Over the past several years Moscato sales have sky rocketed. I'll admit though, Moscato seems to have garnished a bad rap among us is the wine biz because of its sweetness and bottom shelf, mass produced status. But let me tell you, there are impressive, high quality Moscatos out there. I was recently fortunate enough to travel to the Piedmont region of Italy and visit one of those outstanding Moscato producers, Ca' d'Gal. Ca' d'Gal, meaning house of the rooster, is owned by Alessandro Boido, a man who is as sweet as the wines he produces. The winery is known for its Moscato d'Asti and Asti Spumante, with the Asti Spumante having more bubbles and less sweetness than the Moscato d 'Asti.

During a dinner event at the winery, I tried Moscato in a whole new way—in a cocktail called a Mosquito! It was much tastier than it sounds and was fun to say, ”Yes, I'll have the Mosquito.”  It is comprised of Moscato d' Asti, light rum, fresh berries or peaches, mint and simple syrup. Refreshing and fruity, but not too sweet. Another innovative cocktail includes Asti Spumante with a dash of fresh berries and currants. It was almost too pretty to drink. The berries really helped to accentuate the sweet fruit notes of the Asti. The following day entailed a vertical tasting of 10 Moscato d' Asti Vigna Vecchia (meaning “old vine” in Italian) by Ca' d'Gal. It was astounding to taste how the young Moscatos bright, juicy apple, peach and pear notes evolve into fuller bodied wines with honey,caramel, and brown sugar flavors as they age.

The 1999 and 2000 vintages had distinct qualities reminiscent of elegant French Sauternes. Complex and sweet with a hint of acidity followed by a long, lingering finish. Delicious! There is a phrase in Italian—"Il buon vino non vole frasca," translating to,"good wine needs no branch." Essentially, what it means is that when you have good wine you don'tneed any gimmicks—that quality speaks for itself—and at Ca' d'Gal it definitely does.

Rachel Moore, wine consultant at ABC Fine Wine & Spirits Tampa