Viticultural experts have identified at least 200 different members of and derivatives to the Muscat family. They also believe that derived from Muscat are many of the great wine grape varieties.  The variety is believed to have originated in the Middle East, though where exactly is still uncertain. No doubt the independent sultanate of Muscat in the south-east of the Arabian peninsula is somehow entwined with its origins of a glorious epoch in its history.     Either a wandering Roman soldier or Phoenician trader is thought to have been responsible for spreading the grape variety around the Mediterranean. The wide-eyed traveller is believed to have fallen in love with the spicy flavours of the variety's grapes and the distinctive aromatic wine the variety produced and taken seeds or cuttings with him when he returned home. Egypt, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Sicily have all produced wines of great renown from the variety over the centuries.     The Romans are said to have given the variety its name. They found its spicy and distinctive aromatic flavours akin to that of musk and hence called it Moscato smelling of musk. In ensuing centuries the Romans took the variety to France and Germany. The Greeks took it to the Crimea in the Soviet Union and the Egyptians sent cuttings south to what is now South Africa.  America no doubt received the Muscat wines with its early Spanish and Italian immigrants. And Australia received it from European traders who picked Muscat cuttings up while stocking up in South Africa. All these countries have also produced memorable rich, luscious and flavoursome wines from their Muscat grapes.

Muscat in Australia

The first vine cuttings to arrive in Australia came out with the British Government's First Fleet' in 1788, crowded in amongst the clutter of chained convicts, apprehensive Military personnel, barrels of pickled meat and sacks of flour and dried biscuits.  In the struggle to eke out a living in the new and hostile environment, grape cultivation soon became a minor priority, the first sickly little Australian grape vines soon died out.     But as the young colonies of New South Wales and Victoria began to grow and thrive, early in the nineteenth century, settlers began again to consider planting vines.  James Macarthur, the father of the Australian wool industry, made a trip to Europe in 1815 and personally selected cuttings from noted European vineyards of the time, like Chateau Lafite in Bordeaux.  The bulk of the colonies' new vine cuttings, however, came from the thriving fruit basket colony of South Africa. Traders calling at the Cape of Good Hope to stock up on fresh foods and crop seeds, before leaving on the long and perilous haul across the Indian Ocean to Australia, often included a handful of vine cuttings and grape seeds in their purchases.     South Africa had a lot of Muscat vines under cultivation last century. Egyptian traders had given them Muscat of Alexandria and their European immigrants had brought cuttings of Muscat a Petits Grains with them. Cuttings of both types of Muscat along with cuttings of other Muscat derivatives A made their way to Australia. John Francis Brown no doubt bought his Muscat cuttings from this latter source. John Francis, grandfather of the Brown Brothers who run the Milawa vineyard in north-east Victoria now, first planted vines on his farming property at the base of the Australian Alps in 1887.  Muscat was one of the first grape varieties he planted on his property, along with Riesling and Hermitage.  The young Muscat vines thrived in their new Australian home. The warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters of the north-east of Victoria closely resembled the Mediterranean conditions of its origins.  John Francis was particularly fond of his Muscat vines. He could pick the plump and juicy grapes in summer and sell them as fresh fruit to the hordes of hungry miners on the nearby Beechworth goldfields or to the city dwellers in the flourishing nearby townships of Wangaratta and Tarrawingee.  Or he could leave them to ripen further in the long, warm autumn days and make rich, sweet, intensely flavoured fortified wines from them, wines the region soon became renowned for the world over.     The glory of Muscat was that even in the fairly crude and simple conditions that prevailed in wineries in those early days, the variety could be relied upon to produce great wines, year in, year out.  As technology improved over the years and successive generations of the Brown family took over the running of the Milawa vineyard and winery, the Muscat variety has proven to be even more useful and popular.  Almost 100 years after the first Muscat grapes were planted at Milawa, several different types of Muscat are cultivated and several different wine styles are produced from it - from delicate, perfumed, crisp, dry whites, to rich late harvest table wines styles and the unique and renowned fortified styles Australia has become famous for.

Always a favourite...

In Australia, as in wine drinking countries all over the world, grape varieties continually come in and out of fashion amongst wine lovers and winemakers.   Different members of the Muscat family have been cultivated in Australia for as long as grapes have been grown here - well over a century. In fact, Muscat has been the single most important contributor to the wine business in Australia.    Australian winemakers and grape growers have a great fondness for the variety It produces delicious, plump, juicy grapes - very popular as fresh fruit at the end of summer. And, thanks to modern technology, it also readily produces a wide range of wines from delicate, perfumed, dry white table wines, to rich, flavoursome dessert table wines and the unique, rich, luscious, wood-matured fortified wines Australia has become renowned for the world over.    Wine lovers look on Muscat with a fondness and warmth. Many were introduced to the joys of wine by the enticing spice and grapey fruitiness of the Muscat variety And the reasonable price tags most Muscats wear have kept them coming back year after year.

Late picked styles (SPATLESE LEXIA)

Of the 40 different varietal wines produced by the Brown Brothers each vintage, their best known and most popular is their Late Picked Muscat Blanc. Young, old, male, female, secretaries, surgeons and stock brokers - they all love the grapey, mouth-filling flavours of the Late Picked Muscat Blanc, its versatility as an accompaniment to food and its very reasonable price tag. Muscat Blanc grapes are left on the vine to ripen and mature late into autumn, intensifying the grapes' delicious natural spice and fruit and developing a mouth-filling lusciousness and richness.   Sipping a glass of it is like eating plump, juicy Muscat grapes straight from the vine, a delicious and refreshing wine.  Like the Dry Muscat Blanc, the Late Picked Muscat Blanc with its refreshing, full fruit flavours, makes a delightful accompaniment to spicy, full-flavoured foods, particularly Asian and Chinese dishes.  It also makes an attractive partner to a platter of cheese or a fresh fruit dessert at the end of a meal. Its abundant natural fruit enhances fruit flavours in desserts and elegantly balances the rich creaminess of cheeses.

Dry Muscat Blanc

Muscat Blanc is known by many different names in wine producing regions around the world. The Italians call it Moscato di Canelli. The Spanish call it Moscatel Menudo. The French call it Frontignan, after the tiny town in southern France where the variety flourishes, or Muscat a Petits Grains, after the variety's distinctive small grapes.   In spite of all the different names it is called, in all the countries it is grown, the variety produces distinctive, attractive, fruity wines.   By picking early, before the grapes have raisined and become too sweet and rich in flavour, and by the clever use of modem technology, Brown Brothers have been able to produce a spicy, delicate, yet crisp dry wine from their Muscat Blanc grapes.   Dry Muscat Blanc is a fine example of this delicate, aromatic style. Cool ripening conditions in Victoria concentrate fruit flavours while maintaining fresh acid levels. The resultant wine is stylish, elegant and aromatic. Initial spice and zealous varietal fruit are tempered gracefully by natural, fresh acid.   It makes an excellent and very reasonably priced aperitif, a delicious wine to sip over the coming months. Its stylish spicy, fruit flavours also make it a fine accompaniment to both delicate fish dishes and the diverse spices and flavours of Asian and Middle Eastern food.

Late Harvest Orange Muscat & Flora

Orange Muscat hails from the rolling hills of southern France. It is also widely planted in northern Italy where it is used extensively in the production of Spumante.     Flora was bred at the Californian Agricultural Department Station in 1958 by the noted viticulturist, Professor Olmo. Its parents are the classic white wine varietals, Semillon and Gewurztraminer. In the unique blend with Orange Muscat, Flora provides a fine acid backbone and a delicate balance to the full-flavoured, richness of the Muscat.    The Brown Brothers Late Harvest Orange Muscat and Flora richness and fullness can be attributed to harvesting late in autumn and the natural full flavour of the grapes. Its refreshing finish comes from the fresh natural acid in both varieties used in the blend.     It makes a wonderful choice of wine to serve with fruit and cream desserts, having the natural abundant fruit to enhance fruit flavours in desserts and the freshness to balance any of the excess richness of cream, custard or ice-cream.  It also makes a delicious accompaniment to a platter of cheeses. And a wonderful partner to foie gras or a coarse, rich pate at the start of a meal.

Liqueur Muscat

Noted wine writers and critics, like Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson, wax lyrical about the unique, rich, tawny-brown Liqueur Muscats of north-eastern Victoria, exuberantly dubbing them the creme de la creme of Muscats. Liqueur Muscats are made from the grape locals fondly call Rutherglen Brown Muscat.     Grapes selected for Liqueur Muscat styles are left to ripen on their vines late into autumn, until they are rich and sweet and almost raisined in texture.  After fortification, at the end of vintage, the young Muscats are blended with older material already maturing in cask. The fresh, sweet, spirity young Muscats give the nutty, tawny-coloured, older, wood-matured material a necessary zest and elegance.     Many Liqueur Muscats released from north-east Victorian wine producers contain material as old as 20-25 years.   The Brown Brothers Liqueur Muscat is a delightful representative of the unique north-east Victorian style. It is a golden tawny colour and exhibits the nutty, sweet flavours of many years' quiet wood maturation along with the luscious richness of the Muscat variety.  It makes a delicious accompaniment to a platter of cheese and fruit at the end of a meal. It also makes a superb finish to a fine meal when served with freshly-brewed coffee.