I have a feeling that was a mistake that was just carried on. No serious wine maker would screw up the varietal name or would they?
No idea how it was started or perpetuated. Iād love to hear from someone who worked there who knows.
ha. i was busting balls of course. and yes, better that way then mixing it up.
i love me some SBR PS. looking forward to trying more from paso as well. i think the grape will work well there.
I have always considered Vincent Arroyoās Petite Sirah to be one of the best in California -
1 Like
To make matters worseā¦
I follow Jaffurs on Instagram and today that had a post were they spelled it Petit Syrah, though their labels and website have it correct as Petite Sirah.
A couple of points:
- Still waiting on someone jumping in here wrt Ridge and their current releases
- Vincent Arroyo is a great add to the list
- Switchback Ridge PSās are monsters - to me, they stick out in the same way SQN does
- Donāt forget to add Stags Leap Winery to the mix - always top notch and have been producing PSās for a very long time. In addition, they have an old vine, hand trained block that actually contains some Peloursin, one of the āparentsā of PS along with Syrah.
- Jaffurs continues to over-deliver - hope that continues. And note that often, they do include some Syrah to help make it more approachable at a younger age
I think the ārevolutionā in PS has more to do with understanding tannin management AND where to plant than anything else. Paso makes interesting PSs that are more approachable due to ripeness levels - I do wonder if they will age gracefully.
Cheers
1 Like
The best California Durif* ever made is Orion by Sean Thackrey. Full stop.
\
- As I recall, Carole Meredith tested Rossi Vineyard, the current source of Orion grapes, and determined that it is a field blend, dominated by Durif.
3 Likes
Itās an alternative old school spelling that several producers have or do use.
There was a lot of confusion and misidentification thatās now been cleared up, of several varieties going under the name. When that was starting, some producers started using the real name, Durif. One of the other grapes is a petite clone of Syrah, known as Petite Syrah, so iirc, some using that spelling are referring to that, while others just sticking with their traditional spelling. Some of whatās out there is Peloursin, which is the other parent of PS (along with Syrah), and I think there was a couple others.
I like PS now and then, depending on style, but I donāt seek it out. Of the different versions Iāve tried over time (not a ton, admittedly), my very favorites were the Staten Family Reserve bottlings from Field Stone in Alexander Valley. Pre-1900 vines, a nice brambly/spicy character, nearly impervious to age (as far as I could tell). The winery was sold and no longer seems to be producing anything, but I have a couple of last bottles still hanging out in storageā¦
Love that! I have 4 bottles of 1985 Field Stone PS but havenāt popped one yet. Sisters birth year. Just the regular bottling though - hopefully it still shines!
The most impressive to me are the trio from the Theopolis Vyd. in Mendocino. And yes, itās all about tannin management. So, like really good cool climate Syrah, but with a different fruit expression.
Ridge added a couple. They recently released their very last York Creek, which is still one that needs a lot of age. Others, from Geyserville and Lytton Springs are much lighter in expression, and ready to drink on release. No one would nominate those latter ones as āabsolute bestā.
Thereās quite a range of styles these days, where preference plays a huge role. Rustic old school that needs 40 years to be drinkable. Nigel Tufnel types, ripened and oaked up to the extreme. Savory Northern Rhone-ish ones. Points in-between and elsewhere.
2 Likes
Turley (Napa and Paso)
Quixote
Stags Leap Winery
Switchback
Ridge
St. Francis (back when)
Carlisle
Once & Future
Those are the best CA iterations of PS Iāve had.
I enjoy a good PS. Discovered Jaffurs recently, the Thompson Vineyard specifically is excellent. Turley PS is what drove me to get on their mailing list. I get two bottles of each every year.
Agree with the previous sentiment over Vincent Arroyo. Excellent, and they age well.
I also buy Outpost PS, the Other.
Bacigalupi Vineyards makes a nice one too.
Lambert Bridge makes a good one as well.
Aaron is one of the best producers Iāve tried that specializes in Petite Sirah - they make both varietal Petite Sirah and blends.
Wes mentioned Theopolis and I agree that this PS specialist is another thatās among the top producers of this variety - they make a rosĆ© and dry red. The estate vineyard is in the Yorkville Highlands AVA in Mendocino County. Also of note is Highlawn, which also produces a fine Theopolis Vineyard Petite Sirah. HalcĆ³n produced one as well but I donāt know whether that will still be true with the new ownership there.
Another up-and-coming PS specialist that hasnāt been mentioned yet is Mountain Tides - they make a rosĆ©, carbonic, and dry red bottlings from various vineyard sites. Very distinctive style with a lighter touch than most.
Powicana Farm is one more PS specialist - a very small Mendocino County producer with their own vineyard. They make pƩt-nat, rosƩ, dry red, and Port-style Petite Sirah bottlings.
Havenāt had a Vincent Arroyo PS in awhile but always enjoyed theirs.
Overall, Petite Sirah has not been one of my favorite varieties, as so many are big, dense, and tannic - not a style I typically like to drink on its own nor one that goes with foods I enjoy. The ones I mentioned above largely avoid that big heavy style - most of these manage to be surprisingly light on their feet and not overly tannic.
Thank you, sir!
The best Petite Sirah grapes come from the Palisades Vineyard in Calistoga!
Thanks to everyone for sharing in this thread.
Perhaps the irony is that I live in the D. C. suburbs and although I had heavy CA travel for 35 or so years (was married in Malibu and had a business appt. the next morningā¦.) I sincerely miss CA, especially Santa Barbara which I know well.
Here, on the East Coast, petite Sirah (
) is almost nonexistent except for the obligatory two or three bottles. In trying to source more Jaffurs I talked to the Richmond, VA wholesaler who told me the TWO stores in the 9.5 million Baltimore/DC area that had any. 14 1/2 more cases were still in their warehouse.
Aaron, Switchback, Mending Wall, Turley, etc.-few of these come East. And that is a huge loss. I love this wine and although I canāt consistently spell its name correctly I believe CA has the absolute best.
As I type this I have a glass and decanter of ā17 Switchback open in front of me. 8+ hours, etc.
It is nowhere near ready.
It really-as others have said-needs years, not hours.
The ā17 Aaron is actually almost drinkable. Absolutely delicious by the way.
I am going to do everything in my power to open my next bottle of Switchback in five years. And then five after that. In the meantime I know ā17 Jaffurs is excellent now, the Aaron has hope and my Turley Haynes Vineyard probably needs to wait with the Switchback Ridge.
One more sip of Aaronā¦ā¦.
I must add one more comment: it is a powerful visual to swirl both of these bottles in the 32 (or so) ounce Reidel Sommelier burgundy glasses. The unctuous ink is literally painting the inside of the glass as it is splashed.
I donāt know about that particular vintage, but we tried a smattering of back vintages (1978, 1984, 1991, 1997) after they had a library sale back in 2010/2011. Given some air, all showed fairly well aside from one of the two 1991s we tried which was unusually savory and never quite came into balanceā¦the other bottle was better, though. My oldest remaining bottle is a 2007. Hope yours do well for you! ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
1 Like
The end of an extraordinary evening. More than 10 hours after opening the Switchback Ridge and Aaron we have now finished both bottles. The Switchback Ridgr finally opened upā¦enough.
The Aaron was excellent but the Switchback Ridge is a GREAT bottle of wine. I have five left but just bought an additional nine bottles from the Heron House tasting room. Extraordinary wine that I shared with a very good friend. $65 is also a fraction of itās value. Thank you, Switchback Ridge.
A great evening sharing your wine.
1 Like