Petite Sirah

As the cliché goes, there is nothing “petite'' about Petite Sirah. Contrary to its name, Petite Sirah is not petite (small) at all. This wine is substantial, inky black in color, and high in tannins. It’s also delicious, eminently enjoyable, and quintessentially Californian. While some winemakers go solo with single-variety wines, many will blend it into other wines to achieve more color and concentration, especially in vintages where extraction may not be as great. This might come as a surprise, but you have probably had Petite Sirah more times than you can remember, only it was blended into a red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon to achieve greater power and intensity, yet not put on the label. Imbued with massive pigment, muscle, and power, it seems to excite a polarizing passion: for some, it’s the only variety they consider worth drinking; for others, it’s an all-out attack on the senses. Is the grape for everyone? Maybe not … but then neither is 90% cacao chocolate, heavy metal music, curative massage, or anything else we consider intense!

Working The Land

Does soil influence the flavor of the final wine?

Traditionalists answer unequivocally “Yes!” Soil is a key element of “terroir,” the natural environment in which the vines grow, along with climate (temperature, rainfall), topography (altitude, drainage, slope, aspect) and sunlight.

A more unorthodox view holds that the influence of soil on what you taste in the glass is a myth. Maynard Amerine and Ann Noble, two famous names at UC Davis, California’s premier wine school and wine research facility, did a study on the topic. Though the study is based on Chardonnay grapes, they concluded that the following holds true for all winegrapes: “no outstanding sensory differences were observed in wines produced from different soil type locations.” The key word is “sensory” (sight, smell, taste). They are not saying that the soil doesn’t affect vine behavior (yield, growth cycle, etc.). 

The subject is most certainly up for further debate. 

As noted above, Petite Sirah is a vigorous grape. And while qualitatively and historically it is most associated with the North Coast’s Napa Valley and Mendocino, Lake and Sonoma Counties, it is not a grape that has shown itself to dramatically favor specific soil types beyond those excelling in the soil/drainage/root stock equations that have the effect of de-vigorating the vines so they do not over crop. Going a step further, most vintners who stand out with this grape believe that, as important as any other decision, dry farming established/older vines is fundamental for making high-quality Petite Sirah; dry farming naturally helps control vigor and creates innate balance in the vine.

Officially, there are some 10 Petite Sirah selections available, with the lack of clone diversity partly due to the genetic stability of the grape, but also to a lack of interest on the part of growers and researchers. Notably, clones 4.0 and 4.2 classified by UC Davis are sourced from the Gamble Family’s Library vineyard, while clones 6, 7, and 8 all come from Napa’s Stag’s Leap Winery, and clone 9 originates from a vineyard in Australia’s Rutherglen region.

For more on clones of Petite Sirah in California, see UC Davis’s Foundation Plant Services Grape Program. 

A couple of viticultural decisions stand out with Petite Sirah. First is trellising. Head-trained old vine Petite Sirah can differ greatly from younger vines trained on vertical trellises. As with Zin, many maintain that old bush Petite Sirah vines with naturally low yields, somewhat thicker skins, deep roots that help them survive hot, dry weather, and just enough shade to protect the grapes from desiccation, are unquestionably best. Others favor vertical trellising, arguing that it gives more uniform exposure to sunlight, allows for better airflow to reduce the risk of rot and contributes to a more even ripening of the berries, which reduces raisining and its associated overripe flavors and, at times, harsh tannins.

Although younger Petite Sirah vineyards are mostly irrigated today, California’s old vine Petite Sirah is dry farmed, so adequate winter rainfall is essential. Dry farming also requires vines to be planted with wide spacing (10 x 10 or similar) to prevent over-competition for scarce water.