![]() ![]() Silky tannins and bright, floral aromatics add to an impression of total finesse. The 2019 Opus One is a remarkably elegant wine. Interestingly, the 2019 is the first vintage fermented mostly with ambient yeasts. There's a touch of new oak today, but new wood has never been a signature of Opus One, so I imagine that is a stage in the wine's development. Crushed flowers, bright red-toned fruit, mint, lavender and rose petal are all beautifully delineated. Great now with some air to stretch its legs and should be enjoyable through the next decade. In my case, I would enjoy another opportunity to drink the 1997 some time. That being said, folks that can’t get down with a little brett will be turned off by this vintage of Opus. I liked it even better side-by-side with the ’90 Mouton, especially considering the relationship between the two. It was a bit of a one foot in Old School Napa, one foot in New School Napa, handled with an Old World touch. What I can confirm is that these notes were consistent between two bottles from the same case, still in their tissue paper, so I’m reasonably confident that this is characteristic of the 1997 Opus One. Which makes me wonder, why hasn’t brett been noted very often in other TN’s for this wine? Only (Charlie Carnes and OneFive) really address it directly and maybe this is what most are getting at when they mention “Bordeaux-like” and all the Pauillac vibes. ![]() It was just waaaay more Old World leaning to me with the earth and presence of brett. Yes, the texture was plush and yes, the color was dark(er), but only just. Had these been served together double-blind, I would have absolutely understood if someone called both as left-bank Bordeaux. This was consumed alongside a 1990 Chateau Mouton Rothschild. The notes on the nose are confirmed and the finish is long and satisfying.īut the tasting notes only tell half the story here. On the palate, the wine is dry and the structure remains quite firm but the texture is plush and almost chewy. The nose exhibited powerful aromas of dark fruits, organic earth, tobacco, leather, horse blanket (brettanomyces?!), and fine baking spices. The 1997 Opus One pours a fairly youthful looking deep ruby color with moderate signs of sediment and a near opaque core. Two bottles were opened tonight from the same cellar and one of the corks showed some small signs of seepage but both wines showed equally. Although it is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, Opus One makes use of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec in smaller percentages.Opened about four hours prior to service and allowed to breath. ![]() After an additional year and a half in bottle, Opus One is released to the market. The wine is then aged in new French oak for a year and a half, during which time blending takes place. ![]() The grapes are hand-harvested, and gravity flow is used to get the fruit from the destemmer into stainless steel tanks for fermentation. Opus One is a single wine, a Bordeaux Blend sourced from the estate vineyards in Oakville, which include blocks of the famous To Kalon vineyard. Opus One's brand grew considerably in the 1990s, particularly in markets outside of the United States, and in 2005, when Robert Mondavi Winery was acquired by Constellation Brands, Opus One also became part-owned by the multi-national company. It was released to the public in 1984, but had already attracted attention, as a single case of the wine had sold for $24,000 at the first Napa Valley Wine Auction in 1981. The collaboration was conceived in the 1970s and then first realised in 1979, when the first vintage of Opus One was created. It continues to be one of the most expensive Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant wines produced in Napa Valley. It was the first premium California wine sold in Europe. Opus One is one of the world's most famous wines, and is a partnership of two of the most respected figures from Bordeaux and Napa Valley, Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Château Mouton Rothschild and Robert Mondavi. ![]()
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