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2003 Switchback Ridge Peterson Family Vineyard Petite Sirah

Not Currently In Auction

Latest Sale Price

October 9, 2022 - $61

Estimate

RATINGS

92Robert M. Parker Jr.

...Aromas of graphite, acacia flowers, blueberries, crushed rocks, and a touch of pepper jump from the glass of this formidably endowed, full-bodied monster. It is deep, rich, but well-balanced and pure...

91Wine Spectator

Aromas of baked blackberry pie, espresso and wild berry are dense and concentrated, with the requisite tannic muscle you expect from Petite. Yet it is graceful, at times syrupy and at the end, delicious. 250 cases made.

91Stephen Tanzer

Blackberry liqueur, violet and a whiff of game on the nose. Then dense and sweet in the mouth, with firm acids giving this fruit bomb a captivating sappy character. The dark berry flavors are further lifted by spice and black pepper notes.

REGION

United States, California, Napa Valley

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,

TYPE

Red Wine, Petite Sirah

Despite its popularity, this grape is quite rare. Less than 10,000 acres are planted worldwide, with the bulk in California. In France, the grape is referred to as Durif. Not to be confused with Syrah, Petite Sirah is a cross of Syrah and Peloursin. The result is darker and fuller.

WINEMAKER