{"id":63,"date":"2010-01-20T18:35:34","date_gmt":"2010-01-20T18:35:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kenswineguide.com\/blog\/?p=63"},"modified":"2010-01-20T19:31:53","modified_gmt":"2010-01-20T19:31:53","slug":"petite-sirah-deserves-more-respect-and-attention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/?p=63","title":{"rendered":"Petite Sirah Deserves More Respect And Attention"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Petite_Sirah_Grapes\"I love Petite Sirah<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 When made right it can be extraordinary and it is hardly Petite.\u00c2\u00a0 It is big and bold and in your face.\u00c2\u00a0 However, the best ones have a great mouthfeel and show some elegance as well.\u00c2\u00a0 It has been one of my favorite grapes for a long time.\u00c2\u00a0 This post will highlight some of the best Petite Sirahs<\/strong> that we have covered over the last several months.<\/p>\n

\"Carol_Shelton_2007_Rockpile_Reserve_Petite_Sirah\"I am going to open this post with 2 of my favorite Petite Sirahs.\u00c2\u00a0 They are made by the same producer.\u00c2\u00a0 The winemaker is Carol Shelton<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>and she makes an awesome Petite Sirah from Rockpile called “Rockpile Reserve.”<\/strong>\u00c2\u00a0 Now I said 2 wines.\u00c2\u00a0 Those 2 options are the 2006 and the 2007 vintages of this wine.\u00c2\u00a0 They are both Excellent.\u00c2\u00a0 First is the 2006 “Rockpile Reserve”<\/a><\/strong> for $40<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 It was the best wine that I tried on my trip to California in the fall of 2008.\u00c2\u00a0 At the time, I said this wine rocked my world<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 So we had to try another bottle of it.\u00c2\u00a0 We pulled it out for our most recent blind tasting.\u00c2\u00a0 As a group we scored it 93 points <\/strong>and it was just\u00c2\u00a0a point below the Carlisle we will cover below.\u00c2\u00a0 It\u00c2\u00a0is still full-bodied, very well balanced, smooth, and silky.\u00c2\u00a0 This time we described its flavors as black raspberry with hints of cherry, vanilla oak, and dark chocolate mixed in.\u00c2\u00a0 Its dusty tannins have now settled down and they sail on for a very long time.<\/p>\n

Next up is the 2007 “Rockpile Reserve”<\/a><\/strong> for $40<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 Now this option has just been released or will be shortly.\u00c2\u00a0 And like the 2006, I scored it 94 points<\/strong> and labeled it Excellent<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 There is a caveat however, this wine is very young and needs some time to breathe.\u00c2\u00a0 I noted in the review, that it just got better and better over the 3 to 4 days the bottle was open.\u00c2\u00a0 Like the 2006, this wine is very nicely balanced and smooth.\u00c2\u00a0 Its flavor profile is a delicious spicy ripe blackberry with notes of blueberry and mild black currant.\u00c2\u00a0 There was also a hint of oak in the background.\u00c2\u00a0 It is a big time winner <\/strong>and would pair perfectly with a filet mignon from Starks<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

(Both these Petites are wine club only wines.\u00c2\u00a0 So you will have to call the winery, join the club<\/a>, and plead with Carol for decent allocation.\u00c2\u00a0 For this wine, groveling is not below you)<\/p>\n

\"Carlisle_2006_Yorktown_Highlands_Petite_Sirah\"The next Petite we loved has a good news and bad news story.\u00c2\u00a0 The good news<\/strong> is the 2006 Carlisle “Yorktown Highlands” Petite Sirah<\/a><\/strong> for $36<\/strong> is Excellent <\/strong>and it recently won our mini blind tasting of Petite Sirahs.\u00c2\u00a0 The bad news is that there was a mere 172 cases <\/strong>made and they are sold out at the winery.\u00c2\u00a0 The group found this Petite to be full-bodied, very well balanced, and smooth.\u00c2\u00a0 Its flavor profile is a very tasty black raspberry and blueberry blend with notes of black pepper nicely integrated throughout.\u00c2\u00a0 The group commented on how complex this wine was.\u00c2\u00a0 It shows a refined palate presence and then closes in a big way, which leads us to suggest decanting it for an hour before serving it with a cowboy ribeye.\u00c2\u00a0 With a little research on 1000 Corks<\/strong><\/a> you can find a bottle or 2 online.<\/p>\n

\"Rosenblum_2007_Pickett_Road_Petite_Sirah\"The next wine\u00c2\u00a0is a very big wine so it may\u00c2\u00a0not be for everyone but I sure liked it.\u00c2\u00a0 It finished in third place<\/strong> in the blind tasting with 92 points<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 The 2007 Rosenblum Cellars “Pickett Road” Petite Sirah<\/a><\/strong> for $35<\/strong> is a very big boy.\u00c2\u00a0 It will even appeal to Port lovers, but it is not quite that big or heavy.\u00c2\u00a0 It opens with a huge black raspberry and raisin-like bouquet.\u00c2\u00a0 On the palate, this wine is full-bodied and dense.\u00c2\u00a0 It displays concentrated blackberry flavors with notes of anise, prune, and walnuts.\u00c2\u00a0 This beauty would be perfect for warming you on a\u00c2\u00a0cold winter night here in the Northeast.<\/p>\n

\"HereticThe next 4 offerings all scored 90 points<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 We will start off with the Four Vines 2007 “Heretic” Petite Sirah<\/a><\/strong> for $40<\/strong><\/a>\u00c2\u00a0from Paso Robles.\u00c2\u00a0 This year’s vintage opens with an attractive and aromatic black raspberry bouquet with hints of tobacco, mint, and plum.\u00c2\u00a0 On the palate, this wine is full-bodied, very nicely balanced, and coats the mouth with very juicy ripe blackberry and boysenberry flavors.\u00c2\u00a0 Tasters of this wine thought this year’s vintage is more of a fruit bomb as opposed to past offerings of this wine.\u00c2\u00a0 For instance, the 2006<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>was a much bigger wine.\u00c2\u00a0 However, we did find that with some air, the 2007 was one of the most elegant and refined Petite Sirahs we have tried recently.<\/p>\n

\"Clayhouse_2006_Estate_Petite_Sirah\"Clayhouse <\/strong>has been making terrific Paso Robles based Petite Sirahs for many years.\u00c2\u00a0 This year we covered the 2006 “Estate”<\/a><\/strong> which costs $25<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 We found this offering to be full-bodied, balanced, and very smooth.\u00c2\u00a0 Especially on day two.\u00c2\u00a0 It displays ripe blackberry flavors with notes of black raspberry, black pepper, and black licorice.\u00c2\u00a0 Like the other winning Petite Sirahs we noted that it showed more finesse than most.\u00c2\u00a0 I thought it would be a perfect match for Beef Bourguignon.<\/p>\n

The Rosenblum 2007 “Rockpile Road Vineyard” Petite Sirah<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>is very different than the Pickett Road.\u00c2\u00a0 This wine is more similar to the Clayhouse and Heretic in style.\u00c2\u00a0 It is full-bodied and balanced plum and black currant flavors.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0A panelist also detected hints of black pepper and oak mixed in.\u00c2\u00a0 It is a good option with food, especially pot roast.<\/p>\n

\"Jaffurs_2007_Petite_Sirah\"The final 90 pointer<\/strong> was the 2007 Jaffurs “Thompson Vineyard” Petite Sirah<\/a><\/strong> for $34<\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 This offering had a bit more acidity than the others so panelists that like that style migrated towards this wine.\u00c2\u00a0 The flavor profile was a mild black currant with notes of black raspberry and spice with a little black pepper mixed in as well.\u00c2\u00a0 Its moderate dusty tannins make it a good match for a grilled New York strip steak.<\/p>\n

Other Very Good Petite Sirahs To Consider:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1) EOS 2006 Petite Sirah “Private Reserve”<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>(Paso Robles, CA) $25<\/strong> (89<\/strong>)
\n2) Earthquake 2006 Petite Sirah<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>(Lodi, CA) $28<\/strong> (89<\/strong>)
\n3) Epiphany 2005 Petite Sirah “Rodney's Vineyard”<\/a><\/strong> (Santa Barbara, CA) $25<\/strong>\u00c2\u00a0(89<\/strong>)
\n4) Two Angels 2006 Petite Sirah<\/a><\/strong> (High Valley, CA) $25<\/strong> (88<\/strong>)
\n5) Fortress 2007 Petite Sirah “Red Hills”<\/a><\/strong> (Lake Country, CA) $35<\/strong> (88<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

We hope you enjoyed this post on Petite Sirah and we hope you get a chance to try some of these very tasty wines.\u00c2\u00a0 For a complete list of all the Petite Sirahs we recommend, check out our Petite Sirah page<\/a><\/strong> on KensWineGuide.com<\/a><\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 If after sampling some of these gems, you turn into a fan of this great grape, you might even want to check out this group and webpage dedicated to fans of the Petite Sirah grape.\u00c2\u00a0 It is called PS I Love You<\/a><\/strong>.\u00c2\u00a0 It is a website chalk full of tidbits and information on Petite Sirah.<\/p>\n

Enjoy and Cheers!
\nKen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I love Petite Sirah.\u00c2\u00a0 When made right it can be extraordinary and it is hardly Petite.\u00c2\u00a0 It is big and bold and in your face.\u00c2\u00a0 However, the best ones have a great mouthfeel and show some elegance as well.\u00c2\u00a0 It has been one of my favorite grapes for a long time.\u00c2\u00a0 This post will highlight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,124,8,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-63","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kens-wine-guide-tasting-panel","category-petite-sirah","category-wine-recommendations","category-wine-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=63"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=63"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=63"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kenswineguide.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=63"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}