1994 YORK CREEK PETITE SIRAH
04-1997
Brought to California in the 1870s—at the same time as carignan, grenache and mataro (mourvËdre)—petite sirah is assumed to have come from the same general area, southern and southwestern France. It is not the same as Syrah, the principal grape of the northern RhÙne, but its overall character has more in common with that variety than any other. Dr. Carole P. Meredith of U.C. Davis did the first genetic fingerprinting of petite sirah in 1993. Her results showed that indeed it was not Syrah—nor was it the RhÙne hybrid duriff, as many had assumed. The origins of petite sirah remain as mysterious as those of zinfandel. In many of California’s old zinfandel vineyards, petite sirah is interplanted with carignan or mataro, sometimes with grenache. Having no identified European heritage, it has become as Californian as zinfandel.
Ridge made its first petite sirah from York Creek in 1971. Today, that wine still rivals the best RhÙnes of its era. Over the intervening years, the vines on Dynamite Hill have fully matured—now providing the majority of fruit. Two other small vineyards on the ranch are included here for the first time.
In 1994 we again fermented a portion of the grapes uncrushed, as whole clusters. This adds a freshness to the fruit, and complements the deep, brooding flavors of wines from the fully-crushed fruit. Aged in older oak to accentuate the varietal, the wine’s style is big and full—more reminiscent of the seventies and mid-eighties than of recent vintages.
