A couple of weeks ago, I received an email from the Seattle Magazine Washington Wine Awards asking me to participate in a survey of top Washington wines and wineries and emerging trends. One of the questions was to pick the top "Emerging Varietal - a wine grape making an impact as a single bottling or in blends, whether new on the scene or a classic varietal that's creating buzz again." Previous winners were Tempranillo, Grenache, Malbec and Cabernet Franc. On the list for 2012 were Barbera, Viognier, Gewurztraminer, Mourvedre, Syrah and others, including Petit Verdot. I consider Syrah, Merlot and Riesling to be varieties making a comeback, but not quite there yet. So I picked Petit Verdot, a variety widely used (usually in small amounts, under ten percent) in "Bordeaux-style" blends, and, occasionally as varietal bottlings.,

While Petit Verdot is used mostly as a blending varietal, increased bottlings of varietal Petit Verdot is an indication of the grape's trendiness. Today's wine scene seems to revolve more around "newer" bottlings, rather than resurgent varietals. In the past year, winemakers have asked me to taste their Petit Verdots and tell them if they should bottle it as a varietal. On this basis, Brad and Ruth Riordan bottled their 2008 Petit Verdot from Red Mountain and Tero Estates will be releasing a 2008 Petit Verdot this year. Yesterday, I was barrel tasting with Trey Busch at Sleight of Hand Cellars, and he showed me a 2010 Petit Verdot from the Blue Mountain Vineyard that was stunning: exotic aromas with a tapestry of deep, complex fruits and flavors, with superb balance. It is to be bottled into 25 cases of magnums. When released, it should score at least 19 points, possibly 19.5.

What is it that makes Petit Verdot so interesting? First of all, it is not an easy grape to grow. The name means "little green" which comes from its notorious tendency to ripen slowly. Sometimes, in cool years, the grape stays green while other grapes have been harvested. The variety has fallen out of favor in Bordeaux for that reason. In Washington State, with more frequent warm harvesting seasons, Petit Verdot can ripen more successfully, with the green color turning to crimson in the late autumn. It is typically an aromatic wine, emiting smoky, exotic perfumes, and a beefy one, adding color, power and muscle to the so-called Bordeaux blends. Here are my tasting notes on a few examples.

2008 Seven Hills Winery Petit Verdot, Walla Walla Valley ($32)

I tasted this at the winery a few days ago. It is nearly sold out, so it will not appear in an upcoming issue of the Review of Washington Wines. Brilliant ruby colored, it emits sultry aromas of wild berries, currants, mulberries, orange peel, sandalwood and oriental perfumes. The dark fruits are thick and chewy but elegantly wrought, interwoven into a tapestry of flavors: red fruits, licorice, orange peel, graphite, and mountainside minerals (from the Minnick Hills vineyard in the northern edge of the AVA). The back picks up notes of dried orange peel, roasted nuts, and squeezed pomegranate juice, and moderate oak (40% new French) followed by ripe moderate tannin and acid finish. 18.5/20 points.

2008 Robison Ranch Cellars Petit Verdot, Red Mountain ($36) - September 2011 issue

This vintage turned out to be so striking that Brad and Ruth Riordan decided to bottle a portion of it as a varietal. It exhibits a deep garnet color and intense aromatics (a trait of Petit Verdot) of roasted raspberries, cherries and currants with scents of dried roses, rubbed sage and smoldering incense. The flavors are permeated with semi-dried macerated berries and nuts, coffee grounds and bittter orange peel on a chewy tannin finish. Blended with 10% Grenache. 18.5/20 points.

2007 Gilbert Cellars Petit Verdot, Wahluke Slope ($36) - February 2011 issue

This wine exhibits a deep purplish color and an intoxicating nose of blackberries, cassis and black cherries with scents of crushed roses, violets and oriental incense. On the palate, the dark fruits are deep and well saturated, imbued with notes of licorice, bittersweet chocolate, minerals and scorched earth. The flavor intensity continues on the back with sensations of macerated currants and berries, kirsch liqueur, twisted orange peel, dried cherries and cinnamon bark, followed by an intense sweet-dry tannin finish. Kudos to winemaker Justin Neufeld for this 19/20 points.

Other noteworthy Petit Verdots:

2007 Forgeron Cellars Petit Verdot, Columbia Valley ($30) - 18.5/20 points - January 2012

2008 Saviah Cellars Petit Verdot, Walla Walla Valley ($30) - 18.5/20 points - December 2011

2008 Januik Petit Verdot, Red Mountain, Ciel du Cheval Vineyard ($35) - 18.5/20 points - October 2011

2008 Cor Cellars Petit Verdot, Horse Heaven Hills, McKinley Springs Vineyard ($22) - 18.5/20 points - April 2011