Syrah The Syrah-dominated appellations (AOCs) of northern Rhône have, like most other French appellations and regions, no tradition of varietal labeling of their wines. Indeed, such practices are generally disallowed under AOC rules, and only the AOC name (such as Cote-Rotie, Crozes-Hermitage or Hermitage) appears on the label. Varietal labeling of Syrah/Shiraz wines is therefore a practice that has emerged in the New World, primarily in Australia. To confuse matters, in northern Rhône, different clones of genuine Syrah are referred to as "Petite Syrah" (small Syrah) or "Gros Syrah" (large Syrah) depending on the size of their berries, with "Petite Syrah"
Muscat (grape) Muscat (grape) The Muscat family of grapes include over 200 grape varieties belonging to the "Vitis vinifera" species that have been used in wine production and as raisin and table grapes around the globe for many centuries. Their colors range from white (such as "Muscat Ottonel"), to yellow ("Moscato Giallo"), to pink ("Moscato rosa del Trentino") to near black ("Muscat Hamburg"). Muscat grapes and wines almost always have a pronounced sweet floral aroma. The breadth and number of varieties of Muscat suggest that it is perhaps the oldest domesticated grape variety, and there are theories that most families within the