Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
The noblest and most ancient of the Muscat grapes — intensely grapey and floral, and the source of Beaumes-de-Venise, Asti and Rutherglen's fortified stickies.
About Muscat
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains is the finest and most ancient member of the sprawling Muscat family, a founder variety identified with grapes praised by the Ancient Greeks and Romans. Its hallmark is an unmistakably 'grapey' perfume — orange blossom, rose, honey, peach and musk — so pronounced that the wine smells of the fresh fruit itself. That aromatic intensity underpins a remarkable range of styles: fortified vin doux naturel at Beaumes-de-Venise, the frothy, low-alcohol sweetness of Asti and Moscato d'Asti, luscious late-harvest and passito wines, and the dark, treacly fortified 'stickies' of Rutherglen in Australia. Small, thin-skinned berries and high sugar potential make it a natural for sweet and fortified wines, though dry, aromatic versions exist in Alsace. Wherever it grows, it delivers heady, exotic perfume.
Variety profile
Editorial notes
Distinct from the coarser Muscat of Alexandria; this is the grape behind the finest Muscats. Look to Beaumes-de-Venise for fortified, Asti for frothy-sweet, and Rutherglen for aged fortified.