2006 Syrah Melville Vineyard

Starting with the 2007 vintage, Chad Melville (of Melville vineyard note) has gone 100% to Diam corks. "The variability of natural cork is too risky for me," he said. Melville likes the spiciness that whole-cluster fermentation gives. "Stems help to absorb the overt fruitiness of wines," he told me. "Too many California pinots are simply about fruit and don't have the complexity that I'm looking for." Melville takes advantage of the counsel of friends and grape clients like Greg Brewer, Steve Clifton and Sashi Moorman, as well as his own wine-drinking passion, which runs across the world. "The best way to know whether or not you're doing a good job is to know what the best guys in the world are doing. That'll put you in your place pretty fast."