There is a grape variety you recognize even if you claim to know nothing about wine. You smell it and you know: it is Moscato. It is one of my favorites to talk about, because everyone thinks they know it, yet almost everyone only knows a piece of it.

An ancient grape variety

White Moscato has been cultivated for centuries throughout the Mediterranean. It is said that its sweet, intensely fragrant clusters attracted bees, and some link this to the origin of its name. It is a huge family, with hundreds of varieties, and genetic studies indicate it as a true progenitor, present in the lineage of many other grape varieties. Its superpower is its aromaticity: it contains the same fragrant molecules as rose, sage, and orange blossoms.

Where it lives

The most famous home is Piedmont, between Asti, Cuneo, and Alessandria, where Asti and Moscato d'Asti are born, both DOCG. Steep hills, harvesting almost entirely by hand, a lot of hard work. But Moscato speaks many languages: Yellow Moscato in Alto Adige, Goldmuskateller, Zibibbo from Pantelleria, and even dry Muscat in Alsace.

Not one wine, but many wines

The most famous is Moscato d'Asti DOCG: delicately sparkling, sweet, fresh, with very little alcohol, around 5 degrees. Then there is Passito or late-harvest Moscato, with dried or late-picked grapes: a rich, enveloping wine, perfect for meditation. And the surprise: still, dry white Moscato. The must is allowed to ferment completely, so all the sugar becomes alcohol, leaving a dry white wine with all the aromaticity of the grape.

At the table

Moscato d'Asti with fruit tarts, simple cakes, dry pastries, and when Christmas arrives, with panettone and pandoro. Passito with blue cheeses, foie gras, dry biscuits. The dry version, fruity and easy to drink, with light starters, fish, shellfish, vegetables, and even spicy Asian cuisine. Serve it cold, at 6 or 8 degrees, and drink it young: its charm is its freshness.

Come and taste it. By the glass, you can try the different souls of Moscato one after the other. Coravin Wine Bar, Via Carlo Maderno 23, Lugano. Cheers!