In a thrilling, tightly-fought contest, the 2009 Frank Family Vineyards SJ Vineyard Reserve Petite Sirah was crowned Champion of the 2012 1WineDude.com Petite Sirah Taste-Off tournament, edging out its Napa neighbor rival in the finals, the 2007 Stanton Vineyards Petite Sirah.
The contest was widely dubbed “The Slapper Down In Napa” by the press, since both finalists hailed from California’s Napa Valley winemaking region.
“Wow… just… wow!” Frank Family’s violet aromas told reporters when asked about its game MVP award-winning performance during the bought. “You know, we were favored, but a lot of people maybe thought that we were too big, that the tannins and alcohol would hog the ball… but we played like a team today!” the MVP remarked as it choked back tears of joy.
Stanton Vineyards Petite Sirah had been a meaty, deep and demanding wine throughout the tournament, widely agreed that it lived up to its $40 SRP ranking, and garnering a reputation as the “George Foreman” of the field of sixteen: stocky, focused and powerful.
But it wasn’t enough against the highly-ranked, slightly-favored Frank Family Vineyards PS. Punishing and also powerful – and, at times, criticized as being too flamboyant for its own good – the 2009 Frank Family displayed depth and poise and prettiness in the final round, to augment its power-forward tannin-and-grip game. Like Ali or Michael Jordan, it was just fun to watch it do its thing – and see it win it all.
Both wines insisted that that they’d be going right back to work on the current vintage.
“Win or now win, vines gotta be pruned, and eventually grapes gotta get picked – and crushed,” Frank Family Vineyards PS told reporters at the close of their post-championship press conference.
No stops in Disneyland for these two stalwarts; only a momentary pause to contemplate and appreciate a fleeting moment (or two) of glory…
2009 Frank Family Vineyards SJ Vineyard Reserve Petite Sirah (Napa Valley)
Price: $65
Rating: A-
A wine that only a Petite Sirah fan could love, but fans of big PS wines will certainly love it. Combining punishing grip, hefty body and unabashed vanilla notes with deep plummy fruit and a strong smattering of violet floral notes, this wine will be divisive, and can probably only either be adored or admonished for being unafraid to be up-front, in-your-face Petite Sirah.
2007 Stanton Vineyards Petite Sirah (St. Helena)
Price: $40
Rating: B+
Meaty and deep, Stanton has crafted a wine that demands attention and feels solid, almost stocky in its presentation. Viscous and big, but with soul and complexity, it’s a bit like drinking bacon which is either awesome or crazy depending on your personal preferences.
Cheers!
p.s. – I made this news report up. Any similarities to events or persons real or imaginary is purely coincidental. Also, bottles of wine cannot speak (no matter how many of them you’ve emptied into your throat in one evening).
