Written by Carolyn Evans-Hammond | 05 May 2010

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What’s the world’s most undervalued wine? This tidbit can change your life.

Knowing its name will save you money so inadvertently make you richer. Pouring it for family and friends will dazzle them, making you seem smarter, cooler and instantly more popular — so relatively more famous in your sphere. It may even make you sexier if you consider the halo effect that your newfound richness, smartness, coolness and fame will have on you, combined with the fact that your beloved will probably end up drinking more because the wine is delicious. And you know where that leads, pussycat.

The wine is Muscat, which refers to the grape itself. Sound vaguely familiar? My point precisely. Muscat’s low profile keeps it under the radar, under-priced, overlooked and overachieving. I’ll even forgive you for thinking, “Oh yeah, isn’t that the sweet stuff from Australia and California?” because that’s probably its most well-known version. But like a lover who keeps you guessing, this intriguing variety goes by many aliases, hiding behind local names and styles. And in a single succulent sip, this wine can illicit a guttural moan before you realize it’s really that old flame, Muscat, in disguise — be it off-dry and sparkling, dry and still, or full-on sweet and rich.

Stumble upon a titillating dry table wine from Southern Italy called Zibibbo? That’s Muscat. Find a fragrant, sweet, golden Beaumes-de-Venise from Southern France? That’s Muscat. Captivated by an off-dry, gently sparkling Moscato d’Asti? That’s Muscat. And the feature that unites all Muscat wines: its perfume. It actually smells and tastes uncannily like ripe grapes, which may seem like a given but it’s probably the only grape variety that does so. And, like its name implies, it also has a certain hallmark musk-like aroma.

So let’s talk style.