Petite Sirah – Deep Red Cellar

Memorable Wines…

I wouldn’t say I’m one of those people who had a lightning bolt moment when I discovered wine. You know the scenario…Jenny drank a glass of 50-year-old Château Lafite Rothschild at her Uncle Doug’s retirement party when all of the sudden time stood still, angels sang and she knew from that moment on she would dedicate her life to wine. Definitely not me. That being said, there have been a couple of wines that made an impact on me as I have navigated through my stages of wine enjoyment and learning.

…And it’s not that the wine(s) were necessarily grand. It’s more they spoke to me at the perfect time in my wine journey to make an impact. So you wanna know what they are?

The first “A-ha” moment was when I tasted a bottle of Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia. I was living in Italy, it was my anniversary and I was dining with my husband at an oceanfront, rooftop restaurant in Possilipo. It was dusk when we arrived and the setting was…well, you can probably fill in that blank, it was movie-edited romantic. I realize that is a pretty impactful package even if I was drinking milk but I believe the memories tied to wine play a big role in the way we look at wine. Our waiter helped us decide on the Sassicaia. I had heard of this illustrious wine but wasn’t ultra familiar with it. I knew it was iconic and special but not sure what grapes were even in it or why it was so special. In fact, I can’t even remember the vintage we drank, thinking it was either a 2002…or 2005. I do remember taking my first sniff and first sip. It was so incredibly complex, unlike anything I’d ever had before. It was the first time I had ever smelled or tasted what I call a “meaty” wine, it was a wine I could almost chew. It was like drinking the best spicy beef stew I’d ever tasted with loads and loads of earth-driven aromas and flavors all gushing forward like kids pushing their way to the front of an ice cream line. It was the first time I realized wine was capable of actually sparking emotion.

My second impactful wine was a 2007 Petite Sirah from Niner Wine Estate. The moment was not fancy or special, I was just meeting my friend, Jen, for dinner. I was the mom of a then 7-year-old (whose 17 today) and my husband was in the midst of a seven-month deployment so this was honestly a “morale dinner” (one of my survival mode tactics). We went to what was then a relatively new restaurant in Coronado, CA called Leroy’s Kitchen + Lounge. I don’t know what I had to eat nor why we chose the Niner Petite Sirah but I do know, it was the first time I had ever heard of and drank Petite Sirah. I could not believe how it felt, how it tasted and how classy the bottle looked – I’m a sucker for a good looking bottle. The wine felt like velvet had turned into liquid magma and coated every nook and cranny of my mouth. I became keenly aware of the role weight played in wine. Prior to that, I had not thought of wine having weight or mouthfeel. The wine tasted sensational. Because of that bottle, I’ve been a big fan of Niner Wine Estate ever since. Not that all of their wines fall in the “sensational” category but it’s easy to sit in their corner when their wine made such an impact in my journey.

I will never forget either that Sassicaia or Niner Petite Sirah. My experiences and palate have changed and broadened a lot since then. I’ve been fortunate to have tasted many more fantastic, high-quality wines. But the fact remains, those two wines had stand-out moments for me and will be preserved in the halls of my brain that are dedicated to wine. Assuming brains have halls…and dedicated spaces for things like wine.

Que Syrah Syrah

Syrah, “…the kind of guy who wears cowboy boots with a tuxedo. Rustic, manly, yet elegant….” A well put description from Karen McNeil in her book, The Wine Bible.

Syrah originated in France, specifically the Rhone region. In Northern Rhone (where the only red grape allowed is Syrah), it shows itself as an elegant and savory wine. In Southern Rhone, it is used in blends, especially with Grenache and Mourvèdre, often referred to as the popular blend “GSM” (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvédre). Washington Syrah tends to lean more toward the style of Northern Rhone while Australia and California Syrah is often velvety with more jam and spice characteristics. In case you’re wondering, Shiraz from Australia and South Africa is in fact, Syrah, it was just renamed when it landed in those countries. Syrah is grown in many other countries such as Argentina, Spain and Chile to name a few.

Syrah is inky dark and comes with a good hit of tannin (that bitter/astringent feeling on the front of your gums and on your tongue) especially when bottled on it’s own. Any way you slice it, Syrah is showy and full bodied with fruit forward flavors of blackberry, blueberry, boysenberry, and plum rounding out with leather, tar, tobacco, smoke, smoked meat, spice and chocolate (to name a few).

It is important to note that California Petite Sirah, which has similar characteristics, is not the same as Syrah. There are a few theories but, in my opinion, the most legitimate explanation is that Petite Sirah is actually Durif, a cross of Syrah and Peloursin (both grapes from the Rhone region in France).

By the way, if you’re looking for a Valentine’s Day gift, I would like to point out that Syrah (and Australian Shiraz in particular) has the ability to pair quite well with dark chocolate.by

Pairing Wine And Food

A friend requested I write about pairing wine and food. I was somewhat hesitant because I felt the post would either become a dissertation or be so short it would barely clear a paragraph.

There are many avenues to take for pairing, from mandatory adherence to a strict set of rules to “Vinotyping” and taste bud count affecting how a person tastes (i.e. Why You Like The Wines You Like by Tim Hanni, MW). I lean more towards the the later. In my opinion, there is only one thing you need to know: drink what you like, like what you drink. Choose a wine you enjoy and desire to drink with whatever it is you’re eating. Conceding to pairing the alleged “appropriate” wine with food will not make the pairing better if it’s not speaking to you in the first place. It will however, make for an unpleasant dining experience.

Taste is personal but I believe there are parameters we generally share. Most people establish some level of tolerance for acidity and most people like sweet food. There are even a small percentage of people who cultivate a liking to bitterness. Accordingly, consider the following basic guidelines; use them as a starting off point then follow your own personal palate preferences:

BASIC WINE AND FOOD PAIRING GUIDELINES:

Intensity: match intensity of wine and food (i.e. light wine-light food, heavy food-heavy wine)

Spicy food: pair spicy food with high acid, off dry, medium-sweet wine – try brut Rosé, Albarino, Riesling, or fight fire with fire and pair with a high alcohol spicy wine like Syrah or Zinfandel

Fatty food: pair fatty food with a high acid wine like an Vinho Verde, unoaked Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc, or a tannic red like Mourvèdre, Cabernet Sauvignon or Tempranillo

Salty food: pair salty food with a high acid wine or wine with a bit of sweetness – try something sparkling like Champagne, a crisp Falanghina or a tawny port (think pretzels dipped in caramel)

Sweet food: pair sweet food with wine that has a high level of sweetness or fruitiness – try a late harvest wine, Ice wine, Moscato d’Asti, which has a slight effervescence, or for something fruity try a newer vintage Shiraz or Petite Sirah, these will probably be best for those dark chocolate pairings.

My ultimate advice is to acknowledge and embrace your individual tasting preferences. If you want Chardonnay with your steak and your friend prefers Cabernet Sauvignon…congratulations, you have both nailed your pairing!

~Drink what you like, like what you drink!~