The "Château La Peyrade" land is on a slight promontory between the Sea and Thau Lake. On summer mornings, the air in the vineyards is invariably humid, thus helping ripen the grapes. The subsoil is peculiar to this coastal area, the roots of the vines pushing their way into the lacustrian limestone, here called Frontignan limestone, the thickness of this layer reaching 65 ft in places.

There are several types of Muscat grape. In Alsace they grow the Muscat Ottonel, and in Roussillon the Muscat of Alexandria. However, the grape that produces our sweet apéritif wines comes from an originally Greek variety, a Small White Muscat Grape that has been cultivated in the south of France for many years. It produces generous, more or less musky wines depending on the vineyard and vintage. The most distinctive and best known is "Muscat de Frontignan" which gave its name to the grape variety.

In olden days, this Muscat Wine was not required to pay tolls or similar charges as it was considered a restorative, even a curative tonic ! Arnaud de Villeneuve (1240-1314), the famous doctor, said he felt ten years younger since he had been drinking two glasses of Frontignan Muscat every day. And for Colette, Frontignan Muscat was "a ray of sunshine, a sensual shock, and such a delight for her taste-buds", that she would adore this wine for the rest of her life. It is the Muscat that was immortalised by Rabelais, a wine that Popes and Kings considered to be the elixir of life.

Home • The "Château La Peyrade" • The Muscat Grape Variety of Frontignan
Vinification and cellar work • Parker's Wine Advocate and other awards
Muscat Prestige • Traditional Muscat • Dry Muscat • Muscat Forgotten Barrels
"Vendanges d'Automne" • Muscat Sol Invictus • Muscat Cuvée des 3 Rois
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