A Perfect Wine: Santa Barbara Co. Syrah Earns Elusive 100-Point Score

published 10/8/20 in the Montecito Journal

For winemaker Paul Lato, “There’s a really big gap between 99 and 100.”

The celebrated vintner, a Polish native who was a sommelier in Canada before he moved to the Central Coast in 2002, has earned many coveted scores for wines under his eponymous label, along with a fervent consumer following. But 100 points for any wine is as illustrious as it is elusive.

 

As impressive as they are, “getting a 97 or a 98 or a 99 – it still means you’re one of many,” continues Mr. Lato. “A 100, though, means your wine is truly special.”

That makes Paul Lato’s 2018 “Il Padrino” Syrah, for all intents and purposes, the perfect wine. The 100-point score comes from respected critic Jeb Dunnuck, who applauds the wine for exhibiting “everything I look for in a great wine: richness without heaviness, incredible complexity, a singular character, and the ability to deliver both intellectual and hedonistic pleasure.” He goes on to note its “masculine, peppery and gamey” characteristics.

The winemaker offers his own description: “It has ripeness, beautiful blackberry, cherry, with some vanilla and violet flavors. And there are other nuances that open up with decantation and with air, as the wine sits. You get different aromatics and structure. Tannins come up, the fruit changes, and the wine becomes darker in the glass.”

 

The perfect score is a triumph not only for the artisanal Paul Lato label, which is a staple at luxe restaurants like Montecito’s Lucky’s Steakhouse and Santa Barbara’s bouchon, but for the wine’s place of origin, too. Indeed, this marks the first time ever that a wine harvested at Bien Nacido Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley has earned 100 points. The legendary vineyard was planted in 1973 by Santa Barbara’s Miller family and remains one of the most sought-after sources in the state for pinot noir and chardonnay, primarily, as well as syrah. Mr. Lato has been contracting syrah grapes from the same specific hilltop block of Bien Nacido for nearly two decades.

 

Paul Lato

“Paul has been a great supporter of our vineyards over the years, and…we’re honored to have Bien Nacido be part of this superb wine,” says Nicholas Miller, VP of sales and marketing for The Thornhill Companies, which, aside from Bien Nacido, also owns Solomon Hills Estate and French Camp vineyards, boutique labels like J. Wilkes and the custom crush facility Central Coast Wine Services. “And I can’t help but echo Jeb’s sentiments when describing the wine: it’s beautiful, concentrated, and powerful without feeling heavy.”

Descriptors from experts and fancy points aside, Mr. Lato says he’s committed to staying humble and to continuing to make wines that are defined, in large part, by where they’re consumed, and with whom. “Many times, a wine will make you turn to your spouse or someone you love, at sunset, with the barbecue on – and it makes you want to say, ‘Honey, life is good,’” he muses. “That can be a perfect achievement, and any wine can become a 100-point wine!”

The 2018 Paul Lato “Il Padrino” Syrah, with a retail price of $90, is sold out. The winemaker expects the price to go up slightly in vintages to come. The bulk of Mr. Lato’s 4000- to 5000-case annual production is vineyard-designate pinot noir and chardonnay wines from throughout Santa Barbara County, which can be purchased through his website, paullatowines.com.  

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