There are four main appellations of the Muscadet region. At the lowest level is generic AOC Muscadet which covers the entire 32,000 acres (13,000 hectare) region. Next come the three sub-appellations representing different micro-climates of the region. They are Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine, Muscadet-Coteaux de la Loire which includes the northern most expanse of the area and Muscadet-Côtes de Grandlieu which is located in the south western areas around the eponymous lake.
In Sur lie wines the wine must spend at least a full winter in contact with the lees.
All Muscadet wines are white wines grown using the Melon de Bourgogne grape.
