Muscat is having a moment, emerging from the back of your parents’ (or grandparents’) bar cart, to land on wine and cocktail lists at some of Australia’s most influential bars and restaurants.
While there are more than 200 grape varieties within the muscat family, its reputation as a sweet, single style of wine has both favoured and plagued its existence.
Rutherglen, in Victoria’s north-east, is the undisputed home of muscat in Australia. Liquid gold, they call it; a lusciously rich, sweet fortified wine that is aged in the barrel for years, decades and, in some cases, more than a century.
Winemaking families in Rutherglen have been passing down barrels of ageing muscat for generations, creating dessert wines that have not only earned international attention, but become synonymous with the variety locally.
While fortifieds were the height of fashion in the mid-20th century, several factors contributed to their decline in popularity.
“Muscats have had quite the ride in Australian wine history,” Siglo wine manager Dan Schwarze says. “The stricter application of drink-driving laws since the 1980s saw the practice of a glass – or two – of muscat at the end of the night fall somewhat by the wayside.”
“It really affected fortified sales,” All Saints estate winemaker Nicholas Brown agrees. “I often say, it wasn’t the eight bottles of shiraz people had over dinner that got the blame, it was the final little nip of muscat with dessert that got knocked on the head.”
While both believe the change in laws was an important move, the shift further compounded trends already at play, including a rise in the quality of red and white table wines.
“Our current generation of wine drinkers saw muscat as something their grandparents would have tucked away in a dusty cupboard in the kitchen somewhere,” Brown says. “It wasn’t very cool.”
Brown, who is from the well-known Brown Brothers winemaking dynasty, has been surrounded by muscat his entire life. While he continues to carry on his family’s legacy, he is not afraid to step outside of tradition.
“As we’ve seen a decline in fortified wine consumption, it was time for us to take the dowdy, old-person persona out of the wines and give them a bit of zhuzh up,” he says.
Younger winemakers “taking the reins from their parents … are not afraid of trying new styles”, he says. This is true across the region: “We are all on board and kicking the ball in the same direction.”
So in a bid to attract, and introduce, a new generation of drinkers to muscat, winemakers are getting playful, while educating their consumer-facing colleagues, such as mixologists and sommeliers, on its versatility. Among them is winemaker Rowly Milhinch of Scion Estate, who has started producing unusual styles from the region’s flagship grape.
“For me, personally, the idea of being able to experiment and explore, knowing there is an audience for it, has always been an attraction,” Milhinch says. “It comes down, fundamentally, to the audience being so up for it. They’re ready for this now.”
Milhinch’s experiments have resulted in a catalogue of dry muscats, muscat gin and young fortifieds that are vibrant and destined for cocktails. His Muscat Nouveau even wound up on the wine list at Melbourne’s Attica and destination dining spot Brae.
“I think instead of offering something different, we’re offering something in addition,” he says. “I hear people say, ‘What? I can have muscat in summer by the pool, are you kidding me! How does that even work?’ And once we start exploring … ways you can mix and enjoy it out of the traditional context – happy days.”
Muscat is now appearing in cocktails and on wine lists from Bar Francine in Brisbane to Melbourne’s Builders Arms. It is also attracting a younger generation at cellar doors across the region.
“Six to eight years ago muscat was about 4% of our sales, now they’re about 8 to 10%, so it’s an obvious shift that’s mostly due to the really young, vibrant muscat we are putting in bottle,” Brown says. “And it’s this younger, fresher muscat that is opening doors to the younger consumer.”
After a trip to Rutherglen, Schwarze’s saw muscat’s potential as an ingredient that could be used as a complex base from which to build cocktails with depth and length. He encouraged other mixologists at Siglo to play with it too, and the customers started to drink it up.
“Muscat is quite the kaleidoscope,” Schwarze says. “From orange and raisin, to spices and richer characters of caramel, chocolate and treacle. It has a hint of acidity and a lovely mid-palate feel on the tongue, which can help build length of flavour. These attributes help it to partner well with other components in a cocktail, or allow it to be at the heart of a drink.”
While fortifieds have a higher alcohol content than other wines, they are relatively low in alcohol for a cocktail base – resulting in drinks with just as much flavour but less of a kick. Ironically the social trend towards drinking less, which helped drive muscat out of favour, may well aid its comeback.
New-age muscats and muscat cocktails to try
St Leonards Vineyard, Hip Sip Muscat, RRP $22
Ridiculous value! This young, vibrant, old-oak aged muscat sports flavours of candied peel, butterscotch and raisins and is the perfect base from which to build a cocktail.
Try it in a pink hip spritz, which is 45ml of muscat, 15ml of lemon juice, served over ice, topped with sparkling pink grapefruit and mint.
Scion, Muscat Nouveau, RRP $38
Fresh and vibrant with aromas of lychee, musk stick and rose petal, this fortified muscat will make for a killer spritz. You can take this in two directions: mix 100ml of muscat nouveau with 15ml of lime juice, serve on ice and top with soda water; or mix one part nouveau with one part prosecco and top with soda for a more traditional Italian style spritz.
Backwoods Distilling Co X Scion, Muscat Gin, RRP $85
Made by steeping brown muscat grapes in gin before pressing, this aromatic creation blends local botanicals such as wattle seed, peppermint gum and lemon myrtle. Sporting flavours synonymous with muscat, such as rose water and musk, it makes for the perfect gin sour. Blend 30ml muscat gin, 15ml classic Rutherglen muscat, 30ml simple syrup, 30ml lemon juice and 30ml egg white. Shake, strain and serve!
Anderson Winery, 2020 Sparkling Lizzie, RRP $32
A surprising sparkling wine made using Rutherglen muscat. With lively, fresh bubbles, floral fruit flavours and lovely acidity, it’s one of those easy drinking wines that suits Australia’s warm summer climate. Pair with salty-sweet Cantonese dishes, such as chicken stir-fry with sweet bell peppers, hoisin and garlic.
Morris Wines, Classic Muscat, RRP $25
The perfect candidate for cocktail hour. Preserved fruit, with a nutty complexity on the nose, that carries through to a rich and luscious palate that’s completely more-ish. Take this traditional-style muscat, aged for an average 8-10 years in oak, and give it a glow-up.
To make a mistia ginger cocktail, mix 50ml of muscat with 60ml of ginger ale, a squeeze of lime and fresh mint for garnish.
Chambers Rosewood Vineyards, Grand Muscat, RRP $70
Christmas pudding, dates, spice and Turkish delight make way for the perfect lower-alcohol substitute to vodka in an espresso martini. In a cocktail shaker mix 30ml of muscat, 30ml of espresso and 30ml of kahlua, and make peace with the fact you may not stop at one.
All Saints Estate, Rutherglen Museum Muscat, RRP from $160
If new-age interpretations and cocktails aren’t your thing, and you’re chasing the very best example of Rutherglen muscat in its original glory, look no further. All Saints is the only winery in the region where you can try 100 year-old stock, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Thick and treacle-like, this intensely concentrated wine coats the mouth, offering flavours of honeycomb and raisin. While it carries a hefty price tag, you have to remember you’re tasting wine that has lived through a world war, the birth of rock’n’roll and too many hens’ parties to count.
