Clif Family Petite Sirah

Disclaimer: We received the bottle of 2016 Clif Family Petite Sirah as a sample.

Doing research on Petite Sirah reminded me that you need to be careful with Internet data. Several sites repeat, verbatim:

Petite Sirah is an exceptionally rare grape with less than 10,000 planted acres worldwide, growing mainly in California.

I wanted to find out how many of these 10,000 acres are in California. USDA’s report shows in 2017 that there were about 11,500 acres of Petite Sirah in California. Thus, that oft repeated number for worldwide acreage is too low. I found one site, Wine Blog, that provided an alternative figure. This blog stated that there are about 13,000 acres worldwide.

What is not in doubt is that the variety is a cross between Syrah and Peloursin. Petite Sirah is also known outside the US as Durif, the family name of the botanist who created the variety.

Tasting Notes

The Clif Family Petite Sirah was an inky dark purple in colour. The medium intensity nose bore aromas of a blackberry bush after a heavy rainfall. The bouquet was a combination of fruit and damp vegetation.

The flavour was rich with cherry, blackberry, and notes of tobacco. Robust tannins strengthened in the finish.

We paired the wine with Beef Paprikash. The wine’s robust body and strong acidity worked well with the rich food. The wine is drinkable now. It should continue to improve for a few more years.