Wine Review: 2005 David Bruce Petit Sirah

California, Central Coast

$21.99 from The Fresh Market specialty food store

OK, enough talk about Petit Sirah, let’s drink some!

We drank this wine from the David Bruce winery over two days, first with a grilled steak and then with grilled burgers. As promised (see previous post), this wine brought a lot of tannins, but unfortunately to the point where it was just downright astringent. In fact, I’m pretty sure this wine is too young and needed to sit in the cellar a few years to balance out a bit. I had hoped that a day on the shelf would mellow it out, but in fact it seemed even more astringent the second day we had it.

Visually, the wine had a beautiful, dark ruby color. The nose was fairly complex. We picked up a wide variety of aromas, including smoke (only right after opening), Luden’s cherry cough drops, pickles, raspberries, wet wood and paint…yes paint, the oil-based kind. The cherry and raspberry components dominated, especially the first day. The paint and pickles didn’t really show through until the second day.

On the palate, I regret to say that the wine was unremarkable. The tannins pretty much overpowered any other subtle flavors. Food-wise, it worked with both the steak and the burgers, as one would expect, but I would have to say that it was far from delicious. For 22 bucks, I would have much preferred a California cab or merlot or maybe a cheap Bordeaux. I've had young Bordeauxs that were much more sippable. Maybe a few years in the cellar will tame this wine and make it more enjoyable…but for now, I have to say I would pass on buying it again. I’ll have to seek out another Petit Sirah some day to compare. Maybe a Durif from Australia next time.