52 Wines in 52 Weeks: Petite Sirah and Lagrein (Blueberry Pie in a Bottle)
Photo via Wikipedia
A recent conversation about pairing wines with pies (it’s the logical follow-on to Halloween candy pairings, and yes, that comes up every year) got me thinking. The truth is, I personally wouldn’t pair wine with pie; pie is clearly a coffee situation. But if you want to play the pairing game and you like a challenge, sure. Entry-level: everything goes with champagne. Beyond that, apple pie is easy; lots of dry whites have apple notes (pinot blanc almost always does, chardonnay frequently does if it’s not over-tropicalized, and Roussanne has a nice blend of orchard fruit notes). Pumpkin pie is unctuous and spicy and might like to hang out with something a little sweet, maybe even a raisiny late-harvest red and almost certainly a ripe Chenin Blanc. Pecan people should probably give up and go with bourbon, but something dry and low tannin is the best bet (dolcetto would work).
Then a friend caught me bragging about my pie-crafting chops and demanded a demonstration, only she wanted blueberry. I said blueberries were not a fall fruit. She said we live in California where everything is an all-year fruit. I said only a transplant from the Midwest would say that. If you’re wondering if this argument is about to get interesting, the answer’s “no,” but I did start thinking about the wine equivalents of blueberry pie. Which is not to say I will be making one for my friend unless she wants to wait until May because I am not backing down on that.
In tasting notes, references to very sweet things like pie or candy can program people to expect sugary wine, and that’s usually not the deal, so if you are allergic to residual sugar don’t be put off by dessert terminology. A dry wine can easily express crème brulee (chardonnay), cherry pie (syrah), passionfruit syrup (New Zealand Pinot grigio) or Cherry Coke (California Pinot Noir). So, when I say “blueberry pie” I am not saying “sugar bomb.” I am saying if you like dense blue-fruit notes in a wine seek out the out-of-fashion Rhone also-ran Petite Sirah (or Durif) and the northeastern Italian oddball Lagrein (now being made quite well in Oregon).
Lagrein is a very old varietal native to (and largely confined to) Northeastern Italy. Petite Sirah is a Rhone Valley grape most commonly found in California these days. These grapes are not close kin as far as I am aware, but they share a wintry stick-to-your-ribs quality, a dense texture, heavy body, assertive tannin structure and a flavor profile that favors dried or stewed blueberries, figs, plums or prunes, and brooding peppery spice. Both are inky, deep purple wines (I think only Tannat and Sagrantino can touch these guys on the color saturation front, so if you are someone who drinks red wine for the anti-oxidants, this is your grape). They share a profound and substantial mid-palate; Lagrein tends to have a longer finish than Petite Sirah. Lagrein is more acidic than Petite Sirah (in fact in Central CA they are sometimes blended to average that out). They are rich, satisfying wines that feel good in cold weather the way Provencal rosé feels good in hot weather. And because they are not trendy, they are usually great values (the occasional exalted exceptions are mostly worth it for a once in a while splurge, they’re really, really good). Good Petite Sirah is largely going to come from Northern California, especially warm zones like Napa (expensive) and Lodi (poets can afford it). Lagrein will almost always come from Alto Adige-Trentino on the Italy-Austria border; it is also seen in New Zealand and increasingly in Oregon.
10 Bottles to Try
Lagrein
Alois Lageder Lagrein (Alto Adige-Trentino, Italy $20)
In my neck of the woods this is the Lagrein you are most likely to stumble across in a supermarket. Deep red in the glass, spiced plum nose. There’s a strong “animal” character to this wine but it’s “meaty” versus the “barnyard” note found in wines influenced by Brettanomyces spores. Its dominant flavor notes are blackberry, blueberry, plum and pepper. If you like game, this is a wine to consider, because it does too.
Brandborg Lagrein (Umpqua Valley, OR $26)
Lagrein is starting to get a foothold in Oregon, and in particular the Umpqua Valley in the southern half of the state. Brandborg seems to be handling the translation pretty well. This is a lovely wine with identifiable “varietal typicity” but influenced by the terroir of the Northwest. Deep, dark hue, tannins in the “mouthfilling” zone, aromatics and flavors ranging from wild blueberry to black currant, plus exotic spice notes (pink pepper, cardamom, clove). There are sub-notes of coffee and cherry pie (Special Agent Dale Cooper would probably give this a thumbs up.) You might have to track it down online, but it’s well worth doing.