Petite Sirah, its the purple in Purple Lips

(*Still unable to attach pictures, sorry)
The theme for my tasting group this last week was Petite Sirah, one of my favorite Varietals. It's what I was drinking when I came up with the name of this blog. Don't be fooled by its name(a.k.a. Duriff), there is nothing petite about this varietal. It got its name because it has smaller berries than its father in the Rhone Valley, Syrah(Petite Sirah is a cross between Peloursin and Syrah). These smaller berries, however, provide a larger skin to juice ratio giving the resulting wine more color and unless made properly a whole lot of chalky tannin. These qualities made Petite Sirah a perfect blender for Syrah in the Rhone and Zinfandel in California. For a quick history of the varietal from the Petite Sirah Advocate group, "P.S. I Love You", click here.
I love Petite Sirah because it is a varietal that is very friendly to today's average consumer who might like it for it's fruit forward, to-die-for aromas but it is also interesting and complex enough for those real winos who need some depth in their glass. In our group, we tasted eight Petite Sirahs, all of them from California where most varietal Petite Sirah is grown, although I hear that Argentina has quite a lot of acreage planted to Petite Sirah too. The top four finishers are listed below with tasting notes.

1. Guenoc, North Coast, 2002
This Petite got first place overall with 5 people out of 8 giving putting it in the number one spot. What set this Petite apart from the rest was the palate. Not too harsh and full bodied. Soft tannin covers not just the back of the palate as the varietal is meant to do, but also the front and mid palate too. Aromas of mocha, sweet vanilla and Christmas pudding showcase the oak aging accompanied by the ripe plum and raisin varietal character with some hints of fresh mint and peppercorn. Good acidity follows the smooth palate with a nice long finish. It’s a crowd pleaser and at about $17.00 it’s a great value if you are a Petite Sirah fan.

2. Bogle, Clarksburg, 2004
We were surprised to see this wine end up so high in the ranks because of its fantastic price. $9.00 should be enough to by this wine and at that price why not get two? The nose offered up plenty of ripe Petite characters with a hint of saw dust and cedar. The body on this was comparable to the Guenoc with nice soft tannins giving way to a long finish. This is a well made wine at a fantastic price point, it’s Bogle’s forte.

3. David Bruce, Central Coast, 2004
One of the bigger names in Petite Sirah, this wine was also very ripe giving a sweet cotton candy aroma on the nose supported by the usual jammy berry fruit. The palate also showed its ripeness with a bit of a weak mid palate but with good tannin on the finish. Honestly, I expected a bit more from this wine since the price tag is $25.00. The group liked it more than I did.

4. Vinum “Pets”, Clarksburg, Wilson Vineyard, 2004
This is a popular sell and I liked it more than the group as a whole did. They source all the fruit from Wilson Vineyards in Clarksburg and give a portion of the proceeds to their local animal shelter. There is a cool dog the label that belongs to the Viticulturalist, Ken Wilson. Back to the wine. I liked this one because it was a bit different on the nose. I got a lot of ripe tangerine, geranium, and a candied fruit character not unlike Wine Gums, one of my favorite English candies. The mid palate wasn’t all there but of course the tannin caught up to the wine on the back of the palate. The long finish left me thinking of creamy strawberry and those Wine Gums. It’s a $14.00 wine here in GA but I know it sells for around $10 in CA.

5. Wilson Vineyards, Clarksburg, 2003- $10.00 *Previous Post*
6. Parducci, Mendocino County, 2003- $10.00
7. Jewel, California, 2003- $10.00
8. McManis, California, 2003- $13.00 (Unfortunately this wine was corked.)

Moon Mountain Vineyard, 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma County

I have heard a lot of hype about this wine and its big brother, the Moon Mountain Reserve. This winery has been around for a while but has only came into its own under the Chalone Wine Group a few years ago and now since last years acquisition, the Diagio Wine Group. The label just changed to the one shown but the Website still shows the old label. I am having some trouble with the site and can't get the label onto the post, my apologies.

Color: Dark Bing cherry color, showing slight aging on the edge of the glass and very clean and opaque.

Nose: Very enjoyable. Nice leather and damp earth aromas. Kind of like how the farm smells just after a quick rain shower settles the dust. Mocha and vanilla flavors marry with a tart berry character, something like boysenberry. As the wine opens up however, the fun aromas give away to a strong chemical aroma something like nail-polish or rubbing alcohol.

Palate: Pretty non-descript, week mid-palate and a good amount of tannin on the back palate and a lingering finish showcasing the wines cooler-climate acidity.

Overall: I like this wine a lot for its value, at $13 it’s a good buy. From the nose I was expecting a bit more on the palate, but I guess I will have to go out and buy the Reserve to get the whole bang.

Root :1 Cabernet Sauvignon, Maipo Valley, Chile 2003

Here's a fun wine. I have to admit the package totally sold me on this wine. I sell it for $9.99 but the package is fantastic and makes it look like it's a $30 bottle of wine. I can't say that the wine lived up to its casing but it is still a good value for under $10.00. It is called Root 1 because it came from grapes on their own rootstock, not grafted due to Phylloxera. Does that in itself make it a better wine? Who knows, the verdict is still out.

Color: Dark burgundy, bright crisp edges, no sign of aging.
Nose: Lacking the earthy slatiness that I have come to appreciate in Chilean Cabs. Riper fruit with some licorice and clove spice undertones. The evening after opening more chocolate and damp earth came through.
Palate: Covers the palate well, long finish, almost has a slight sweetness going on but it may just be alcohol. Very new world in style, and why not. It is what it is and it's very drinkable. Don't plan on aging long though.
Overall: I like it, plus points for staying under $10.00 with a great package, oh, and real cork too. I give it a B+

Domaine LaFage, Vine De Pays, Cotes Catalanes, 2004

~$10.00
This is a great summer sipper from the South of France in the Catalan region which is on the Spanish border in the Western Languedoc. The winemaker is Jean-Marc LaFage who is famous for making great blends from the traditional grapes of Southern France and Spain. He worked with Eric Solomon to bring us Las Rocas Garnacha from Spain, a great wine too. Lets dissect the label. Domain LaFage is the name of the winery and Cote Est at the top mean literally means eastern slopes. At the bottom you can see "Vin de Pays" often shortened to VdP, this is the designation for "table wine" however in the Languedoc-Roussillon region where this wine comes from, many great wines are coming out with this designation. By labeling there wine with VdP, winemakers can have a lot more freedom in winemaking and grape growing, rather than following strict rules traditionally followed by everyone in the region.

This wine is made up of 45% Grenache Blanc, 48% Grenache Gris, and 7% Macabeo. All of these varieties on there own, I have found in readings, do not make very exciting wines and all have there part in blends. Macabeo brings acidity and doesn't oxidize easily. Both Grenaches bring more fruit and weight to the wine.

This wine is fresh, clean, and very enjoyable even after its been open for a day or too. You will find a nose full of citrus, floral, and apricot/peach aromas with a well balanced and full palate. The finish is crisp and again, clean. It's a new summer favorite.
I give it a B+