Muscat grapes are sweet and perfumy, with a luscious distinctive flavor that separates them from other table grapes. Some of you are familiar with the muscat flavor from sweet wines made with the grape. Recently, I saw a seedless variety of muscat grape, imported from Chile, in a local market. They are quite a treat.

Many people will not buy table grapes that have seeds. That’s a bit unfortunate because several of the most delicious varieties, like Concord and Kyoho grapes, are unavailable in seedless versions. Now that seedless muscats are available, perhaps they will get the attention needed to make commercial production popular.

One obstacle is that when presented in plastic package, muscats look brownish, and consumers may prefer the more traditional brighter green, red, and purple colored grapes. The packaged color is something of an illusion. On a white plate, muscats present an appealing golden color.

The package I bought cost four dollars for two pounds, a bargain. That was the same as conventional green and red grapes, in our area all are imported from Chile this time of year.

The Muscat family of grapes is among the oldest. Evidence of muscat wine has been found in a tomb in Turkey dated to the seventh century B.C. There are color variations from golden to black. All of the varieties share the distinctive floral aroma. Muscat wine is claimed to be the only type of wine that shares the aroma of the grape from which it was made.

Muscat raisins are praised as larger and more flavorful that the raisins made from conventional seedless grapes. Muscat raisins are made from seeded grapes that have the seeds removed mechanically. They are available over the Internet from Sunmaid and Bella Viva Orchards