2009 Syrah Il Padrino Bien Nacido Vineyard

Paul Lato told me that his basic philosophy is to buy the best possible fruit that he can get, from the best-tended vineyards, "because it is completely obvious that this is the only way to make superior wine. All the hard work in the world won't make average fruit into excellent wine." That's an expensive proposition, he admits, and by necessity limits the scale of his work. Lato's production was especially low in 2009, when severely reduced yields cut his production by over 50%. All of the grapes here are destemmed and the wines are raised in anywhere from 25% to 100% new French oak "from the best tonneliers, regardless of price, because you can't have mediocre wood ruining great, expensive fruit."