Moscato is a white wine that has recently exploded onto the scene — even Drake has been known to throw back a bottle or two. As he rapped in 2009: “It’s a celebration — clap clap bravo. Lobster and shrimp and a glass of moscato.”
A wine from Italy, Moscato has become incredibly popular for drinking on its own or even as an aperitif because it’s sweet, low in alcohol and incredibly easy to drink. Historically known as a dessert wine, Moscato has a slight fizz and flavors of nectarine, peach and orange that are very pleasing to your taste buds.
Born in the Italian region of Piedmont, a region that is also well known for its famous Barolo wine, Moscato is made from the Muscat grape, which is a grape that in addition to making Moscato is also eaten regularly as a table grape, and used for making raisins. Its ability to be enjoyed in its true fruit form, is due to the grape’s high level of sugar. It’s this sugar that gives Moscato its sweetness and boost in popularity.
Unlike the spread of most wines on the American market, the recent widespread success of the grape is not due to the promotion of the wine by sommeliers or wine merchants, but instead hip-hop. While we aren’t exactly sure how Moscato found its way to hip-hop in the first place, the scene’s rapid adoption of the wine as its beverage of choice has catapulted it onto the American table. Moscato is now the fastest growing wine on the American market, growing at a rate of 25 percent a year for the last three years, and it shows no signs of stopping.
Drake and other rappers helped popularize Moscato wine in recent years.
While Moscato is perfect for sipping alone, it also does very well, just like Riesling (a wine we know Kanye West is fond of), when it’s paired with spicy food. The sweetness of the wine and the spiciness of a dish like General Tsos go incredibly well together. So what are you waiting for? Go out and grab a bottle of Moscato. As Lil’ Kim would say: “Still over in Brazil sipping moscato, ya must have forgot though, so I’mma take you back to the block yo.”
