Muscat Ottonel

White wine grapeFrance

The style profiled here is a off-dry, light-bodied white Muscat Ottonel wine: grapey, floral, light, soft. Typical alcohol is 11.5 to 13%. Serve it at 7 to 9 °C.

Also called Muskat-Ottonel, other synonyms.

The grape

Muscat Ottonel is the youngest and mildest member of the Muscat family. It was bred in France in the 1850s by Jean Pierre Vibert near Angers, and it was selected for the table rather than the cellar, which is why its aroma is gentler than that of the older Muscats.

Its practical advantage is that it ripens early. That let it move a long way north and east of where the Muscat family usually succeeds, and today it matters far more in Austria, Romania, Moldova and Hungary than in France. Alsace still uses it, often blended with Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, whose intensity it dilutes and whose ripening it beats in a cold year.

The wine is lightly grapey and floral, with orange blossom and elderflower, and it is low in acidity. That softness is its weakness: dry versions can feel flat, and the grape is usually better with a little sugar left in it. Romania and Austria both make good sweet and late harvest examples, which is where the perfume has something to hold on to.

BuyingPrefer an off dry or sweet bottling from Austria or Romania to a dry one. If you want a bracing dry Muscat, buy Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains instead.

Style profile

Our rating of a representative wine
Sweetness
Off-dry
Body
Light
Tannin
Very low
Acidity
Medium

Sweetness and structure vary with the producer, region and winemaking. These ratings describe the style above; check the label for the bottle in front of you.

Food pairings

Explore its wine regions

Planting snapshot

2015 observations, OIV 2017 study
Romania
about 5,000 ha (2015)

Historical, rounded figures, including all uses of the grape. OIV’s variety study covers 75% of world vineyard area. A country absent from this table may still grow this grape.

Similar grapes

Sources