2022 Pedroncelli Winery Petite Sirah Dry Creek Valley 750 ml

On the scale of inky, dark-fruited intensity, Petite Sirah can stand toe-to-toe with just about any other bold red wine. And when it comes from the warm, rocky hillsides of Dry Creek Valley—look out. 

Pedroncelli’s estate vineyards here have the trifecta for opulent Petite Sirah. Abundant sunlight evokes the grapes’ deep color and tannic structure. Well-draining gravelly soils stress the vines into producing small, concentrated berries. And the cool night air keeps freshness and acidity in balance. In 2022, a notably warm and dry year, that terroir yielded a rich, dense, and robust wine, with powerful dark fruit and subtle notes of cocoa and winter spice. 

The Pedroncelli family knows the merits of this valley better than most. They’ve been making wine here since 1927, when they started by selling grapes to home-winemakers during Prohibition. They were the first winery to use the Sonoma County appellation on their labels, and they later helped form the Dry Creek Valley AVA. Today, the family has accumulated more vineyard sites throughout the valley, including the Bushnell Vineyard on the valley’s eastern benchlands. It’s a prime site for the Petite Sirah that makes up a large portion of this bottling. 

Pedroncelli farms their estate vineyards thoughtfully and sustainably, tending them by hand, using cover crops and compost to replenish the soil, avoiding all synthetic pesticides. That attention to detail carries over to the cellar as well, where their team gave this Petite Sirah 16 months in 30% new American oak, contributing subtle notes of spice and toast. 

By the time it was bottled, the wine had matured into a lush and full-throttle whopper, with the polish that comes from generous cellar treatment. Too often, Petite Sirah has been relegated to roles as a blender, but Pedroncelli’s rendition proves that the variety can absolutely shine in the spotlight—and compete with the biggest, boldest reds out there.