Muscadelle

Muscadelle is a variety of white wine grape. Muscadelle is a white grape variety famous both as the third component of white Bordeaux wines, and as one of the constituent varieties used in the luscious sweet wines of northeastern Victoria in Australia. It is more commonly found as a sweet wine, and its grapey, floral characteristics have led it to be named after the Muscat grape family, to which it is unrelated.

The variety plays second fiddle to Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc in much of southwestern France, and particularly in the sweet wines of Sauternes and Barsac. While Muscadelle only usually makes up a small amount of the white Bordeaux Blend, it offers some aromatic vibrancy. In Monbazillac, a little way to the east of Bordeaux, it has a much more prominent contribution to the blend. These sweet and semi-sweet wines tend to be lighter in body, developing aromas of raisins and dried fruits when aged for a few years.

Muscadelle is also used in small quantities in the broad Entre-deux-Mers appellation's white wines. However, these too are dominated by Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, and Muscadelle rarely exceeds 5 percent of the blend.It has a plain fragrance of raisins and grape juice similar to that of the grapes of the Muscat family, but it is not related.

DNA analysis has revealed that Muscadelle is a hybrid formed between Gouias blanch and an unknown grape variety.