Petite Sirah I Love You

09/04/2026

How are you doing? We've been out for a bit, with harvesting of our own vineyard we care for. All picked, and extraordinarily early, as others are professing.

Aratas Wine Napa Valley has been to The Breckenridge Wine Classic!
Robert Biale Vineyards' tasting room manager takes you o a tour of the winery. https://www.facebook.com/reel/1609364677213039
Davis Estates: Our culinary team just debuted some delicious new pairings. You can savor the below menu (click on link) through October 9, 2026. Enjoy!
Bogle Family Vineyards has a bargain for you: This month, we’re celebrating with 30% off for Wine Club Members and 15% off for guests on eight Gold and Double Gold medal-winning wines from this year’s California State Fair Wine Competition. Shop by the bottle or try them all with our California Wine Month Sampler Pack, available all month long.
Berryessa Gap Vineyards: Don’t miss the final dinner in our Culinary Journey Through Tuscany series! 🍷✨Join us on October 17th for our Taste of Sicily Dinner, an unforgettable evening celebrating the flavors and traditions of Sicily.
Michael David Winery: You pick the songs. We pour the wine. The pianists bring the chaos. Killer Dueling Pianos is NEXT SATURDAY Sept 12 at Bare Ranch! If you missed the last one, don’t make the same mistake twice 😉 Grab your tickets before they’re gone!
Denier-Handal Wines is found at Locals Tasting Room: Congratulations to Denier Handal wines on the Gold Medals for the wonderful Sangiovese and Rosè of Sangiovese 👏🏻👏🏻🎊
Florence Vineyard: Harvest #31! First time in August. These Zinfandel grapes are for Rosenblum Cellars, the winery I originally worked with in 1996. - If he can do that with Zin, imaging what he can do with Petite!
Heringer Estates Family Vineyards & Winery: Have you met our Wine Club Manager, Stacy Heringer-McElfish? If you are a wine club member, you probably have already met Stacy. She is the woman behind the customizable wine club at Heringer Estates. (And, it's a great one!)

Tomorrow, more catching up, and back on track!

08/18/2026

Reflecting: Jose Diaz and I have created nine symposiums for growers, producers, and media people. For the public, we created 11 Dark & Delicious events. Helped the TTB to label Durif and Petite as synonyms (rather than separate varieties). Most wine writers now understand that Petite Sirah didn't happen accidentally by some breeze blowing through Francois Durif's Montpelier property.

Dr. Carole Meredith helped us to set up a few rows of Petite Sirah (with Bogle Family Vineyards sponsoring it), at UC Davis. We took two Blue Tooth train rides with Patrick Henry's Luxury Train. Two motor home trips were taken across the county; one was on the East Coast, the second on the West Coast.

We've participated in national wine festivals, I can't even think of more, but I know there's more. Twenty-five years is coming and all's well for now. The members have been the greatest gift of my wine professional life.

There is a big shout out to the Petite Sirah I Love You wineries… So many winery supporters over the years. Major contributors over the years, like Bogle Family Vineyards, Berryessa Gap Vineyards, Michael David Winery, and Robert Biale Vineyards, have kept us afloat, with a plethora more standing ready.

Media has been great. Cyril Penn, of WineBusiness Monthly is our biggest media supporter through the years, with many other media (like Dan Berger, who's been there since the start, like Foppiano Vineyards). And public fans, who’ve supported every minute.

Yes, I’m reflecting on the miracles that have happened along the way, as I’ve also been helped by my entire family Katie Kelley, Melanie Hoffman, and Lyla Diaz Moore, when help’s been needed. None of it would happened without the strength and resilience of them all.

Twenty five years silently coming to fruition. It's a miracle.

08/17/2026

California Grown has a great story about Berryessa Gap Vineyards: "Berryessa Gap sources a small percentage of grapes from Mendocino, Napa, and Sonoma vineyards, but works exclusively with growers who bought their vines from Martinez Orchards Grapevine Nursery, and the resulting collection includes a Sonoma County Chardonnay and a Mendocino County Pinot Noir alongside their Hwy128 Petite Sirah."

Now, I want to taste The Sire, as a complicated blend. Berryessa Gap has a real soft spot in their hearts for Petite Sirah. It's worth the beautiful ride into Yolo County, where life is on "County Time." Dine downtown, where great foods are delicious and it will all be well worth your memories of a delicious day.

2021, THE SIRE
A winemaker-select blend of Petite Sirah, Syrah, Zinfandel and Peloursin, The Sire is named in honor of the prized, champion Suffolk breeding rams grazing the rocky hills that later became our Coble Ranch vineyard.

93 POINTS - Wine Enthusiast"

https://shop.berryessagap.com/product-details/0080/2021-the-sire

08/11/2026

THIS - This is the creation of the future, when having wine is a civilizing beverage. At holidays in my growing years, we - as children - had a tiny crystal glass, with Manischewitz wine in it, of course. We sipped it, made funny faces, and giggled. And here I am today, so many years later, and I still sip fermented grape juice. These children might be future winemakers, being so closer to the source.

I think I just got one future wine enthusiast, and I wasn't even trying. My grandson had two your friends visiting with him, over the weekend and into yesterday. They had been fishing nearby, dining in the pergola, swimming in the pool, and discovered the fruit on the grape vines (rows of Sangiovese and Gamay). One child, especially, found Nirvana. He took his water glass and filled it to the brim with grapes, eating them so fast it made my head spin, before I even knew what was going on. And eating pretty fast, to boot. (Lots of seed roughage.)

I had to slow him down, because when his mother came to pick him up and he realized he had to be leaving, he headed right back to the vines to get more tiny grapes for home. I had to catch him, because he was all but crawling back to the vines so I wouldn't seem him. He didn't realize how good I am at reading body language. "Caught!" And off he went home with mom. (Crisis averted.)

So, yesterday we had a re-do. Fishing, pool, dinner, home. As I could see the thrilling temptation building in him. I had to say, "I'm sorry, Fred, we've had to put nets on all the vines." The sadness came over his sweet little face. I said softly, "It's getting to be time for harvest, and if we didn't cover them, the birds would come and eat them all. These are wine grapes."

The blood drained from his face, when he realized he should have started earlier when I was in the kitchen cooking their dinner, instead of his staying in the pool.

He has tasted the fruit of Bachus and he will remember, he now knows the nectar of the Gods. It's going to be a lasting memory of this summer, heading back to school next week. He now has a childhood memory of enjoying the forbidden fruit, until he comes of age. And, there's always next summer in the vines, too!!

08/05/2026

A tutorial in steps, how red wine is made. Thank you, Wine Enthusiast!

From start to finish, this is how red wine is made. 🍷

08/05/2026

Who doesn't love baby owls? From eggs to hatched. And, Mom? She is very curious about the camera?

08/04/2026

This is like being on tour at a winery, said she after working a five wineries. It's quick and fascinating. Enjoy! Harvest is on! Ridge Vineyards is your host.

08/04/2026

Do you just love Foppiano Vineyards like so many of us do? We just love calendars like this one They are so helpful, right?

🎶🍷🍕 AUGUST EVENTS 🎶🍷🍕
More info at Foppiano.com/events or link in bio

08/03/2026

Stanton Vineyards: Image 1: This close-up photograph of thick, gnarled, deep-rooted old Petite Sirah vines (specifically, known for thick trunks), is vibrant when sunlight hits the rough bark. The background communicates: "These roots run deep."

Image 2: A photorealistic close-up of a pair of sun-worn, hardworking hands gently cupping a perfect, heavy cluster of inky-dark, ripe Petite Sirah grapes. The grapes are dusty with 'bloom.' Natural, warm sunlight makes this cluster look inviting. It communicates: "This is a perfect harvest."

Image 3: The photograph of four hands are toasting around a rustic, weathered wood barrel top table. They’re each holding a glass filled with deep, ruby-red Petite Sirah. The background is a landscape at 'golden hour.' The mood is warm, convivial, and appreciative. It communicates: "This is what it's for."

Image 4: Here we have a beautiful, single, wine bottle of Stanton Vineyards Petite Sirah. It’s standing on a rough stone ledge in a sunlit cellar. A single, elegant glass of the deep red wine is next to it. The background is softly out of focus, and communicates: "The end result of passion."

Three Cheers to Stanton Vineyards! You can call them for an appointment. Doug Stanton would love to hear from you!

+1 707-967-0482, or [email protected]