Durif produces tannic wines with a spicy, plummy flavour. The grape originated as a cross of Syrah pollen germinating a Peloursin plant. On some occasions, Peloursin and Syrah vines may be called Petite Sirah, usually because the varieties are extremely difficult to distinguish in old age. In the 1860s the French botanist François Durif kept a nursery of several grape varieties at his home in the commune of Tullins where he most likely had plantings of both Peloursin and Syrah. At some point the two vines cross pollinated and Durif discovered a new grape variety growing in his nursery. It was
Peloursin California vineyards that thought they were planted with Durif/Petite Sirah were found to be field blends that contain some plantings of Peloursin. In addition to being a parent of Durif, Peloursin was also crossed with Persan to create Joubertin. DNA testing also suggest a relationship between Peloursin and Bia blanc which share some morphological similarities but the exact nature of that relationship is not yet known. Plantings of Peloursin are often confused with its offspring Durif and this was particularly the case in California where many plantings of Petite Sirah/Durif were discovered to actually be Peloursin. In the Jura region,