title: Ch.igai Takaha 2013 Samurai Chardonnay (Sta. Rita Hills)
description: This collaboration between American winemakers Greg Brewer and Steve Clifton and Japanese entrepreneur Takahide Sugimoto is stunningly high-toned and buttoned-up at first, with sour cream, yogurt, crushed ant, gunmetal, flint and quinine elements on the nose. The palate is complex and fascinating, with chalk and cement minerality bolstered by lime blossom, kumquat and tonic that opens graciously with time. Drink 2016–2026.
variety: Chardonnay
designation: Samurai