Muscat of Alexandria

VIVC records Muscat of Alexandria as variety number 8241, a white-berried grape (blanc), and lists Greece as its country or region of origin; with a single source behind it, a Greek origin is likely rather than settled. Its pedigree, confirmed by markers, is Heptakilo × Muscat à Petits Grains Blancs, the grape WineWiki covers as Gelber Muskateller. Both parents are known, and the pedigree is marked as full. VIVC-derived lineage data list two offspring, Grillo and Torrontés, and two half-siblings that share Gelber Muskateller as a parent, Aleatico and Brachetto.

• Variety number 8241; prime name Muscat of Alexandria; berry skin colour white (blanc)
• Country or region of origin: Greece (likely, single source)
• Parents: Heptakilo × Muscat à Petits Grains Blancs (Gelber Muskateller); pedigree confirmed by markers
• Offspring: Grillo, Torrontés; half-siblings: Aleatico, Brachetto

Sources differ on the second parent. GuildSomm describes Muscat à Petits Grains as a parent of Muscat of Alexandria along with the obscure Axina de Tres Bias, while the VIVC passport names Heptakilo as the other parent; both agree on Muscat à Petits Grains.

• Second parent: given as Axina de Tres Bias or as Heptakilo, depending on the source

Muscat of Alexandria is found mostly in more southerly latitudes. It is the dominant Muscat in both Spain and Portugal, Douro Moscatel aside. In Italy it goes by Zibibbo on Pantelleria, a Sicilian island off the coast of Tunisia, where it is harvested for raisins and table grapes as well as wine. Pantelleria is a volcanic island sculpted by the wind, where the vines grow low down. The island's traditional head-trained bush vine cultivation, the vite ad alberello, was inscribed in 2014 on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In Portugal, a few wineries on the Setúbal Peninsula, near Lisbon, still make multi-vintage Muscat of Alexandria wines.

• Spain: the dominant Muscat, as in Portugal outside Douro Moscatel; in Málaga it is blended with Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains and Pedro Ximénez
• Pantelleria, Sicily: known as Zibibbo; home to Passito di Pantelleria DOC
• Portugal: Moscatel de Setúbal, from the Setúbal Peninsula near Lisbon

Muscat of Alexandria is often described as more rustic than its parent Muscat à Petits Grains. In passito form, Donnafugata describes its Ben Ryé 2023 as showing dried grapes, apricot, citrus fruit and candied orange peel, followed by hints of Mediterranean maquis, with sweet hints of honey on the palate.

• Compared with Muscat à Petits Grains: often described as more rustic
• Passito (Ben Ryé 2023): dried grapes, apricot, citrus fruit, candied orange peel and Mediterranean maquis, with honey on the palate

For Passito di Pantelleria, the Zibibbo clusters are sun-dried for two or three weeks, and the berries are then added to a vat of base wine fermented from fresh grapes. Donnafugata ages its Ben Ryé in tanks for around five months and in bottle for at least 16 months before release. In Spain, Málaga's winegrowing traditions blend Muscat of Alexandria and Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains with Pedro Ximénez, and among the Moscatel wines of Sherry, Muscat of Alexandria is a rare delicacy. In France, Muscat de Rivesaltes is a vin doux naturel made from Muscat à Petits Grains and Muscat d'Alexandrie by mutage: neutral wine alcohol of at least 96% vol. is added to the must during fermentation.

• Passito (Pantelleria): clusters sun-dried for two or three weeks; the berries are added to a base wine fermented from fresh grapes
• Muscat de Rivesaltes (France): vin doux naturel made by mutage of the fermenting must with neutral wine alcohol of at least 96% vol.
• Málaga (Spain): Muscat of Alexandria and Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains blended with Pedro Ximénez

Donnafugata's Ben Ryé is a Passito di Pantelleria DOC made from Zibibbo, from the island of Pantelleria in southwestern Sicily. GuildSomm names it the flagship among the several Zibibbo wines Donnafugata makes on the island. On Portugal's Setúbal Peninsula, a few wineries continue to make multi-vintage Muscat of Alexandria wines, and Málaga's tradition blends the grape with Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains and Pedro Ximénez. Muscat de Rivesaltes, from Roussillon, is a vin doux naturel made from Muscat à Petits Grains and Muscat d'Alexandrie.

• Donnafugata Ben Ryé, Passito di Pantelleria DOC (Sicily): Zibibbo; aged around 5 months in tank and at least 16 months in bottle
• Málaga (Spain): blends Muscat of Alexandria and Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains with Pedro Ximénez
• Moscatel de Setúbal (Portugal): from the Setúbal Peninsula, near Lisbon
• Muscat de Rivesaltes (France, Roussillon): vin doux naturel from Muscat à Petits Grains and Muscat d'Alexandrie

For passito, Donnafugata pairs Ben Ryé with chocolate and with jam or ricotta tarts, and on the savoury side with mature or blue cheeses.

• Passito di Pantelleria (Ben Ryé): chocolate, jam or ricotta tarts
• Savoury matches for Ben Ryé: mature or blue cheeses

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=8241 ; https://extranet.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/PNOCDC-Muscat-de-Rivesaltes.pdf ; https://www.donnafugata.it/en/product/ben-rye/ ; https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/traditional-agricultural-practice-of-cultivation-of-the-vite-ad-alberello-of-the-community-of-pantelleria-00720 Reference sources: https://www.guildsomm.com/public_content/features/articles/b/bryce-wiatrak/posts/introduction-to-muscat Last verified 2026-10-19