There’s nothing petite about Petite Sirah. The robust red grape is also known as Durif and is mostly grown in Australia and California to produce full-bodied red wines.
You’ll find my Top 10 Petite Sirah reviews and ratings here.
5 Surprising Facts about Petite Sirah:
1. Petite Sirah it should not be mistakenly spelled as Petite Syrah, which is a small berried clone of the Syrah grape variety from the French region of the Rhône Valley.
However, Petite Sirah still has a familial connection to Syrah, as it is a cross of a Syrah pollen-germinating with a Peloursin plant which is another French red wine grape.
Syrah is the main parent grape of Petite Syrah. Peloursin is the main parent of Petite Sirah. Syrah only has a minor role in Petite Sirah. The grapes all become more difficult to distinguish in their maturity.
2. Petite Sirah has a resistance to downy mildew, which made it popular in France in the 18th century, although it is rare in France today.
The plant leaves on a Petite Sirah vine are actually quite large, although the berries can be small and tightly packed. The grape does better in drier climates since a rainy climate can produce rot on the berries.
3. The flavour from Petite Sirah wines is a very robust, tannic and dark. With lots of blue and black fruit aromas and flavours, Petite Sirah also offers notes of black pepper and herbs.
4. It can even develop a great chocolate undertone after spending some time in oak. It is darker in colour and more acidic than its distant parent Syrah, and has great aging ability of 20 years or more.
Petite Sirah can also be found in Washington’s Yakima River Valley, Maryland, Arizona, West Virginia, Chile, Mexico’s Baja Peninsula, and Ontario’s Niagara Peninsula, and even Israel.
5. Petite Sirah pairs well with steak, especially those with lots of marbling such as rib eye or striploin. Researched by Lesley Quinn.
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