He would eventually be named Winemaker in January 2004, taking on responsibility for all aspects of viticulture and winemaking. In 2001, Michael Silacci joined Opus One as Director of Viticulture and Enology. Dubbed the Ballestra and River parcels, these vines surround the now iconic Opus One winery which was constructed in 1991. The remaining portion of fruit is harvested from 70-acres of estate-owned land just across the street on the eastern side of Oakville. The first release of Opus One came in 1984 with both the 19 bottlings being offered simultaneously.įor the first 12 vintages, the wine would be made in Oakville at the Robert Mondavi winery by Tim Mondavi (Robert’s son), in collaboration with Mouton Winemakers Lucien Sionneau and Patrick Léon.įruit for the wine has always been harvested from the Valley’s famed Oakville region, with the majority of grapes coming specifically from the legendary To Kalon Vineyard, within which Opus owns 100-acres. It was during that meeting that Mondavi and Rothschild established the principles on which Opus One would be founded – an equal partnership between the two companies with a focus on making one wine a Bordeaux-style blend that would be produced using Napa Valley grapes and vinified by their respective French and American winemakers working side-by-side.Īccording to “Napa Valley Then & Now,” by esteemed wine writer Kelli White, the project was originally supposed to be named “NAPAMEDOC,” however in 1982 they retitled their endeavor, “Opus One” – which by definition is the first great work of a composer. In 1978, the two titans reconvened in Bordeaux at Chateau Mouton-Rothschild for a meeting that is said to have lasted just one hour. Rothschild had supposedly been considering a venture in the New World for some time and found in Mondavi his ideal collaborator. The idea for Opus One was first conceived in 1970 following a chance meeting in Hawaii between Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild and Robert Mondavi of Napa Valley. However, with the introduction of Napa Valley’s Opus One in the mid-1980s, two of the wine industries most important families joining forces suggested that a bridge between the two iconic wine growing regions had finally been built. The comparison of Napa Valley to Bordeaux has long been a hot topic of conversation among wine aficionados, and in some cases has provoked considerable heated debate. We left no fingerprints on the glass, nor footprints in the vineyard.” From Classic Opus One to Pure Oakville to the very challenging and rewarding 2010 Opus One – this offering is seamless. The vintages truly reflect how time and place evolve and respected. “ This offering has the Yellow Brick Road paved all over it.
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