University of Texas Rio Grande Valley ScholarWorks @ UTRGV

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations College of Liberal Arts

2015

Syrah (Shiraz)

Gordon A. Crews The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, [email protected]

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Part of the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons, and the Food Studies Commons

Recommended Citation Crews, G. (2015). Syrah (shiraz). In S. C. Martin (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of alcohol: Social, cultural, and historical perspectives (Vol. 1, pp. 1230-1230). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www.doi.org/10.4135/ 9781483331096.n468

This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Liberal Arts at ScholarWorks @ UTRGV. It has been accepted for inclusion in Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ UTRGV. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Syrah (Shiraz) (1112/1200)

Syrah (Shiraz) Syrah or Shiraz is a dark-red grape used to make robust wine and is grown around the world. It is uses as a varietal alone and is also popular in blended wines. The wine produced from this grape is powerfully flavored and full bodied with a very wide range of flavors. It is known by its characteristic floral black-pepper fragrance. As with most other wines, its taste depends greatly on the climate and soils where it grapes are grown. The grape is believed to be one which was brought back from Shiraz in Persia by the 14th-Century crusader Gaspard de Sterimberg. DNA profiling in 1999 found the Syrah/Shiraz grape to be the product of two rare grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse Blanche. Many confuse this grape with Petite Sirah, but this is a completely different grape.

The History of Syrah (Shiraz) The Syrah grape is believed to have its birth place in the ancient Persian city of Shiraz then finding its way to the Southeastern France, but its most popular home in the 21 century is Australia. While it cannot be documented, the Syrah grape and its wine have a very long history in the Rhone region of Southeastern France. The “parents” of the Syrah grape (Dureza and Mondeuse Blanche) are almost extinct, but it has become the most popular and widely grown grape in Australia. The resulting wine is known as Syrah in most parts of the world, but maintains the name of its reported city of birth of Shiraz in Australia.

Difference between Syrah and Shiraz Given the differing names, many people think these are two completely different wines. This is true to a degree but they do come from the same grape. The difference comes in when considering the climate and geographical location of where it is grown. These grapes grown in the moderate climate of the Rhone Valley in France are very different from those grown in the much warmer sun of Australia. As with most grapes the resulting wines can have very different characteristics. Most wine connoisseurs will tell a novice wind drinker to purchase a bottle of each and compare. Both are very bold wines and will have the similar taste qualities of pepper and dark ripe fruit like blackberries. The will also offer that if one likes the stronger fruit tastes they should choose Shiraz, but if they prefer the more earthy tones, then they should choose Syrah. Many European countries use varietal labeling and will label wine produced from these grapes “Syrah”. France, on the other hand, labels wine based on region rather than varietal, so their Syrah wines will have names such as Hermitage and Cote-Rotie. If the wine comes from Australia or South Africa it will almost certainly be labeled Shiraz not Syrah.

Myths about Wine and other Alcohol Use Given the long history of alcohol and wine production, there are many myths that exist.

• Drugs are a bigger problem than alcohol: in that alcohol use is legal and more socially acceptable, it is assumed by many to be less of a problem than other illegal substances. In reality, it is quite the opposite. More deaths and violence is related to alcohol use than all other legal and illegal drug use combined. • A combination of beer, wine and liquor will make one more intoxicated than only drinking one type of alcohol: in reality this has no impact in that alcohol is alcohol and the actual percent of it in one’s blood (BAC level) is what determines how intoxicated one becomes. • A cold shower, cup of coffee, sleep, or making oneself vomit will sober one up quicker: none of these remove the alcohol level in a person’s blood; therefore they may impact the symptoms of the resulting “hang over”, but not the level of intoxication. • Someone who has had too much to drink will look drunk: a person’s appearance can be very misleading when it comes to how intoxicated they may be at any given time. A person’s judgment is generally the first thing affected by alcohol and motor-skills are second. This is why so many people drink and drive, they do not realize themselves how intoxicated they may truly be when they stop drinking. • Hard liquor is more dangerous than beer, wine or wine coolers: the amount consumed and the resulting level of alcohol in one’s blood will determine how intoxicated they are and not simply by what they are drinking. • Alcohol affects you less if you eat meat or a high-carbohydrate meal with it: actually eating while drinking will help slow down the abortion of alcohol in one’s system, but intoxication will still result if too much alcohol is consumed. • Alcohol will not make me gain weight: in reality alcohol is a heavy source of calories, which can inadvertently cause weight gain. • One or two drinks will not affect driving ability: in that alcohol is a depressant drug it begins to slow down one’s reaction time with just one drink. Thus the more one drinks, even if only two drinks, depending on other physical factor that may exist (age, weight, sex, etc.), one can become very intoxicated after only a few drinks. • If a person can abstain for weeks or even months between drinking periods, he or she does not have a drinking problem: how often one drinks is not as important is how much and what negative resulting factors may result. • Alcohol improves sexual performance: alcohol may make people feel less inhibited, heavy drinking negatively impacts sexual performance. • There are no benefits to drinking alcohol: most medical experts support the belief that one drink per day for women and 2 drinks for men are actually beneficial to one’s health. Research has supported that moderate alcohol users have some health benefits and less likely to have heart disease and diabetes.

Gordon A. Crews Marshall University (WV)

See Also: Varietal labeling, Australian Wines, South African Wines, Red Wine

Further Readings Allen, J. F. (1848). Practical Treatise in the Culture and Treatment of the Grape Vine. Boston, MA: Dutton and Wentworth. Grossman, H. J. (1974). Grossman's Guide to Wines, Beers and Spirits (5th ed.). New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons. Johnson, H. (1989). Vintage: The Story of Wine. Chicago, IL: Simon and Schuster. McGovern, P. (2003). Ancient wine: The search for the origins of viniculture. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Pinney, T. (2005). A History of Wine in America From Prohibition to the Present. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. Robinson, J. (2006). The Oxford companion to wine (3rd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.