistheresultofacrossingbetweenoneMuscatvariety,Muscatd'Eisenstadt(alsoknownas
MuscatdeSaumur),withtheSwisswinegrapeChasselas.[5]
Muscatd'Eisenstadt(alsoknownas
MuscatdeSaumur),oneoftheparent
varietiesofMuscatOttonel.

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MuscatblancPetitsGrainshasbeenidentifiedasoneoftheparentgrapesofseveralvarietiesthoughwith
whichcrossingpartneriscurrentlyunknown.TheseincludetheItalianwinegrapesAleatico,Moscato
Giallo,MoscatorosadelTrentinoandMoscatodiScanzo.DNAanalysiswasabletoidentifytheTuscan
winegrapeMammoloasthesecondparentvarietythatcrossedwithMuscatblancPetitsGrainsto
produceMuscatrougedeMadre.[3]

Characteristicaromasandconfusionwithothergrapes
DespitethevastdiversityintheMuscatfamily,onecommontrait
thatcanbeseeninmostallMuscatmembersisthecharacteristic
floral,"grapey"aromanotethatiscausedbythehighconcentration
ofmonoterpenesinthegrapes.Morethan40differentmonoterpenes
havebeendiscoveredinMuscatgrapes(aswellasinotheraromatic
varietieslikeRieslingandGewrztraminer)theseinclude
citronellol,geraniol,linaloolandnerol.Thischaracteristic"musk"
aromacanbebestobservedinlightbodied,lowalcoholwinessuch
asMoscatoAstiwhichhavenothadtheirbouquetheavily
influencedbyotherwinemakingtechniqueslikeoakaging,autolysis
withyeast,malolacticfermentationorfortification.[4]
However,thiscommon"musky"(French:musqu)traithascaused
someconfusionasvarietiesthatarewhollyunrelatedtotheMuscat
familyareoftenerroneouslyassociatedwithMuscatgrapes(often
bynamingandsynonyms)duetotheiraromaticcharacter.These
includetheGermanwinegrapeMorioMuskatwhich,despiteits
Thecharacteristicfloral,"grapey"
name,isnotrelatedtotheMuscatfamilyandis,instead,acrossing
aromaofMuscatcanbeseeninwines
ofSilvanerxPinotblanc.Likewise,thehighlyaromaticclonal
likeMoscatod'Astiwhichmadeina
mutationofseveralwinegrapevarietiessuchasSauvignonblanc,
winemakingstylethatemphasizesthe
ChasselasandChardonnayareoftensuffixedwithMusquwhich
varietalaromasofthegraperather
canaddconfusiontotheirrelationshipwiththeMuscatfamily.[4]
thanaromasderivedfrom
Additionally,theBordeauxwinegrapeMuscadellethatisusedfor
winemakingprocesseslikeoakaging
bothsweetanddrywinesisoftenmistakenforaMuscatvarietydue
orautolysisonthelees.
[3]
toitsaromaticqualities. Whilemadefromamorearomatically
neutralgrape,MelondeBourgognegrape,theLoirewineMuscadetissometimesmistakenlybelievedtobe
madebyamemberoftheMuscatfamily.[5]

Keyvarieties
The"Muscatfamily"ishighlypopulouswithmorethan200distinctmembers.[3]However,amongthese
manydifferentgrapesonlyahandfulofMuscatvarietiesarewidelyusedinwineproduction.Theseinclude
MuscatblancPetitsGrains,MuscatofAlexandria,MuscatofHamburgandMuscatOttonel.[4]

MuscatblancPetitsGrains

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MuscatblancPetitsGrainsisknownbymanynamesaroundthe
globeincludingMuscatblanc(inFranceandUnitedStates),Muscat
Canelli(inUS),Moscatobianco(inItaly),MuscatFrontignan(in
SouthAfrica),Moschato(inGreece),BrownMuscat(inAustralia),
Muskateller(inGermanyandAustria),MuscatdeGranoMenudo
(inSpain),MuscatdeFrontignanandMuscatLunel(inFrance).
Whilethepetitsgrainsinthegrape'snameaccuratelydescribesthe
small,roundberriesofthevine,somewineexperts,suchasOz
Clarke,believethattheMuscatblancpartismisleadingsincethe
grapevineisnotoriousforitsfrequentcolormutationssiringclusters
ofberriesinnearlyeveryshadepossiblethoughmostcommonlythe
grapeberriesareadeepyellowafterveraison.Insomevineyards,
vinesofMuscatblancPetitsGrainsareknowntoproduceclusters
ofberriesofdifferentcolorsthatchangeeveryvintage.[5]
TheexactoriginsofMuscatblancPetitsGrainsisnotknown
thoughbothGreeceandItalycanbothmakecompellingcasesdue
InFrance,MuscatblancPetits
totheproliferationofclones,mutationsandoffspring.[3]Today,the
Grainsisoftenusedtoproduce
grapeisfoundthroughoutthewineproducingworldmakingawide
fortifiedVindouxNatureldessert
rangeofwinefromlight,sweetsparklingandsemisparklingAsti
winessuchastheMuscatdeSaint
andMoscatod'AstiwineinthePiedmontwineregionofItalyand
JeandeMinervois(left)andMuscat
ClairettedeDieregionofFrance,fortifiedvindouxnaturels(VdN)
deBeaumedeVenise(right)shown.
insouthernFranceinAOCregionssuchasMuscatdeBeaumede
Venise,MuscatdeSaintJeandeMinervoisandMuscatde
Frontignan,fortifiedLiqueurMuscatintheVictoriawineregionofRuthergleninAustralia,todrywinesin
theWachauwineofAustriaandSdsteiermark.[5]
NearlyallthemostnotablesweetMuscatsofGreece,particularlythosefromtheislandofSamosandthe
cityofPatrasonthePeloponnesearemadefromMuscatblancPetitsGrains.InthehistoryofSouth
Africanwine,thefamousdessertwineofConstantiawasmadefromthisvarietyofMuscatandwhiletoday
MuscatofAlexandriaismorewidelyplantedinSouthAfrica,producersaroundConstantia,CapeTownare
tryingtoreclaimsomeoftheregionsofviticulturalacclaimbyreplantingmoreMuscatblancPetits
GrainsandmakingwinesinthestyleoftheoriginalConstantia.[3]

MuscatofAlexandria
Whilethegrape'snameharkenstothecityofAlexandriaandsuggestanancientEgyptianorigins,DNA
analysishasshownthatMuscatofAlexandriaistheresultofanaturalcrossingbetweenMuscatblanc
PetitsGrainsandtheGreekwinegrapeAxinadeTresBias.ThoughasAxinadeTresBiashasalsobeen
historicallygrownonSardiniaandMalta,theexactlocationandoriginsofMuscatofAlexandriacan'tbe
determined.ComparedtoMuscatblancPetitsGrains,MuscatofAlexandriatendstoproducelarge,
moderatelylooseclustersoflargeovalshapeberriesthataredistinctivefromthemuchsmaller,round
berriesofMuscatblancPetitsGrains.[5]
LikemostMuscatvarieties,MuscatofAlexandriaisnotableforbeingadesirableraisinandtablegrape.
Thisisdueinpartthegrapeshightoleranceofheatanddroughtconditions.Whileitisusedinwine
production(mostnotablyontheislandofPantelleriabetweenSicilyandTunisiawhereitmakesapassito
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styledessertwineunderthenameofZibibbo),thegrapelagsfar
behindthereputationofMuscatblancPetitsGrains.Thisispartly
becauseMuscatofAlexandriaisveryvigorousandproneto
producehighyieldsthatcanbeeasilyovercroppedaswellasa
moreassertivearomaprofiledueahigherconcentrationofthe
monoterpenegeraniol,whichproducesageraniumscent,andlower
concentrationofnerolwhichamorefresh,sweetrosearoma.[5]
InFrance,MuscatofAlexandriaismostprominentasablending
component(withMuscatblancPetitsGrains)intheVdNwinesof
MuscatdeRivesaltesAOCintheRoussillonwineregion.Thegrape
isthemainMuscatvarietyinSpain,whereitisknownasMoscatel,
thoughthemajorityofthatcountry'splantingsareusedfortable
grapesandraisinsratherthanwineproduction.Likewise,inChile,
mostoftheMoscatelinthatcountryisusedtoproducethedistilled
drinkpisco.[5]

TheberriesofMuscatofAlexandria
clustersarelargerandmoreoval
shapethanthoseofMuscatblanc
PetitsGrains.

InSouthAfrica,MuscatofAlexandriaisknownasHanepootand
wasthe4thmostwidelyplantedwhitewinegrapevarietyinthecountryuntiltheearly2000s.Whilesome
oftheplantingswereusedforwineproduction,particularlyforfortifiedwine,manyplantingswereusedto
fortheproductionofgrapeconcentrateandraisins.[4]InCalifornia,thereisstillmoreplantingsofMuscat
ofAlexandriathananyotherMuscatvarietywithmostofthesegrapesgoingintoanonymousjugwines
fromtheCentralValley.[5]Asinmanyotherplacesintheworld,thegrapehadalonghistoryofuseinthe
UnitedStatesasaraisinvarietythoughinthe1920splantingsofMuscatofAlexandriabegantodeclineas
producersturnedtomorepopularseedlessgrapevarieties.[3]

MuscatofHamburg
EventhoughthevastmajorityofthemembersoftheMuscatfamilyaredarkskinnedgrapes,[4]mostofthe
majorvarietiesusedinwineproductionarewhiteor"paleskinned".Theonesignificantexceptionof
MuscatofHamburgwhichisalsoknownasBlackMuscat.Thisdarkskinnedgrapeisbelievedtohave
originatedintheVictoriangreenhousesofEnglandwhereitwasfirstdescribedin1858asbeingpropagated
bySewardSnow,gardenertotheEarldeGrey.Snowdescribedthegrapeasaseedlingthathecreatedfrom
crossingtheBlackHamburggrape(anoldsynonymofSchiavaGrossa)withtheWhiteMuscatof
Alexandria.In2003,DNAanalysisconfirmedthatMuscatofHamburgwas,indeed,acrossingofMuscat
ofAlexandriaandSchiavaGrossawhichmakesthegrapeafullsiblingtothecentralItaliangrapeMalvasia
delLaziowhichhasthesameparentage.[3]
WhileMuscatofHamburgisusedmostlyasatablegrapethroughouttheworld,therearetwonotable
exceptions.ThefirstisinCaliforniawherenearlyallofthe102hectares(250acres)ofBlackMuscatin
cultivationin2009weredestinedforwineproduction,mostoftentomakedessertwines.[3]Theother
exceptionisinChinawereMuscatofHamburgisoftencrossedwithVitisamurensisspeciesthatarenative
totheregiontoproducewinegrapesthatarebetteradaptedtotheclimateofvariousChinesewine
regions.[4]

MuscatOttonel
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LikeMuscatofHamburg,
MuscatOttonelisa
relativelyrecentadditionto
theMuscatfamily,being
bredintheLoireValley
wineregionofFranceinthe
1850s.Thegrapeisacross
oftheSwisswinegrape
ChasselasandMuscat
d'Eisenstadt(alsoknownas
Abowloftablegrapesthatincludesa
MuscatdeSaumur).Ofall
mixtureofMuscatOttoneland
themajorMuscatvarieties,
ChasselasRougedeFonc.
MuscatOttonelhasthe
palestcolorskinandtendsto
producethemostneutral
winesandisthegrapevarietythatripenstheearliest.[5]
WhilevarietiessuchasMuscatofAlexandriatendtothriveinvery
warmMediterraneanclimates,MuscatofOttonelhasshownan
affinityforripeningincoolercontinentalclimatesandhasfounda
homeinmanyCentralEuropeancountriessuchasBulgaria,Czech
Republic,RomaniaandmanyformermembersoftheSovietUnionsuchasRussia,Kazakhstan,Moldova,
Tajikistan,TurkmenistanandUkraine.[4]ItisalsothemainMuscatvarietygrownintheFrenchregionof
Alsacewhereitisusedtoproducebothdryandoffdrystyles.InAustria,itisalsothemostwidelyplanted
MuscatvarietywhereitusedtoproducelateharvestwinesaroundLakeNeusiedl.[5]
MuscatofHamburgfroman1895
Germanviticulturetext.

Othernotablevarieties
CanadaMuscat
EarlyMuscat
GoldenMuscat
ManzoniMoscato
MoscatelloSelvatico
MoscatodiScanzo
MoscatodiTerracina
MoscatoGiallo
MoscatorosadelTrentino
MuscatBaileyA
Muscatbleu
Muscatd'Eisenstadt
MuscatFleurd'Oranger
MuscatOdessky
MuscatofNorway
MuscatOliver
MuscatRosePetitsGrains
MuscatRougePetitsGrains
MuscatSwenson
MuktMoravsk
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NewYorkMuscat
RieslingMuscat

Synonyms
WhileeachindividualMuscatvarietyhasitsownsetofsynonyms,
thegeneralprefixof"Muscat"hasitsownuniquetranslationaround
theglobe.InGreece,thegrapesareusuallycalledMoschatoor
MoschoudiawhileinItalytheyarecalledMoscatoorMoscatello.
OntheIberianpeninsula,PortugueseandSpanishMuscatgrapesare
oftenprefixedasMoscatelwhileinGermanythegrapesareusually
calledMuskatorMuskateller.InCentralEurope,thefamilyof
MuscatvarietiesarecalledMisketinBulgaria,MukatinCroatia
andMuskatolyorMuskotlyinHungary.InthenorthernAfrican
wineregionsofTunisiathegrapesareoftencalledMeski.[3]

Seealso
Internationalvariety

MoscatoGiallo.

References
1.J.RobinsonVinesGrapes&Winespg183MitchellBeazley1986
ISBN1857329996
2.Wine&SpiritsEducationTrust"WineandSpirits:Understanding
WineQuality"pgs69,SecondRevisedEdition(2012),London,
ISBN9781905819157
3.J.Robinson,J.HardingandJ.VouillamozWineGrapesAcomplete
guideto1,368vinevarieties,includingtheiroriginsandflavourspgs
678696AllenLane2012ISBN9781846144462
Muscatbleu.
4.J.Robinson(ed)"TheOxfordCompaniontoWine"ThirdEditionpgs
35,100,450,453,463466OxfordUniversityPress2006ISBN0
198609906
5.OzClarkeEncyclopediaofGrapespgs146153HarcourtBooks2001ISBN0151007144

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