Zibibbo is a white grape varietal that originated in Egypt. Zibibbo wines are usually sweet, medium bodied wines with medium acidity, low alcohol, and no tannins. Zibibbo is a white wine grape that is a member of the Muscat family of Vitis Vinifera. Also know as Muscat of Alexandria, it is considered an "ancient vine", and wine experts believe it is one of the oldest genetically unmodified vines still in existence. The grape originated in North Africa, and the name is probably derived from its association with Ancient Egyptians who used the grape for wine making. It is also a table grape used for eating and raisins. Muscat of Alexandria is cultivated very heavily on the islands of Samos, and Lemnos in the North Eastern Aegean region of Greece, and reputedly Cleopatra drank muscat wine from there. In Italy wine is made from the grape on the island of Pantelleria, and it is grown in Calabria and Sicily where it is known as Zibibbo. In Spain, the grape is the sixth most planted white grape variety with 10,318 hectares (25,496 acres) grown in 2015, mainly in Málaga, Alicante, Valencia, and the Canary Islands. It is an important grape in the Australian and South African wine industry. ?
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Dessert wines are usually any sweet wine drunk with or around a meal. White fortified wines (fino and amontillado sherry) are usually drunk before the meal, and the red fortified wines (port and madeira) drunk after it. Most fortified wines are regarded as distinct from dessert wines, but some of the less strong fortified white wines, are regarded as honorary dessert wines. In the United States a dessert wine is legally defined as any wine over 14% alcohol by volume, which includes all fortified wines.
