We've been through the history of Cab, Pinot, and Zinfandel in Sonoma County over the last few posts. Now we are onto a rare one, an oddball, an out-of-favor grape, or what ever you might want to call it. Just don't call it Syrah because they are not the same, though they are related.
Petite Sirah is a fun one, mostly because it's not trendy. You won't find people getting all snooty about PS like they do with Cabernet or the very trendy Pinot Noir. It's a grape used for blending until fairly recent times.
Let's dive into the history of the very purple Petite Sirah in Sonoma County, in California, and in other parts of the world.
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| Petite Sirah grapes at Sonoma County's Pedroncelli Winery where they've been growing it for over a century image from pedroncelli.com |
1880 In southern France botanist Francois Durif creates a new variety by crossing Syrah and a rare grape, Peloursin. Then he names after himself. Durif creates a variety with very tight grape clusters, making it susceptible to rot in southern France's climate. It needs somewhere with a dry, warm growing season. Hmmm.
1884 Charles McIver imports Durif to America under the name Petite Sirah. He planted his Linda Vista Vineyard in the San Jose area with several French varieties, including PS.
1890 There is documentation of Concannon Vineyards in Livermore Valley shipping Petite Sirah. It sounds like James Concannon knew Charles McIver.
1900 After phylloxera wipes out most vineyards, Petite Sirah is one of the most popular grapes replanted. Farmers were interplanting Petite Sirah with Syrah, Pinot Noir, and others making field blends. There were calling these vineyards Petite Sirah if it was the main grape, so exactly how much PS was planted isn't clear.
1908 The Durif wine grape is introduced to Australia.
1964 Concannon Winery releases a '61 Petite Sirah, believed to be the first PS labeled by the varietal name. Note: The U.S. laws at that time said a wine has to only contain 51% of a single varietal for it to be labeled with that name; it's now 75%.
1964 Chateau Souverain in Sonoma County releases a wine labeled as Petite Sirah a couple of weeks after Concannon.
1967 Foppiano Winery, established 1896 in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, releases its first wine labeled as a Petite Sirah.
1970 There are 1,400 acres of Petite Sirah in Sonoma County, trailing Zinfandel and Carignon. Napa County also has 1,400 acres where it's second to Cabernet Sauvignon.
1980 My first experience with PS is from Concannon, probably a '77. This is the first premium wine that I remember buying.
1981 (circa) I became a fan of Field Stone Winery in Sonoma County's Alexander Valley because of their '78 PS.
2010 There are 560 acres of Petite Sirah in Sonoma County and 750 in Napa. Yes, both counties have added PS vines.
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