Doesn’t it seem to you like folks with the name “Junior” and “Little Joe” always end up having bad attitudes? When you’re called “little” anything for most of you’re life it’s not surprising that you might have something to prove to the world — a little chip on the shoulder about playing second fiddle to someone or something else. Personally, I think Petite Sirah has got the same sort of complex. Always being known as the “Little Syrah” (no matter how you spell it) has got to suck. It’s no wonder that this little grape packs a big wallop of flavor and tannin when it gets a chance to show its stuff in the ring.

Petite Sirah (aka Petit Sirah, Petite Syrah, and Durif) was the sole focus of this month’s virtual wine tasting part known as Wine Blogging Wednesday. 54 bloggers from around the world tasted 76 variations of this grape, and their opinions have been collected by this month’s host Sonadora, who runs the blog Wannabewino.

Wines from Israel, Mexico, Chile, Australia and several different appellations in the US were tasted. The short story? Petite Sirah is big and it’s bad. When it’s good, that is. Catch my drift? If you don’t know much about this grape, or of you’re looking for recommendations on a bottle, you’d be hard pressed to find a better resource than the 54 reviews collected as part of Wine Blogging Wednesday #40. Check ’em out!