Chris Sherman of the St. Petersburg Times gives this a glowing review under the heading, “Uncorked: Petite sirah is small in name only.”
Petite sirah is not syrah or shiraz, although it is a direct descendant straight from the Rhone. Nor is it petite. Petite sirah is big, really big, from the juiciest of grapes, like a water balloon filled to bursting with grape and cherry jam.
It has spice and pepper, plenty of guts. So much that wine writers and fans, I plead guilty, have apologized for its frivolous name and introduced it as a John Wayne of wines. That makes it sound like too much of a tough guy when one of its trademarks is charm, even silky smoothness. Let’s recast with Clint Eastwood or Steve McQueen.
“It has intense tannins, deep color and a lot of acid, but is so well balanced with all this fruit, that it doesn’t comes out hot (with too much alcohol) or “furrish’ (with tannin),” explained Phil Regan, the winemaker at Foppiano. The Foppianos have bottled petite as a varietal for 30 years, and now have it in a third of their Healdsburg vineyards, which produce 10,000 to 20,000 cases a year.
Make its acquaintance now, because this petite sirah is bred for chilly evenings, thick pork chops, legs of lamb, beef stews, grilled sausage and stout cheeses. (Florida has plenty of months for salmon and pinot noir.)
One online reviewer remarked of this wine, “I love wines like this -very giving, but a little unrefined. Like bringing a stripper to the library.” I’m not sure what the hell that means but it’s funny.
On the bluffs of the Potomac River, Tarara is a 475-acre farm devoted to the art of producing fine wines. Each year brings new grapes with their own distinct character and Tarara’s wines are carefully crafted to showcase their true nature. Experience our award-winning wines, relax on our deck above the river or time your visit to include one of our special events. Uniquely located in a 6,000 square foot cave, the tasting room and gift shop are open year round.
TOURS: January through May open everyday 11am-5pm; June through December open Monday through Thursday 11am-5pm; Friday through Sunday 11am-6pm.
13648 Tarara Lane
Leesburg, VA 20176
703-771-7100, Metro DC 703-478-8161
winesales@tarara.com
Owners: RJ (Whitie) and Margaret Hubert
Winemaker: Rob Warren
Easily the best of the three. They offer two levels of tastings:
The Featured Selection – wines that appeal to every palette. Nine wines are tasted – ranging from dry whites and reds to semi-sweet and sweet. ($5.00/per person)
The Winemaker’s Select – includes Tarara’s limited production wines and elegant reserves – for the more discriminating palette. Six wines are tasted – starting with an elegant Chardonnay and finishing with a robust port style Merlot ($10.00/person)
Naturally, we had both. For our tastes, the Featured was by far the better bargain. Not only did we get more wines to taste for half the price, without exception we preferred the Featured wines to their Select counterparts. Whether it’s a matter of our palate (we tend to like pinot noirs) or their wines not aging well (the Selects were typically two to three years older vintage) we just liked the Selects better.
The Cabernet Franc was particularly good as was, oddly, the Merlot.
We have a simple mission at Sarah’s Vineyard. We produce fruity, intense, refined local wines that taste like the land they came from and the year they were grown in. We make wines that are enjoyable from the first sip to the end of the glass. We make wines that go well with food. The Proprietor and the Winemaker love their food as well as their wine, and want to be able to enjoy them together.
Our Estate Chardonnay, for instance, is a lean, elegant French-style wine with the strong mineral flavors of Puligny-Montrachet, a combination of apple, pear and tropical fruit nuances, a light touch of new French oak and a fresh creamy finish.
Most of our wines are single-vineyard designated, many of our wines are estate grown and bottled, and we use almost exclusively French oak barrels in the cellar. Cellarmaster Roberto is tidy and finicky, and tops the barrels twice a week while the wine is aging. We make everything by hand in small batches, usually100 to 400 cases, and most wines have serial numbered bottles. Since our first vintage in 2001, we’ve gotten some great attention for our wines, and as our experience grows, we expect to keep improving.
To get an idea of what we are striving for, you are welcome to peruse the tasting notes, which are written by the Proprietor. Better yet, stop by the Tasting Room the next time you’re in the area, and sample the wines. While you’re here, take a glass, walk through our vineyards, breathe deep, relax, and enjoy the beauty of the surrounding area.
These other wines are all the same producer = Forest Glen, Rutherford Vintners, Hacienda, Cedar Brook, Forestville, Estrella,
Grand Cru, Montpellier, Silver Ridge, Laurier, Bears\' Lair, Douglas Hill, Fox Brook, SeaRidge, FoxHollow, Napa Creek, Napa Ridge, Coastal Ridge, Gibson Winery, Charles Shaw, Antares Cellar, Albertoni Vineyards, JJJ, CC Vineyard,
The California Winery, J. W. Morris, Black Mountain, Crane Lake, Donna Sol
Rating:
2
I think James and I both started buying this with the 2001 vintage; 2003 was the best vintage I remember, by 2005 this was still drinkable but the newer 2006 is downright forgettable. We’ve just stopped buying it altogether.
