red grape · regional specialty
Petit Verdot
Gironde (Bordeaux), France
Say it
puh·teevehr·doh
both terminal consonants silent; stress on second syllable of each word
On the palate
violetblack plumblack cherryblackberrygraphiteblack pepper
How you spot it blind: intense violet perfume with dense purple-black color and firm, grippy tannin
The story
First written down · 18th century, Gironde, France
DNA analysis confirms Petit Verdot is one parent of Tressot (the other being Duras); its own parents remain unknown and it belongs to a Pyrenean family genetically distinct from the Cabernet Sauvignon lineage.
Where it lives
Bordeaux, France · Barossa Valley / McLaren Vale, Australia · Napa Valley / Paso Robles, California · Mendoza, Argentina · Jumilla / Castilla-La Mancha, Spain
Shows up as
still redBordeaux blend