Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Paul Lato’s 2002 Syrah Long Shot from the Bien Nacido Vineyard is reminiscent of an impressive French Crozes-Hermitage from the likes of Alain Graillot. Aromas and flavors of underbrush, burning charcoal, and sweet cherry as well as cassis fruit are both uplifting and complex. Medium to full-bodied, with a beautiful texture, elegance allied with sweet fruit, and a textured, nuanced style, it offers the ripeness of California along with the elegance and delicacy of a northern Rhone Valley wine.
Rating: 90+
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
A lesser-known but elite AVA within the larger Santa Barbara district, the Santa Maria Valley AVA runs precisely west to east starting near the coast. The valley funnels cool, Pacific Ocean air to the vineyards more inland, allowing grapes a longer hang time to ripen evenly and achieve their full potential by harvest time. Combined with minimal rainfall, consistent warm sunshine, and well-drained soils, it is an ideal environment for grape growing.
Many of the wineries here are small and highly respected, having established a reputation in the 1970s and 80s for producing excellent Central Coast wines like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. More recently, Syrah has also proven quite successful in the region. Many vineyards are owned by growers who sell their grapes to other wineries, so it is common to see the same vineyard name on bottlings from different wineries. Bien Nacido Vineyard is perhaps the best-known and most prestigious.