Opus one wine tasting4/25/2023 ![]() Our guide to the best Opus One vintages will help you narrow down your choices and build a rewarding collection of these iconic wines. To pick the best vintages for your own collection, you’ll want to consider which of these two styles you prefer as well as whether you plan on reselling your bottles on the secondary market in the future. Some vintages are fruit-driven and intense in flavor, while others are delicate and bright. I’d never had such an acidic example of Opus One before and it proved just how diverse in flavor these wines can be.ĭesignating one year as the best vintage year for Opus One is a difficult and subjective task wines from two different years may both be fantastic in completely different ways. When the sommelier revealed the wine to be a bottle of 1981 Opus One, we were both surprised. Neither of us was sure who the producer was. This wine was racy, acidic, and so lively that I almost thought the sommelier had served us a much younger Cabernet by mistake. I managed to identify three of the wines ( Harlan Estate, Hundred Acre, and Dalla Valle ), but we were both stumped on the fourth wine. ![]() We decided to challenge ourselves to see whether we could guess which producers made each of them. Two parcels, totaling 100 acres, are within the renowned To Kalon Vineyard. These are complemented by the combined 70 acres of the Ballestra and River parcels, which envelop the winery. In the vineyards, hand-harvesting and other traditional approaches are taken wherever they work best.A few months ago, I went to a blind tasting with a colleague and we were served four bottles of aged California Cabernet Sauvignon. The estate vineyards of Opus One, comprised of four parcels, sit in the western portion of the famed Oakville AVA in Napa Valley. It remains an ongoing testament to the founders’ vision of a singular wine that transcends generations. Rising gracefully from the vineyards, Opus One winery stands in subtle celebration of the land and the open space that surrounds the estate. Guided by the vision of our founders, winemaker Michael Silacci combines intuition and technical acumen with the dual perspective of viticulturist and winemaker. From tasting berries to careful sorting and extended aging in new French oak barrels, each stage of the winemaking process is afforded the same meticulous consideration and attention. After 18 months, the Opus One wine is bottled and held an additional 15 months until release on October 1st each year. Place, often defined as terroir, represents the geography, the climate and the essential human element which is captured in the wine’s balance between power and finesse, structure and texture. The essence of time is expressed in Opus One wine by the character of each vintage. The facial profile of the two founders is visible on their iconic label. Producing luxury wines from its Napa Valley vineyards, the partnership made its first vintage in 1979 and has made wine at Opus One since 1991. Opus One is a partnership founded by Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Chateau Mouton Rothschild in Pauillac, France, and renowned Napa Valley vintner, Robert Mondavi. Learn about Opus One, it’s history, the winery and the wine.
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