We love Petite Sirah and why you should too

Petite Sirah is a mysterious grape that originated in France in the 1880s, but it undeniably reached its greatest heights and popularity in the USA. First, let’s understand that Petite Sirah and Syrah are completely different grapes. They are related, as we will discuss soon, but different. The name Petite Sirah was given by winegrowers as the grapes do resemble small Syrah grapes.

Petite Sirah is synonymous with Durif, named for Dr. Francois Durif, a botanist and grape breeder at the University of Montpellier. Dr. Durif found the grape in a field of Peloursin – a grape from the northern Rhone that is all but extinct at this stage. Peloursin is the mother of the Durif grape, but when Dr. Durif discovered the new variety, he did not know that the father (the pollinating grape) was Syrah.

Petite Sirah is grown around the world (where it is primarily called Durif), including Mexico and South America (notably Chile, Argentina, and Brazil), Australia, and Israel. In France, Durif is grown on fewer than 15 acres in small or experimental vineyards.

Petite Sirah/Durif was introduced into California by Charles McIver for use at his Linda Vista Vineyard in Alameda County. The grape soon found a growing following of wine growers. When phylloxera destroyed most of the Syrah vines in California in the 1890s, Petite Sirah really took off.

When Prohibition became law, the wine landscape in the United States understandably changed. However, Petite Sirah held steady, becoming a favorite among home winemakers in the eastern USA. The tougher skins and smaller berries made Petite Sirah a great grape to ship cross-country. While many wine grapes declined in acreage, there were roughly 7,500 acres of Petite Sirah growing in California in the 1930s.

Petite Sirah’s peak acreage occurred in 1976, but by 1990 the number of acres had fallen to 1,400, equal to plantings in Argentina at the time.

Today, there are roughly 10,000 acres of Petite Sirah planted in California, with another 2,000 acres or so planted in the rest of the USA. I have been told that over 900 Petite Sirah wines are commercially produced in the USA, but many are produced in small quantities and sold exclusively at tasting rooms or through wine clubs.

There certainly is a mostly quiet but extraordinarily loyal Petite Sirah fan base lurking amongst the wine drinkers of America. Some still find Petite Sirah to be an inferior grape producing nothing but simple and uninspiring wines, but these poor souls are, of course, misguided and simply wrong.

Among the fans of Petite Sirah is a proud, loyal group that has created a website for their favorite grape – PSILoveYou (Petite Sirah I Love You). I’m not kidding – check it out.

Fans appreciate the grape as Petite Sirah produces inky-dark purple wines that offer flavors of blackberries, blueberries, brown spice, and licorice. Petite Sirah is often added to other varietal wines to add color and spice. Often, these vital contributions go with attribution. Petite Sirah is incredibly dense in color and fruit, with very high levels of anthocyanins (antioxidants). The wines have an incredible ability to age, lasting two or three decades in the cellar while also being enjoyed in their youth.

Petite Sirah may have originated in France, but it is an American classic and should be embraced just as its unofficial cousin, Zinfandel.

Do you want to better understand wine? May we suggest Be A Beverage Expert (BABE), a guide to understanding wine, beer, spirits, and cocktails.