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2010 Petite Sirah, Todd Brothers Ranch, Alexander Valley 750ml
Color: Purple-black
Aroma: Outstanding floral-violet and lavender aromas backed up with substantial blackberry, cassis, and licorice notes
Taste: Black current and blackberry fruit, quite lively and balanced. The fruit entry is followed by peppery spice, roasted herbs, chocolate, licorice, and leather. Quite viscous mouthfeel and long, persistent finish of blackberry, chocolate, and coffee. Long, persistent finish of blackberry, licorice, and black cherry fruit.
History: The steep slopes and bright red soil of the Todd Brothers Ranch in Geyserville are the perfect terrain for growing unusually good Petite Sirah. Each year, we're floored by the intensity of these jet-black, tiny grapes that produce such balanced, yet substantial, wine.
Production: In 2012 we harvested the Petite Sirah from the ranch separately from the zinfandel, in mid-September. The grapes were trucked to the winery in 1/2 ton picking bins and then carefully sorted on a conveyor belt to pick out any less-than-perfect clusters on their way to the crusher. At the fermenter, we pitchforked whole clusters into the tank (about 10% of the total volume) to help moderate the tannins and help produce lovely violet and lavender floral character in the wine.
We fermented the grapes by our traditional method of native yeast fermentation, using the yeasts on the surface of the grapes to ferment the grape must. This native yeast method maximizes flavor, color, and complexity from the grapes. At dryness, the wine was gently pressed in a membrane press and pumped to traditional 60-gallon older French oak barrels.
The wine was aged for 14 months in barrels - we prefer the flavor of the fruit to not be overpowered by too much oak flavor, hence the older age of oak - so 95% of the barrels were three years old (or older). This wine is 100% from the Todd Brothers Ranch, and is 99% Petite Sirah. We feel this wine should easily improve with ten or more years of bottle age.
2011 Petite Sirah, Todd Brothers Ranch, Alexander Valley 750ml
Color: Purple-black
Aroma: Extremely brooding and intense, earthy, coffee, chocolate, blackberry, cassis, and licorice notes.
Taste: Beautifully intense black currant and blackberry fruit, balance with an intense coffee and peppery spice. The fruit entry is followed by notes of earth, roasted herbs, chocolate, and black licorice. Quite viscous mouthfeel and long, persistent finish of blackberry, chocolate, and coffee.
History: The Todd Brothers Ranch, located outside of the town of Geyserville in the Alexander Valley, is an ideal site to grow intense, substantial Petite Sirah. The bright red, rocky soil and the steep slopes of the vineyard make the vines struggle, to survive, and the resulting grapes are jet-black and tiny. The resulting Petite Sirah is astonishingly intense, luscious, and complex; an ideal wine for grilled meats and robust meals.
Production: In 2011 we harvested the Petite Sirah in mid-September. The grapes were trucked to the winery in 1/2 ton picking bins and then carefully sorted on a conveyor belt to pick out any less-than-perfect clusters on their way to the crusher.
We fermented the grapes by our traditional method of native yeast fermentation, using the yeast on the surface of the grapes to ferment the grape must. This native yeast method maximizes flavor, color, and complexity from the grapes. At dryness, the wine was gently pressed in a membrane press and pumped to traditional 60-gallon older French oak barrels.
The wine was aged for 14 months in barrels - we prefer the flavor of the fruit to not be overpowered by too much oak flavor, hence the older age of oak - so 95% of the barrels were three years old (or older).
The wine is very intense, dark, and complex, tasting very much like a wine from the Southern Rhone Valley of France. It should easily improve over 10 or more years and last for over 20 years of bottle age. A great wine for the cellar.
2012 Petitie Sirah, Louvau Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley 750ml
Color: Black-Purple
Aroma: Blackberry, cassis, plum, black pepper, clove, chocolate.
Taste: Blackberry, cassis, and chocolate on entry. Great texture and mouthfeel, a big wine but with lots of fruit and spice, and a luscious, sweet tannic finish. Absolutely delicious in its youth, but able to improve and age for many years in the cellar.
History: A rich, round, sensuous Petite Sirah from one of the best vineyards in the Dry Creek Valley.
We are always impressed at the intensity and balance of the wine made from these grapes. Always jet-black in color, with racy flavors of cassis, blackberry, plum, and black pepper spice, this is one of the most approachable Petite Sirahs we make. The wine has great velvety mouthfeel and enough tannins to go with the hearty dishes and grilled meats. One of our favorite wines to go with holiday meals.
Production: Making Petite Sirah is always an adventure. It's a race between fruit and tannin, so the winemaker needs to make decisions that help make it soft and flavorful, while taming the tannins. 2013 was a perfect year to help with this process, because the ideal weather made for perfectly ripe flavorful grapes without too much tannin.
We were able to sort the fruit and crush it to small fermentation bins which could be carefully "punched down" to gently extract the flavors. The grapes were fermented using only the natural yeast population on the surface of the grapes, and at dryness the wine was gently pressed - pumped to traditional 60-gallon French oak barrels. We kept the wine in barrel for 22 months to gain complexity and soften the wine.
