A different week, a different bridge. And different AVAs to explore. Your West Coast Oenophile took in two very different tastings this past week in the overshadowed wine regions of the East Bay. Given the Arctic summer we are experiencing in San Francisco, the quest for heat played no small role in my sojourns.
Given that I covered both of these events in 2009, my trek entailed less about new discoveries, rather more about reinvigorating relationships Sostevinobile had forged last year (or earlier). I started with the rather eclectic P.S. I Love You, a still somewhat nascent trade organization for growers and producers of Petite Sirah. Now single varietal advocacies are nothing new—the Zinfandel Advocates and Producers (ZAP) is now in its twentieth year and I understand a new Pinotage association has been formed. Nor are single varietal tastings uncommon—again, the ZAP Grand Festival every January, Pinot Days, the discontinued Merlot in May. Unlike the others, however, P.S. I Love You’s major annual conclave, the Petite Sirah Symposium, is strictly an industry affair, a daylong conference for growers and producers, with an intimate tasting that includes trade and media at the end. Not a great vehicle for public advocacy, but certainly a much more pleasurable alternative to the mob scenes with which professional attendees like myself must contend (he notes with trepidation as Family Winemakers looms on the near horizon…).
As was the case last year, the Symposium was held at Concannon Vineyard in Livermore, the 127 year old producer that lays claim to being the first winery to label Petite Sirah and has staked their claim to fame with this grape ever since. Literally and figuratively, Livermore is a far cry from Fort Mason and San Francisco, and as I wound my way through the clusters of suburban tract houses that lead to the rural portion of the town, I felt a peculiar desire to blow them all up. Then it dawned on me: maybe Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the resident design center for the America’s nuclear arsenal, has their people live in these monolithic, sterile clusters in order to make them want to blow up things, too!
Allora! I came in peaceful pursuit, to taste a variety of wines and report back to Sostevinobile’s readers, and so after parking and signing in, I headed into Concannon’s Barrel Room, armed with what has to have been the most extensive tasting guide I have ever been handed (Symposium promoter Jo Diaz claimed this was in direct response to my complaint over the lack of any printed program delineating last year’s tasting). For no better reason than my fondness for his velvet-coated labels, I beelined over to John Monnich’s table to sample the latest releases of his Silkwood Wines 2007 Petite Sirah, a Modesto vintage that is definitely not Gallo.
| Normally, the transition from luxury of crushed velvet to the relative mundanity of a Shoe Shine might be deemed a considerable downgrade except when delectating this handcrafted NV Petite Sirah Eaglepoint Ranch from Eric Cohen’s Justice Grace Vineyards. This striking, 400 case debut joined another newcomer to the P.S. I Love You family, Livermore’s own Nottingham Cellars, which previewed it superb pre-bottled 2009 Petite Sirah, a wine with the chromatic intensity of shoe polish and texture of liquid velvet. (After the Symposium, I visited Nottingham’s warehouse operations and found myself equally enthralled with their 2005 Syrah Lodi, a much-welcome 2007 Viognier Livermore Valley and the proprietary 2007 Ralphi’s Blend, a Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot mix). |
I’m not sure whether I’d ever had a chance to sample wine from the Ramona Valley AVA previously, but I can only hope San Diego’s Edwards Vineyards and Cellars exemplifies the wine produced there. The 2005 Petite Sirah they poured featured an unusual field blend with 3% Syrah and 1% Chenin Blanc, which contributed to the extraordinary roundness of this wine. Near the northern extreme of California’s viticultural expanse, Clear Lake’s Diamond Ridge brought forth a 2008 Petite Sirah from their estate vineyard, the same grapes Oakland’s JC Cellars contracts for their Petite. Northernmost bragging rights, however, belonged exclusive to Oregon’s lone representative this afternoon, Spangler Vineyards, featuring contrasting vintages with their 2007 Petite Sirah and the much rounder 2008 Petite Sirah.
Another Lake County participant, Guenoc, showed stark contrast between their regular 2008 Petite Sirah and the premium label, the 2006 Langtry Estate Petite Sirah, one of the afternoon’s most striking pours. Meanwhile, my old friends from Lava Cap demonstrated they haven’t totally moved away from Rhône varietals, impressing with their 2007 Petite Sirah and the noteworthy 2006 Petite Sirah Reserve. Another old acquaintance, Napa legend Carl Doumani, ought to have been on hand, but an ATV accident over the weekend placed him on the Injured Reserve List; nonetheless, Quixote, his bold experiment in Napa Valley Petite, continued pushing the envelope for this varietal with their latest bottling, the 2006 Petite Syrah (his spelling).
A number of wineries I have long known, either from last year’s event or from other tastings, had a renewed presence this afternoon in order to showcase their vinification of Petite Sirah among the various wines in their portfolio. My impressions remained favorable for Jazz Cellars’ melodious 2006 Petite Sirah Eaglepoint Ranch Vineyard, Foppiano’s 2006 Estate Petite Sirah (gotta love their pairing suggestions of ricotta ravioli, spicy butternut squash and roasted squab), the mercurial allusion (not temperament) of Cinnabar’s 2007 Clarksburg Petite Sirah, Lodi titans Mettler Family Vineyards 2005 Petite Sirah, a youngish 2008 Petite Sirah that Steve Ryan poured from his Oakstone Winery, and the 2006 Petite Sirah from the still-without-a-website Maley Brothers.
On the other side of the coin, several wineries I had not previously contacted on Sostevinobile’s behalf made strong first impressions. Monterey’s quaintly-named Line Shack scored quite well with their 2008 Petite Sirah San Antonio Valley. Though present in wine only, Yolo County’s Heringer Estate’s 2006 Petite Sirah proved redolent with jamminess, while the gnarliness of Crooked Vines’ label underscored the intensity of its new 2007 Petite Sirah. Grizzly Republic hearkened back the brief but glorious independence of the Bear Flag Republic, with its unfettered 2007 Roadrunner Petite Sirah; with an equally evocative label, Old Creek Ranch juxtaposed its somewhat tepid 2007 Petite Sirah Branham Obsidian Vineyard with the striking complexity of its 2008 Petite Sirah (can’t recall if they enlisted the same vineyard).
My recollections are intact, however, in distinguishing Seven Artisans from Artezin. The former, one of Jeff Miller’s three labels from his Artisan Family of Wines, bottles the 2007 Seven Artisans Petite Sirah as a straight varietal grown in Suisun Valley; the latter, a division of Hess Collection, focuses on the spicy varietals like Zinfandel and Carignane, while blending both Zin and Charbono into its 2007 Petite Sirah Mendocino County. In contrast, its superb 2007 Petite Sirah Garzini Ranch offers a straight expression of the varietal.
Several of the wineries in attendance offered multiple versions of PS, including, to no surprise, host Concannon. Rather than let their grapes be cannibalized into one of the Franzia’s boxes, they showcased four different bottlings of the grape, most notably their 2004 Heritage Petite Sirah. Following that, I was more partial toward the 2006 Reserve Petite Sirah, though both the 2007 Concannon Nina’s Cuvee Petite Sirah and the 2007 Concannon Nina’s Cuvee Captain Joe’s proved quite amiable. Another PS powerhouse, Clarksburg’s Bogle, brought four variations on vinification: the 2009 Petite Sirah Rosé, a rather mundane 2008 Petite Sirah, the far preferable 2007 Petite Sirah Reserve, and a wine to forgive all others, the 2007 Petite Sirah Port.
Had I plotted out this entry better, I would have targeted Trentadue as my 32nd installation, but, alas, I am only up to #26. As he had last year, puckish winemaker Miro Tcholakov brought both the 2007 Trentadue Petite Sirah and the special reserve 2005 La Storia Petite Sirah Alexander Valley Estate, but flourished most under his own label, the 2007 Miro Petite Sirah. Another fabled winemaker, Angwin’s Robert Foley tantalized with a trio of bottlings from his eponymous line: a premature 2007 Petite Sirah Napa, the more fully-fleshed 2006 Petite Sirah Muscle Man, and a most aptly named 2006 Petite Sirah Pepperland. Another of Napa’s highly-esteemed Bobs, Zinfandel guru Robert Biale, offered up his own quartet of superb vintages: the 2008 Petite Sirah Thomann Station, the 2008 Oak Knoll Estate Petite Sirah, the clever anagram of the 2008 Royal Punishers Petite Sirah, and a new Rhône blend (based on a PS backbone), the 2007 Basic Black North Coast.
On the professed sustainable/organic side, it was no surprise to find Parducci on hand with their 2007 True Grit Petite Sirah, a wine blended with 12% Syrah; I did, however, find their straight varietal, the 2007 Petite Sirah Mendocino County preferable. Meanwhile, I caught up with John Aver of San Martin’s Aver Family Vineyards for the second time this summer and found myself gushing over his 2007 Blessings, an organic Petite. Dry Creek Valley’s Pedroncelli, whose declaration of sustainable practices services as a model for Sostevinobile’s requirements, comported themselves admirably with their 2007 Petite Sirah Family Vineyards, and from the highest vineyard in Sonoma, dedicated land stewards and winemaker Gustafson Family Vineyards poured another Dry Creek star, their 2007 Estate Petite Sirah.
I’m often asked why I spent 12 years studying Latin. What is the value in the 21st century? On this day, though, my classical training bore fruit not just once, but twice, first with Foster’s Stags’ Leap Winery, Carl Doumani’s former flagship, whose field-blended Petite Sirah bore the lofty moniker 2007 Ne Cede Malis, a phrase from Virgil (not Horace!) meaning “don’t capitulate to evil.” And after I tried their 2007 Napa Valley Petite Sirah, a wine softened with Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Carignane, I ambled over to reacquaint myself with John Kinney’s Occasio, a Livermore winery whose name derives from the sententious Publilius Syrus’ maxim, occasio aegre offertur, facile amittitur (opportunity is offered with difficulty, lost with ease). Nothing was lost in his translation of the grape into his wondrous 2008 Petite Sirah Del Arroyo Vineyard, however.
Given Petite Sirah’s prominence as a blending grape, I was rather surprised more wineries didn’t feature a mélange like Michael~David’s 2008 Petite Petit, a wine that marries Petite Sirah with Petit Verdot. Their straight varietal, the 2006 Earthquake Petite Sirah, proved no sloucher, either. I suspect Petite Sirah marriess best with Zinfandel and with its other Rhône varietals, and though I can’t think of a Spanish parallel to the varietal, like Garnacha for Grenache or Monastrelle for Mourvèdre, I know that it melds rather seamlessly in various Iberian blends. As such, I was a bit surprised at the lackluster flavor of T.A.P.A.S. spearhead Twisted Oak’s 2007 Calaveras County Petite Sirah, though, admittedly, it seemed it might open up with aging.
Another given these days is Paso Robles’ affinity for Rhône varietals, so it comes as no surprise that a quartet of wineries from this most expansive AVA made strong showings. Estrella Creek showed an extraordinary 2005 4M Petite Sirah after pouring its featured 2004 vintage. Clavo Cellars came through with a sustainably farmed 2007 Petite Sirah from Catherine’s Vineyard, a wine they choose to pair with a carnivore’s fantasy: pork tenderloin, braised prime rib, roast lamb, roast duck, and pot roast. In turn, Clayhouse championed its striking 2005 Estate Petite Sirah Red Cedar Vineyards, a wine I had enjoyed at the Paso Robles’ Grand Tasting Tour: Mid-Peninsula back in April. And Vina Robles left a strong impression with their delightful 2007 Petite Sirah Jardine.
I had bumped into Kent Rosenblum on my way into this tasting, so it seemed only fit that I should finish off this portion of the afternoon with a taste of the 2008 Petite Sirah Mendocino County from his Rock Wall Wines. Or was it the 2008 Petite Sirah Dry Creek Valley? Once again, my notetaking was not as scrupulous as it ought be, but the wine was splendid, and I knew I’d be seeing them again on the upcoming Saturday at the 5th Annual Urban Wine Xperience in Oakland (the topic of my ensuing blog entry).
The sheer volume of wineries cited here attests to the popularity of, and potential, for Petite Sirah on the West Coast. But is it really the next Zinfandel, as a recent article claims it portend to become? From my standpoint, P.S. I Love You would need to become more of an external advocacy, rather than an industry affinity group, to make sufficient headway along these lines. And that still overlooks the reality that the grape does not express itself with as much Zinfandel is capable of doing—an oversimplification I know, but pretty much every wine this afternoon fell within the chalky vs. spicy dichotomy. Nonetheless, it’s still an intriguing grape, fraught with potential.
Finally, I can’t quite bring myself to call this wine “Pet” or “Pet S,” as some have take to in their literature. That’s not quite so bad as “Vindependence,” but still. At 2009’s Symposium, I thought there was considerable momentum to return this grape to its original nomenclature, Durif, primarily to distinguish it verbally from Syrah, the grape that, along with Peloursin, accounts for its lineage. This year, I don’t think I heard “Durif’ even in passing. As we might say in Latin, inusitatissimus!
I attended last year’s event, so I found reading your report an excellent way to update my own impressions. You continue to provide what is probably the most comprehensive and best written blogs on wine happenings in our fiscally challenged state. Mr. Yarrow at Vinography may craft the best synopsis of an event before it happens to generate interest; you’ve got the results covered.
Thanks for your great recap. It appears that the book was worth its weight in gold for you. Good suggestion. (I listen.)
BTW- Durif will never become a popular name for PS in the US, if most of the members of PSILY have anything to do with it. It’s been Petite Sirah in the US, since it arrived (1884), and would then totally confuse yet another generation of wine enthusiasts, if we tried to go backwards…