Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
and in turn, from
moschos
in Greek and
muchk
in Persian (experts postulate that in the begin-
ning, the word
moscato
was used to describe the
musky aroma produced by the male musk deer
of Southeast Asia), that etymology has been
questioned. In fact, the Latins referred to aro-
matic qualities as
suavitis
rather than
musca-
tum;
and Berta and Mainardi wrote in 1997 that
the word
muscatum
was fi rst used only in the
1200s, and was derived from the medieval
Greek term
moscheuo,
meaning vine.
Today, Italy grows at least eight different
Moscato
varieties (at least, eight are offi cially
recognized in the National Registry thus far),
the most abundant of which is Moscato Bianco.
Wine lovers wou ld do wel l to become acqu ainted
with this family of grapes, as some of their
wines are among Italy's most interesting, and
greatest.
Moscato Rosa, a related but different variety
that grows mainly in Trentino and Alto Adige),
Muscat d'Alsace Rouge, Muscat à Petits Grains
Roses, Muscat à Petits Grains Rouge (what
Australians refer to as Brown Muscat, which
therefore is a term that should not be used as a
general synonym of Moscato Bianco), or Mosca-
tel Galego Roxo (a Portuguese mutation of
Moscato Bianco). Clearly, so many countries,
people, color mutations, and
Moscato
relatives
all contribute to a great deal of confusion about
this grape, so wine lovers need to be careful
about exactly what they are drinking. All over
the world (and in most websites and topics)
there are myriad examples of wines called Mus-
cat Blanc (when they are in fact made with
Moscato di Alessandria) or Moscato Giallo
(made with Moscato Bianco). I remember the
incredibly hard time I had once in getting an
Austrian wine producer to understand that his
Gelber Muskateller was actually Moscato
Bianco and not Moscato Giallo. Years later, he
sent a lovely email telling me that he had pro-
ceeded with SSR profi ling of his vines and was
shocked to learn that his grandfather had got-
ten it wrong: they really had been growing
Moscato Bianco, and not Moscato Giallo, all
along. That said, it is still common to hear
southern Italian wine producers refer to their
Moscato Bianco grapes as Moscato Giallo,
mainly because in sunny and warm climates
this variety's grapes can turn a deep yellow
color. Moscato Bianco is also characterized by
relatively small berries, especially when com-
pared to other members of the Muscat family:
this explains its many aliases referring to this
feature
(“grano menudo,” “grano pequeno,” “à
petits grains”).
Moscato Bianco is the progenitor of most
known
Moscato
varieties. As strange as it may
seem, practically all the red varieties of
Moscato,
including Moscato di Scanzo and Moscato
Nero, are directly related to Moscato Bianco.
Indeed, Moscato Bianco shares parent-off-
spring relationships with at least fi ve other
Moscato
grapes (Moscato di Alessandria,
Moscato di Scanzo, Moscato Violetto or Moscato
THE WHITE-BERRIED MOSCATOS
Moscato Bianco
where it's found:
Piedmont; throughout
Italy.
national registry code number:
153.
color:
white.
The most common of all
Moscato
s, not just
in Italy but all over the world, Moscato Bianco
(also rarely called Moscato di Canelli in Italy) is
better known as Muscat Blanc à Petit Grains in
France (though Muscat de Frontignan, Muscat
de Lunel, and Muscat d'Alsace are locally
important names); Moscatel de Grano Menudo,
Moscatel de Grano Pequeno, Moscatel Morisco,
Moscatel Castellano, and Moscatel Fino in
Spain; Moscatel Branco, Moscatel Galego
Branco, and Moscatel do Douro in Portugal;
Moscato Mazas, Moschato Lef ko, Moschato
Spinas, Moschato Kerkyras, and Moschato
Samou in Greece (the latter especially on the
island of Samos); Gelber Muskateller or just
Muskateller in Austria and Germany; Frontig-
nan in Australia; and Muscatel in South Africa.
Though it is a white grape, mutations can turn
its berries pink to light-red, into a so-called
Moscato Rosa (not to be confused with the true
