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A label from a bottle of Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine produced sur lie
A label from a bottle of Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine produced sur lie

Muscadet is a type of dry French white wine. Wine is an Alcoholic beverage made from the fermentation of Grape juice It is made at the western end of the Loire Valley, near the city of Nantes in the Pays de la Loire region neighboring the Brittany Region. Loire Valley (Vallée de la Loire is known as the Garden of France and the Cradle of the French Language. Nantes (Naoned Gallo: Naunnt) is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast Pays de la Loire is one of the 26 Regions of France. It is one of the regions created in the late 20th century to serve as a zone of influence for its capital Nantes Brittany (Breizh bʁejs Bretagne; Gallo: Bertaèyn) is a former independent Celtic kingdom and Duchy, now incorporated into More Muscadet is produced than any other Loire wine. It is made from the Melon de Bourgogne grape, often referred to simply as melon. Melon de Bourgogne is a variety of white Grape grown in the Loire Valley region of France and best known through its use in the Wine

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Name

As a rule in France AOC wines are named either after their growing region or after their varietal (the latter in Alsace only). The name 'Muscadet' is therefore an exception. The name seems to refer to a characteristic of the wine produced by the melon grape varietal : 'vin qui a un goût musqué' - 'wine with a musk-like taste' definition

History

The region's wine-growing tradition dates from an edict of the Roman emperor Probus. Marcus Aurelius Probus (c August 19, 232 &ndashSeptember/October 282 was a Roman Emperor (276&ndash282 The sole varietal used to produce Muscadet, Melon de Bourgogne, was initially planted in the region sometime in or before the 17th century. It became dominant after a hard freeze in 1709 killed most of the region's vines. Dutch traders who were major actors in the local wine trade encouraged the planting of this varietal and distilled much of the wine produced into eau de vie for sale in Northern Europe.

Growing areas

The generic 'Muscadet' appellation, officially established in 1937, contains four regional sub-appellations:

Source: http://www.inao.gouv.fr

Climate

Muscadet comes from a temperate, coastal climate. The most coastal village of the basic Muscadet appellation, Saint-Père-en-Retz, lies less than 10km from the ocean. The most inland village, Saint-Florent-le-Vieil, situated in the Coteaux de la Loire appellation along the banks of the Loire river upstream of Nantes, lies about 110km from the coast. The Loire River (lwaʁ in French) is the longest River in France.

Geology

In terms of geology, the Muscadet region is situated at the southeastern end of the very old Armorican Massif range of low mountains. The Breton language ( Brezhoneg) formerly often called Armoric or Armorican, is a Celtic language spoken by some of the inhabitants of Brittany In Geology, a massif is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or Flexures In the movement of the crust, a massif The substrate is mostly crystalline (igneous) rocks. Igneous rocks (etymology from Latin ignis, fire are rocks formed by solidification of cooled Magma (molten rock The metamorphic rock gneiss dominates but there are also significant areas of orthogneiss, schist, gabbro, amphibolite, serpentine, granite, sand and clay. Gneiss (ˈnaɪs is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from preexisting formations that were originally The schists form a group of medium-grade Metamorphic rocks chiefly notable for the preponderance of lamellar Minerals such as Micas chlorite Gabbro (ˈɡæbrəʊ is a dark coarse-grained intrusive Igneous rock chemically equivalent to Basalt. Amphibolite (æmˈfɪbəlaɪt is the name given to a rock consisting mainly of hornblende Amphibole, the use of the term being restricted however to Metamorphic The serpentine group describes a group of common rock-forming hydrous Magnesium Iron phyllosilicate (()3 Minerals they Granite (ˈɡrænɪt is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, Felsic, igneous rock. Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and

Winemaking practices

Muscadets are almost always vinified dry in keeping with the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) regulations. Appellation d’origine contrôlée ( AOC) which translates as "controlled term of origin" is the French certification granted to certain French Historically late harvest Muscadet was also sometimes produced but this is now rare. Late harvest is a term applied to Wines made from Grapes left on the Vine longer than usual

Most of the Muscadets currently produced are vinified sur lie meaning that, after fermentation, the wine is not racked off the lees (lie) at the bottom of the vat. Lees refers to deposits of dead Yeast or residual yeast and other particles that precipitate or are carried by the action of " Fining " to the bottom of This adds some complexity; and, as it is bottled straight from the vat without racking, it retains some of the carbon dioxide bubbles from fermentation which make Muscadet very slightly fizzy - perlant in French. To benefit from the extra sur lie mention (e. g. Appellation Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie Controlée) a Muscadet must faire ses pâques (literally do its Easter) meaning that it must stay over its lees at least until the 1st of March following harvest before being bottled. The Laboratory for Electromagnetic and Electronic Systems (LEES at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT provides the theoretical basis and component circuit and

Tastes

In terms of tastes Muscadet tends toward bright citrusy (lemon, lime) and minerally notes (flint, steel). Flint (or flintstone) is a hard sedimentary Cryptocrystalline form of the Mineral Quartz, categorized as a variety of Chert Other common nuances may include:

Food Pairings

Muscadet can be served alone as an Apéritif or may be paired with a number of different foods:

Cellaring and Service

Most Muscadets should be drunk within three years of production. There are however very notable exceptions to this rule. Depending upon the soils upon which they are produced and vinification some Muscadets have an aging potential of up to and exceeding ten years. Muscadet should be served between 8 - 11 degrees Celsius (46. 5 - 52 °F).

Villages in the Sèvre-et-Maine appellation

References

Breton wine

One family of Muscadet producers labeled their production as breton wine, which got them brought to court: [1]. This marketing ploy ignores the fact that much of the Muscadet growing area fell beyond the historical bounds of the Duchy of Brittany.

See also



French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, on over 800000 Hectares (over 2 million Acres of Vineyards and in a typical Lees refers to deposits of dead Yeast or residual yeast and other particles that precipitate or are carried by the action of " Fining " to the bottom of
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