Winemaker Notes
the blend is made up of 7 different vineyards, primarily in the Willow Creek and Adelaida Districts, with a small amount of fruit from the Templeton Gap District for spice. The unique terriors of the each district bring a different element to the blend. Deep aromatics of ripe red and black fruits, black pepper, and toasty oak give way to wild berry, black cherry liqueur, licorice, and smoked meats along a full bodied but elegant frame, with a great finish framed by new French oak.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Petite Sirah is blended with 11% Syrah and was aged 22 months in 65% new French oak puncheons. Deep ruby-purple, the nose opens with touches of tar, graphite and chargrill-laced black and blue fruits with notes of bergamot and dried flowers. The palate is full-bodied but lighter and fresher than the nose might lead you to believe. It has good ripeness, a firm, grainy frame and a long, floral finish with very nice lift. 320 cases produced.
With its deep color, firm tannins and bold flavors, there is nothing petite about Petite Sirah. The variety, originally known as Durif in the Rhône, took on its more popular moniker after being imported to California in the early 1880s. Quintessentially recognized today as a grape of the Golden State, Petite Sirah works well blended with Zinfandel and finds success as a single varietal wine in the state’s warmer districts. Somm Secret—Petite Sirah is not a smaller version of Syrah but it is an offspring of Syrah and the now nearly extinct French Alpine variety called Peloursin.
Paso Robles has made a name for itself as a source of supple, powerful, fruit-driven Central Coast wines. But with eleven smaller sub-AVAs, there is actually quite a bit of diversity to be found in this inland portion of California’s Central Coast.
Just east over the Santa Lucia Mountains from the chilly Pacific Ocean, lie the coolest in the region: Adelaida, Templeton Gap and (Paso Robles) Willow Creek Districts, as well as York Mountain AVA and Santa Margarita Ranch. These all experience more ocean fog, wind and precipitation compared to the rest of the Paso sub-appellations. The San Miguel, (Paso Robles) Estrella, (Paso Robles) Geneso, (Paso Robles) Highlands, El Pomar and Creston Districts, along with San Juan Creek, are the hotter, more western appellations of the greater Paso Robles AVA.
This is mostly red wine country, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel standing out as the star performers. Other popular varieties include Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Grenache and Rhône blends, both red and white. There is a fairly uniform tendency here towards wines that are unapologetically bold and opulently fruit-driven, albeit with a surprising amount of acidity thanks to the region’s chilly nighttime temperatures.