2017 Petite Sirah

Readers who, with plenty of justification, view Petite Sirah as a variety best suited to making powerful, broad-shouldered and brooding wines owe it to themselves to check out Aaron Jackson’s skilled handiwork with this often-overlooked variety. While Jackson’s 2018s show the depth and power that one expects from Petite Sirah, they are also aromatically complex and, somewhat shockingly, on the graceful side. The wines aren’t made with (over-) extraction and while new oak always plays a noteworthy role (up to 85%) in some of the wines, depending on vintage, it serves more to enhance the fruit than to take center stage, and the tannins that it brings are always well-managed. Jackson’s wines are built for the long haul, so some patience, or at the very least some decanter time, is highly advised, even in a graceful vintage like 2018.