{"title":"Mountain Tide Wines","description":"\u003cp\u003eThere are few grapes as polarizing as Petite Sirah. Often dark, heavy and tannic, the wine can be - for lack of a better word, a bummer. Unfortunately one of the main elements that often gets forgotten about Petite Sirah is that it’s a grape that is loaded with natural energy. Due to the fact that it is often left on the vine until sugars reach astronomical levels in order to maximize color and density, the natural acidity and freshness of the grape is generally lost and sloughed off along the way, many weeks before it even gets to the winery. If there was ever a grape that needed a hero, it’s Petite Sirah.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAnd a hero they found in Scott Kirkpatrick. Scott founded Mountain Tide along with his wife Allison Watkins in 2016. An outlet for their artistic expression, winemaking, and visual arts respectively, they decided that the focus would be Petite Sirah. Always with an eye on capturing the grape's natural energy and tension, Scott's wines are not your typical Petite Sirah.This becomes readily apparent when you pour a glass. Instead of something that is so dark that it absorbs all light like a black hole, his wines range from lightly brickish red to dark ruby.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHe works with growers he knows and trusts throughout the state. This allows him to control yields and pick early, often weeks before many other PS producers. Most grapes are organically grown and dry-farmed. This makes for wines that are fresh, buoyant and complex. Bright red and blue fruits and floral aromas waft out of the glass often accompanied by loamy, earthy mineral flavors. He works with sites all over the state, each wine being vastly different, proof of petite sirah’s ability to project terroir. winemaking is minimalist with native yeast and minimal sulfur. The wines are bottled, unfined and unfiltered.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe bottles themselves are labeled with what are perhaps some of the most lovely labels around. Allison's beautiful artwork seems to represent the ever changing nature of the Golden State. They allude to the mystery within and seem to say “expect the unexpected”, California's unofficial motto. This is truly a passion project. As of last year, Mountain Tide has become Allison and Scott’s full time job. They know it will take a long time to change commonly held perceptions of Petite Sirah but are fully committed to doing so. If they keep making wines like this, they won't have to wait too long.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[],"url":"https:\/\/sf.flatiron-wines.com\/collections\/mountain-tide-wines.oembed","provider":"Flatiron SF","version":"1.0","type":"link"}