This month the Wine Pairing Weekend bloggers will be exploring Petite Sirah and Petite Sirah wine and food pairing. Our host this month is Wendy of A Day In The Life On A Farm.

About Petite Sirah (“P.S.”)

For the uninitiated, here’s a quick 411 on Petite Sirah (“Peh-teet sear-ah”) 

• Created by in France by François Durif, it is the love child of a noble grape, Syrah, and an obscure peasant grape Peloursin in 1880
• In 1884, the grape was inadvertently imported to Northern California as “petite sirah” and the name stuck.
• It is no longer grown in France, and approximately 90% of the world’s P.S. vineyards are in California.
• It is referred to Petite Sirah because of the size of its small(petite) berries.
• Produces big, typically ink-colored wines that tend to be tannic with moderate to high-acidity.
• While it has most been a blending grape for adding color and tannins to wines (you’ll often find it blended with Zinfandel), it is being bottled more and more on its own.
• Sometimes (increasingly it seems) referred to as Durif

I learned about P.S. the best way one learns about wine – by tasting. For several years I attended “Dark and Delicious” tasting put on by the P.S. I Love You organization. The last one I attended was in 2015. Check out the list of producers below!

Artezin Wines Ballentine Vineyards Berryessa Gap Vineyards Bogle Vineyards Bianchi Winery * Carol Shelton Wines * Clayhouse Wines Concannon Vineyard Dashe Cellars Diamond Ridge David Fulton Winery Delectus Winery Denier~Handal Vineyards F. Teldeschi Winery Fenestra Winery Field Stone Winery Foppiano Vineyards Fulcrum Wines *

Gustafson Family Vineyards Harney Lane Klinker Brick Winery * Kokomo Winery * Las Positas Vineyards Lava Cap Winery Marr Cellars Mettler Family Vineyards Michael David Winery Mineral Wines * Miro Cellars Neal Family Vineyards Overland Wine * Page Mill Winery Pendleton Estate Vineyards and Winery * Parducci Wine Cellars Ridge Winery

Robert Biale Vineyards Rock Wall Wine Company Sones Cellars Stanton Vineyards Sundstrom Hill Winery * The Crusher Theopolis Vineyards * Trentadue Winery Tres Sabores Twisted Oak Winery Ursa Vineyards Vasco Urbano Wine Company * Venteux Vineyards * Vezer Family Vineyards Volk Wines * Wilson Vineyards Wooden Valley Winery

To this day those events hold wonderful memories for me. Not only because of the wine poured, but also because the amazing variety of foods offered that paired well with P.S.

In My Glass

Theopolis Vineyards is located in California’s prestigious Yorkville Highland AVA, which is situated along Highway 128 in southeastern Mendocino County south of the Anderson Valley near the border of Sonoma County.

The main distinguishing factor of the AVA is its elevation. The result of which is that all 24 current vineyards are planted between 850 and 2,500 ft. and benefit from high diurnal temperature ranges and the mélange of soils including gravel and old brittle rock found in benchlands. The appellation’s elevation moderates its warmer temperatures.

This wine is produced from 100% estate fruit

Tasting Note: Medium-purple color with dark fruits, cedar, vanilla, and white pepper with hints bramble, roasted herbs and dark chocolate. On the palate, it’s medium-bodied with vibrant acidity and well-integrated fine-grained tannins. It shows ripe, fresh plum, black cherry, black raspberry, vanilla, cola and dark chocolate flavors and a lengthy finish. 13.9% abv| SRP – $39

This elegant and sophisticated wine is different than most of the Petite Sirah I cut my teeth on. I appreciated its lower alcohol, lighter body and expertly managed tannins. Highly recommended!

On My Plate

We paired Kare Kare (how to pronouce), a long simmering Filipino stew with a rich and thick peanut sauce. It’s widely regarded as a comfort food typically served on special occasions. Note: If you’re like me and you’re curious about the origin of dishes, I enjoyed this article that discussed a few theories about the origins of the dish.

The traditional recipe is composed of oxtail, along with string beans, eggplant, bok choy, and banana blossoms. Sometimes ox tripe and tail are used. My wife’s version omits (thankfully, as far as I’m concerned) tripe and tail.

I wish I could give you the recipe, but my wife doesn’t use one. She’s Ole Skool like that when it comes to Filipino food.

I played a hunch on this pairing. While Petite Sirah has a reputation for pairing well with beef, that’s not what inspired me to pair it with this wine. I thought it was more important to pair to the sauce rather than the protein.

It was a delightful pairing. The wine’s acidity cut through the richness of the peanut butter sauce.

About Theopolis Vineyards

Theopolis Vineyards is a small lot vineyard and hand-crafted winery founded in 2003 by Theodora R. Lee aka Theo-patra, Queen of the Vineyards, a bold and dynamic Texan and San Francisco trial lawyer who never forgot her Texas farming roots.

Seeking a weekend retreat in Northern California wine country, she purchased a rolling property in the Yorkville Highlands in 2003 and established a five-acre vineyard planted to Petite Sirah and Zinfandel in 2003.

Wine Critic Robert Parker bestowed upon wine made from grapes harvested from Theopolis Vineyards a stellar rating of 94-96 points, a spectacular showing for the vintner’s first harvest in 2006 explains her website.

Up to that point she had been selling her fruit. But in 2012, when one of the major buyer refused to purchase fruit because it hadn’t reached the contractual level of ripeness, she decided to use winemakers to custom crush. Two years later she bottled that wine and created her brand.

The Theopolis Vineyards lineup of wine include Petite Sirah, Pinot Noir, Symphony, Theo-patra’s Cuvee Cerise blend, and a Petite Sirah Rose.

Looking for more Petite Sirah love and food pairings? I invite you read the other articles about Petite Sirah this month……

• Camilla of Culinary Cam shares A Meaty Match: Petite Sirah from Monterey with Merguez Sausage and Saucy Ribs 
• Cathie of Side Hustle Wino paired Petite Sirah and Smoked Brisket a Match Made in Heaven 
• Susannah of Avvinare writes  “PS I love You, A Change of Heart”
• David of Cooking Chat shares “Petite Sirah Pairings” 
• Martin ENOFYLZ Wine Blog visits Theopolis Vineyards Petite Sirah + Kare Kare
• Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm sings Que Syrah Sirah
• Gwendolyn of Wine Predator says “PS I Love You: Dark and Delicious Sierra Foothills Petite Sirah from Cantara, Kehret, Lava Cap” 

Yorkville winery named one of the “best wineries in the US” 
The Daily Meal, a food and beverage website founded by former Forbes CEO Jim Spanfeller, named Yorkville’s Theopolis Vineyards one of the “13 best wineries in the US for 2022.” Theopolis was the only Mendocino County winery to make the list. Theopolis was selected because of viticulturist and owner-founder Theodora R. Lee’s high scoring wines, including her estate petite sirah, and the $10,000 scholarship she provides to African American women pursuing viticulture or a related field at the University of California, Davis. 

Sources:

• https://rhonerangers.org/wine-education/red-grapes/more-about-petite-sirah
• https://www.amusingmaria.com/history-of-kare-kare/
• https://panlasangpinoy.com/kare-kare-recipe/
• https://www.wine-blog.org/index.php/2020/01/25/american-heritage-variety-petite-sirah-when-you-get-that-call/
• https://www.yorkvillehighlands.org/appellation