This Wine Wednesday I am drinking a class of I Due Gatti Petite Sirah 2022. If you’ve never heard of I Due Gatti, a New Jersey based winery, do not worry, most haven’t except those who read my blog or are in my family. Thats because I Due Gatti is my brand. I make wine and this year, I made Petite Sirah.

I developed a love affair with Petite Sirah during the pandemic. It was a huge surprise to me since the first time I tasted this grape, years ago, I was not a fan. I had an epiphany after a guided tasting and a number of Petite Sirah samples.

Petite Sirah is a red grape that originated in France but made its way to California  and was “introduced into Californian viticulture by Charles McIver. He imported Petite Sirah for his Linda Vista Vineyard, at the Mission San Jose in Alameda County, entering the US through the East Bay,” according to the PS I Love You website.

Unveiled by Francois Durif, a botanist in France in 1880 as a new variety,  it is a crossing between Syrah and a grape called Peloursin. It is also called Durif in France, named for the man who discovered it. While planted in other countries such as Australia, California is really it’s best growing area.

For Wine Pairing Weekend posts, we are asked to share not just wine but food pairings. For Petite Sirah, I can think of no better pairing than steak on the grill. If it were not snowing out right now, I would consider making one for lunch today but the weather is not cooperating. When I make steak on the grill, I make a simple marinade with whatever wine I am drinking that evening, add worcestershire sauce, herbs from the garden – rosemary, time, and sage usually. The grilled steak can stand up to the high alcohol on these wines and neither the food nor the wine will be out of balance, in my view. There are many much more advances ideas for BBQ dishes that would pair well with Petite Sirah.

My Petite Sirah is very full bodied with loads of blue and black fruit, cedar, and too much oak. I aged my wine in a small wooden barrel. It is almost 17 years old and while I haven’t used it often, I did not think it would impact this much oak to the wine. The wine is in no way as refined as the Petite Sirah I tasted from other producers but it is in line with much of the grape’s profile. I am hoping with time, it will lose this overwhelming oak note.

I have been making wines for many years. Each year, I chose different grapes. I put quite a dent in the collection which was around 145 bottles at the start of the pandemic but still I have a way to go, My neighbors have held their own and shared the bounty.

Each vintage I learn a little bit more about winemaking and it’s complexities. I can say that home winemaking has given me the utmost respect for professionals. It’s such a balance and at any phase can go wrong.