SommSelect Editorial Director David Lynch had kind of drifted away from Petite Sirah, but this wine brought him back—when the occasion calls for something fuller bodied, this Dry Creek Valley red will stand toe-to-toe with Old World big boys like Cornas and Priorat.
First off, there’s nothing “petite” about Petite Sirah—it’s a big, bold wine, and a grape variety which, while ‘born’ in France, has become almost exclusively associated with California. And while there are a few quite good, bargain-priced Petite Sirah wines in wide distribution, the best examples tend to be small-production, under-the-radar bottlings like this impressive second release from D. Pfaff Wines. When I moved to California a little over 10 years ago, my impression of Petite Sirah was of a ‘workhorse’ variety producing inky, blocky (if appealingly cheap) reds. But not only is the variety much less widely planted than I thought, it is, in the right hands, more perfumed, more elegant, and more serious than I’d believed possible. Sourced from the dry-farmed (i.e. non-irrigated) Bernier Vineyard—a heritage site in the Dry Creek Valley first planted in the late-1970s—this delicious, muscular 2014 from D. Pfaff was a revelation for me and a wine that had all of us at SommSelect musing about Old World analogs: Cornas in the northern Rhône came to mind, as did Spanish Priorat (my favorite versions of which are based on another widely disrespected “workhorse,” Carignane). Now in just its second release, this tiny-production bottling is a very exciting find and a wine that’s built to last, too—if, like me, you’d drifted away from Petite Sirah, this wine will bring you back. It makes a very convincing case for this grape in this place.
To get more specific about “this place,” we’re talking about Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley, which Ridge helped make famous with Zinfandels from its Lytton Springs estate. Gnarled old “bush” vines of Zinfandel are the region’s signature, but less talked-about, if equally significant, are its Petite Sirah vineyards. Paul Bernier’s vineyards in Dry Creek are all dry-farmed, a point of pride for growers who feel that vines farmed this way establish deeper root systems (as they search for water and nutrients) and become more “self-regulating” than irrigated vines. As evidenced in winemaker Dustin Pfaff’s selection from Bernier’s old bush vines of Petite Sirah, the result isn’t just more concentration in the fruit but a balance of acid, tannin, and extract.
As noted above, Petite Sirah is not as widely grown as many might believe, and is said to only cover about 10,000 acres in total worldwide (with California home to the majority of those). The grape is believed to have originated in Montpellier, France, where it was known as Durif—so named for the viticulturist who created it by crossing Syrah with a local variety called Peloursin. Hardy and heat-resistant and as loaded with anthocyanins (a type of flavonoid that lends deep color pigmentation) as any ‘black’ grape in the world, Petite Sirah is always a full-throttle red wine experience; when it’s also perfumed and firmly structured, as it is here, it has so much more than just size to recommend it.
This is just the second vintage of Pfaff’s eponymous label;, which makes it all the more impressive (and hammers home the importance of shrewd vineyard sourcing). Pfaff makes his wines at Talty Vineyards & Winery, which is just up-valley from Lytton Springs and is owned by his uncle, Michael Talty, himself a winemaker whose Zinfandels are among the best in the region. The 2014 was aged in 100% American oak barrels (of which 35% were new) and contains 90% Petite Sirah and 10% Zinfandel; just under 200 cases were produced, and we managed to carve out a chunk for our subscribers today.
In the glass, it doesn’t get much inkier than Petite Sirah, and this opaque, almost oil-black 2014 from D.Pfaff is no exception. It’s a dense, brooding wine with aromas of mulberry, huckleberry, blueberry, black currant, tar, leather, ground coffee, bacon fat, and a hint of chocolate and coconut from its aging in American oak. While full-bodied and deeply extracted, it is very nicely balanced by fresh acidity and dusty, firm tannins that frame the wine beautifully. Whereas the general run of Petite Sirah reds tends to be luscious and inky, this one has backbone and a pronounced minerality to it that keeps it nimble on the palate. In addition to Cornas and Priorat, I’d add certain bigger-boned wines from the Ribera del Duero and Rioja (both of which incorporate American oak) to the list of Old World analogs; it’s the mix of sweet and earthy that really appeals to me here, and it’s got a good 10-15 years of bottle aging ahead of it should you choose to lay a few bottles down. I know I’m on board with that, but I will also happily crack a bottle tonight, giving it an hour in a decanter before serving in Bordeaux stems at 60 degrees (the cooler temp helps tame alcohol heat, although I find the alcohol very well integrated in this wine). This would be a great wine to pair with something smoked, particularly duck or brisket; non-spicy Texas-style bbq is going to be my play, as in the attached recipe. Do yourself a favor and check this wine out. It is the real deal. Enjoy!
