page_title: Muscadet
section_title: Wine industry
hierarchical_section_title: Muscadet / Wine industry
caption_attribution_description: Vineyard of Melon de Bourgogne in the Muscadet Pays Nantes region of the Loire Valley
context_page_description: Muscadet is a French white wine. It is made at the western end of the Loire Valley, near the city of Nantes in the Pays de la Loire region. It is made from the Melon de Bourgogne grape, often referred to simply as melon. While most appellation d'origine contrôlée wines are named after their growing region, or in Alsace after their variety, the name Muscadet refers to an alleged characteristic of the wine produced by the melon grape variety: vin qui a un goût musqué. However, according to wine expert Tom Stevenson, Muscadet wines do not have much, if any, muskiness or Muscat-like flavors or aromas.
  The sole variety used to produce Muscadet, Melon de Bourgogne, was initially planted in the region sometime in or before the 17th century. It became dominant after a hard freeze in 1709 killed most of the region's vines. Dutch traders, who were major actors in the French wine trade, encouraged the planting of this variety; they distilled much of the wine produced into eau de vie for sale in Northern Europe.
  The generic Muscadet appellation, officially established in 1937, contains three regional sub-appellations:
context_section_description: At the turn of the 21st century there were over 2,500 vineyards in the Muscadet region tended mostly as small lots by individual farmers who either commercialize their own wine or sell their grapes to one of the forty plus négociants in the region. These négociants would blend and bottle the wine under their own label.
caption: Vineyard of Melon de Bourgogne in the Muscadet region.
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