Most of the world’s well-renowned wines come from Europe — many of them being either Bordeaux or Burgundy. That’s no surprise, because European wine regions have been established for hundreds of years. The California wine industry really didn’t get moving until 40 years ago, and so it is somewhat amazing that the state can boast of a wine that is regarded by many as world class, but Opus One has attained that status.
It is certainly true that California did produce a few excellent Cabernet Sauvignons even before World War II — Beaulieu Vineyards Georges de Latour Private Reserve, Inglenook, and Simi come to mind. But these wines were sort of California’s little secret; the rest of the world didn’t know about California wines back then. Today, Opus One exports over 20 percent of its wines, mainly to Europe, and you can find it on the wine lists of some of the world’s best restaurants.
Actually, Opus One is not labeled as a Cabernet Sauvignon, because the producers want the option to use different blends of the five Bordeaux red varieties planted in its vineyards — Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot in addition to Cabernet Sauvignon. In reality, each vintage produced since its first, in 1979, has been at least 80 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, and up to 97 percent in two vintages. And so Opus One is truly a Cabernet Sauvignon, even if not labeled as such.
Opus One was the brainchild of two legendary wine greats, the late Baron Philippe de Rothschild, owner of the great first-growth Bordeaux, Château Mouton Rothschild, and Napa Valley’s most famous vintner, Robert Mondavi.
These two creative men agreed to pool their resources and make a joint-venture wine in 1978. The first Opus One vineyard utilized a block of the To-Kalon Vineyard, which had been owned by Robert Mondavi. Mondavi’s son, Timothy Mondavi, and Mouton Rothschild’s winemaker became joint winemakers of Opus One; both winemakers had their own team of assistants. In 1983, the main vineyard was purchased by Opus One, almost opposite the Robert Mondavi Winery on Highway 29 in Oakville. The next year a magnificent state-of-the-art, gravity-flow winery was built; 1984 also marked the debut of Opus One’s first two vintages, the 1979 and 1980.
Neither 1979 nor 1980, especially 1980, was a particularly good vintage, and so the debut of Opus One was not greeted with great acclaim by the critics. In fact, California was to suffer a very unusual drought of good vintages between 1979 and 1984, not really experiencing a really fine year until 1985.
I remember tasting the 1979 when it was first released, and being under-whelmed by it. Can you imagine my surprise at a tasting of older vintages of Opus One at the winery on July this year when the 1979 turned out to be glorious! Just like a really fine Bordeaux, it needed over 25 years to develop and mature to the sublime wine that it is today. Beginning with the 1985 vintage, Opus One became established as one of the state’s great wines; other outstanding vintages in the next decade included the 1991, 1994 and 1995, with the 1991 always being a special favorite of mine.
In late 2004, Constellation Brands acquired the Robert Mondavi Winery, and in 2005 agreed to terms with the Baron Philippe de Rothschild Company to maintain a 50-50 joint ownership of Opus One. David Pearson became Opus One’s CEO, the first person singly responsible for the winery, and Michael Silacci was appointed winemaker, with full responsibility for viticulture as well as winemaking. Now that Opus One has its own team, a new spirit, a new pride seems to be imbued in all of the people working at Opus One.
I was so impressed by the July 1 tasting that I returned in late August with my son, a budding wine enthusiast, to taste the newer vintages of Opus One, from 1996 to the just- released 2003. My tasting notes follow:
Opus One, Napa Valley (California) Proprietary Red Wine 1996 ($126, 375ML): Still dark red, the 1996 Opus One is a well-balanced wine, with lively acidity. It is 86 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and eight percent Cabernet Franc, with the balance split between Merlot and Malbec. A supple wine, just lovely to drink now, but it still has a long life ahead of it. 93
Opus One, Napa Valley (California) Proprietary Red Wine 1997 ($130, 375ML): Typical of the 1997 vintage in Napa Valley, the Opus One, rich and lush in its youth, is now showing its soft, ripe underbelly. Its varietal composition is 82 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, eight percent Cabernet Franc, with the balance Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Still a delicious wine in the hedonistic sense, but will not be one of the long-lived Opus Ones. 90
Opus One, Napa Valley (California) Proprietary Red Wine 2001 ($130, 375ML): Oh, yes! The 2001, 87 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, six percent Merlot, with the balance Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, will be one of the great Opus One wines. It has intense blackcurrant, cassis and black cherry aromas and flavors, with great length on the palate and a long finish. A younger version of the 1996 Opus One, but even better. It will live a very long life. 95
Opus One, Napa Valley (California) Proprietary Red Wine 2002 ($76, 375ML): This is the vintage that you can find in restaurants today. The 2002 Opus One, its varietal composition practically the same as the 2001, has the power and intensity of this great vintage combined with the supple qualities of the 1993 Opus. A bit leaner than some of the more lush Opus Ones, but with great concentration of cassis and black fruit flavors. 93
Opus One, Napa Valley (California) Proprietary Red Wine 2003 ($135): The 2003 Opus One has just been released, and it looks as if it will be one of the powerful, blockbuster Opus Ones. It is lush, concentrated, and intense — but somewhat difficult to judge (its future development) at this point. My guess is that it will be a more long-lived version of the voluptuous 1997 Opus One. 91
Conclusions
With some of California’s most sought-after ’boutique’ Cabernet Sauvignons going for $300-plus a pop, Opus One looks like a relative bargain at half their price. Of course, Opus One is much larger, making about 25,000 cases a year compared to a few hundred cases for the boutique Cabernets. But unlike some of these over-extracted, tannic wines, Opus One is always well-balanced, not over-ripe or too high in alcohol. In other words, it’s the California interpretation of a fine Bordeaux, and in fact has a passing resemblance to its French godfather, the voluptuous Château Mouton Rothschild. In short, Opus One deserves the accolade of ‘world class.’