Opus One: Napa Through a Bordeaux Lens
9:50am, a cloudy Sunday morning in mid-December. The parking lot is quiet — a perfect unhurried time to visit one of Napa Valley’s most storied estates. It has been over a decade since my last visit, and as always, the Oakville Grocery pit stop feels like a familiar ritual before turning off of Highway 29 and seeing the unique architectural form of Opus One rise ahead, almost like something planted from another world. No longer on an empty stomach, here we go.
Art and architecture at Opus One feel purposeful rather than decorative. From the moment you enter, the building shapes the experience: low, horizontal lines outside, then a more open, carefully proportioned interior that draws attention to materials and space. Stone, wood, and natural light are used in a deliberate, controlled way rather than for spectacle. Contemporary art is placed throughout the winery to complement that sensibility rather than compete with it. The most immediately striking piece is a large O-shaped suspended sculpture made of charcoal-like elements, hanging in the lobby on fine threads and often described by staff as the most popular and talked-about artwork at the winery. That circular motif continues into the winery’s most famous space—the round barrel-aging room, where barrels are arranged in concentric rings beneath a central oculus. The deep red look of the barrel surfaces comes not from the wine soaking through the wood, but from a long-standing cellar tradition of staining or painting barrels in association with red-wine production; historically, this was done to conceal drip marks and help distinguish red from white wine barrels, and in many cellars it remains a visual marker of red-wine aging. All of the barrels here are new French oak; Opus One does not reuse them. After a single year of aging, the barrels are sold off anonymously, reinforcing the winery’s emphasis on consistency and precision rather than economy. Together, the architecture and cellar design create an environment that feels ordered and serious, setting expectations before a single wine is poured.
We are welcomed with Champagne Barons de Rothschild Blanc de Blancs—precise and restrained. It isn’t a feature of the visit, just a measured preface, and a quiet reminder of the lineage behind Opus One before turning to the reds.
Why Opus One Exists
Opus One was founded in 1979 by Robert Mondavi, then the leading figure in Napa’s postwar renaissance, and Baron Philippe de Rothschild, owner of Château Mouton Rothschild. Their partnership brought together two distinct but complementary legacies. Mondavi had spent decades arguing—often against skepticism—that Napa Valley could produce wines of true international stature. Rothschild, by contrast, came from the heart of Bordeaux’s elite, where Mouton Rothschild had achieved rare distinction as the only château promoted to First Growth status in the 1973 revision of the 1855 Classification, following decades of investment in quality, branding, and long-term vision. Rothschild also pioneered practices that reshaped modern fine wine: château bottling, artist-designed labels, disciplined élevage, and a global distribution model rooted in the Place de Bordeaux.
The aim was specific and unusually narrow for Napa at the time: to produce a single wine each year that could stand comfortably alongside top Bordeaux in terms of quality, structure, and longevity, and that would resonate in international markets rather than only in California. That founding intent shaped everything that followed—one flagship wine, a restrained and consistent house style, and a distribution strategy modeled more on Bordeaux’s global trade networks than on Napa’s tasting-room or mailing-list culture, rather than the tasting-room circuit.
The Name
Early in the collaboration, the project went through a few working identities. It was informally referred to as “NapaMédoc,” a literal shorthand for the original idea—Napa Valley fruit shaped by Médoc assumptions—before briefly being called Opus. Robert Mondavi felt that Opus alone was too spare for a wine meant to operate globally, and the name Opus One was ultimately adopted in the early 1980s. Neutral, abstract, and easy to carry across languages and markets, it avoided geography and imitation. The symbolism—one work, one wine—settled in later; the branding logic came first.
Both founders—Baron Philippe de Rothschild, who died in 1988, and Robert Mondavi, who stepped away from day-to-day involvement well before his death in 2008—are now gone, but the vision they established continues through institutional stewardship rather than personality. When Michael Silacci joined Opus One in 2001, he did not work directly with either founder. Instead, he worked within the professional management structure they had put in place, collaborating closely with the joint Mondavi–Rothschild governance team that oversaw the estate at the time. This included Patrick Léon, longtime winemaker at Château Mouton Rothschild and a key figure in Opus One’s early technical direction, as well as Tim Mondavi, who represented the Mondavi family’s interests during that period. Silacci assumed full responsibility for vineyard management and winemaking in 2003, and over the next two decades became closely identified with the estate—known for his detailed understanding of individual vineyard blocks, seasonal weather patterns, and harvest timing, an institutional memory that helped anchor Opus One’s consistency across vintages. A new chapter is now underway with Meghan Zobeck stepping in as Director of Winemaking, while Silacci remains involved to ensure continuity in viticulture and blending philosophy. Alongside this leadership transition, the estate’s commitment to stewardship has been formalized through Napa Green Winery and Vineyard certification, California Certified Organic Farmers certification for its estate vineyards, participation in International Wineries for Climate Action, and the awarding of the Butterfly Mark, all framed within a long-term 2030 sustainability vision.
The Distribution Model
Although Opus One Winery is produced in Napa Valley, its commercial footprint is deliberately global. Annual production averages around 25,000 cases, large by luxury-wine standards but carefully managed, with a significant portion sold outside the United States. Internationally, Opus One relies heavily on the Place de Bordeaux, selling allocations to established Bordeaux négociants who then place the wine with long-standing importer clients worldwide. This system functions as an allocation and pricing framework rather than a physical shipping route, and it explains why Japan has long been one of Opus One’s most important export markets: Japanese importers are deeply embedded in the Bordeaux trade, value structured, age-worthy wines, and purchase Opus One in the same way they do First Growths. Other key markets served through this channel include the United Kingdom, continental Europe, and parts of Asia. Alongside Bordeaux-based distribution, Opus One maintains a tightly controlled U.S. distributor network focused on fine dining and top retail, places meaningful volume on-premise in luxury restaurants and hotels worldwide, and keeps direct-to-consumer sales intentionally limited, avoiding the club-driven model common in Napa. The result is a hybrid distribution structure—export-forward, allocation-based, and relationship-driven—that prioritizes global visibility, pricing discipline, and long-term consistency over sheer volume.
The Tasting
The flight was well structured, with Michelin-star-level food pairings that clarified the wines rather than decorating them.
Opus One 2012
Paired with a French onion cappuccino with potato and truffle, the 2012 showed maturity without loss of energy. Built around 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, with Cabernet Franc (7%), Petit Verdot (6%), Merlot (6%), and a touch of Malbec (2%), the wine has broadened into ripe plum, dried fruit, brown sugar, bark, and mushroom, while still retaining freshness and shape. 18 months in new French oak. The oak is now fully integrated, contributing texture rather than flavor. The savory, umami-driven pairing highlighted the wine’s tertiary notes and underscored that this is a wine entering a more complex phase.
Opus One 2019
The 2019 was brighter, more zesty, and higher in acidity, presenting a more Bordeaux-leaning expression within the Opus One framework. The blend—78% Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot (8%), Petit Verdot (6%), Cabernet Franc (6%), and Malbec (2%)—leans toward structure and precision, with oak used as scaffolding rather than sweetness. A slightly longer élevage of 19 months in new French oak shows mainly in the wine’s shape and tannin line, not in overt wood character. The pork rillette with sour apple and black pepper worked particularly well: richness softened the tannins, while the apple echoed the wine’s lift. This vintage strikes a compelling balance—strict enough to age confidently, but already expressive and polished.
Opus One 2022
The 2022 is clearly youthful and still forming. Dominated by 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, supported by Petit Verdot (8%), Cabernet Franc (6.5%), Merlot (5%), and a trace of Malbec (0.5%), the blend emphasizes structure and backbone. After 18 months in new French oak, the oak is more apparent at this stage, with firm tannins and an architecture that is intact but not yet resolved. The wine is approachable in the sense that it is clean and polished, but it is not especially expressive yet. Despite a warm vintage, the balance suggests a wine built for aging, with its best details still ahead.
Overall Impression
Taken together, these three vintages make Opus One’s intent clear. The wines sit deliberately between worlds: more polished and fruit-forward than most Bordeaux, yet more restrained than many modern Napa Cabernets. They avoid jamminess and excess concentration, favoring balance, clarity, and aging potential instead. That middle ground helps explain their broad international appeal—particularly in markets such as Japan and other parts of Asia—where buyers value structure, food compatibility, and elegance, but often welcome a touch more fruit generosity and surface polish than classic Bordeaux alone provides. The wines come across as composed rather than showy—classy, consistent, and designed to travel well, both stylistically and literally.
Overture 2022
Overture has long occupied an adjacent space to Opus One. First introduced in 1993, it began life as a multi-vintage blend, allowing the estate to emphasize balance, consistency, and earlier approachability rather than the singular expression of a given year. While never formally positioned as a “second wine,” Overture functioned in that role in practice: sourced entirely from estate fruit, shaped by the same team, but intended to show more immediacy. This already set it apart from the traditional Bordeaux second-wine model, which is typically vintage-specific and more directly tied to declassified lots from the grand vin. In 2021, Opus One made a deliberate shift by releasing vintage-dated Overture, moving closer to a Bordeaux framework while still preserving its original intent.
The 2022 Overture reflects that evolution clearly. Compared to Opus One 2022, it showed more upfront fruit and openness, with less structural tension and a more generous Napa profile. The wine felt designed for near-term enjoyment rather than extended cellaring—ripe, clear, and expressive, without the reserve or architectural density of the flagship. In that sense, it delivers precisely what Overture now sets out to be: a distinctly Napa-leaning expression of the estate, approachable earlier, and priced accordingly—serious, but clearly positioned below Opus One.
French-Linked Napa Peers
Opus One is not alone in Napa in having direct French ownership or partnership. Today, that group includes Eisele Vineyard, owned by Artémis Domaines of Château Latour; Dominus Estate, owned by Christian Moueix, whose family controls Pétrus and other Right Bank icons; and Cathiard Vineyard, owned by Florence and Daniel Cathiard of Château Smith Haut Lafitte, known for precision viticulture and modern Bordeaux estate management.
Other examples reflect French luxury stewardship rather than a single winemaking philosophy. St. Supéry is owned by Chanel, while Joseph Phelps Vineyards and CHANDON California sit within the portfolio of LVMH, whose wine holdings span Champagne and Bordeaux and include houses such as Moët & Chandon, Krug, Veuve Clicquot, and Château d’Yquem (with Dom Pérignon as Moët’s flagship prestige cuvée). In Napa, LVMH’s role is best understood as providing capital, long-term stability, and global distribution rather than imposing a uniform house style; the wines remain distinctly Napa in expression. Additional French involvement includes Diamond Creek Vineyards, acquired by the Rouzaud family of Maison Louis Roederer, and Domaine Carneros, founded by the Taittinger family of Champagne.
Many of these estates produce wines of comparable seriousness and, in some cases, greater site specificity. What distinguishes Opus One is not superiority in quality, but intent and structure. From the outset, it was conceived by Robert Mondavi and Baron Philippe de Rothschild as a single flagship wine, produced at scale, with a consistent house style and an international distribution model patterned on Bordeaux’s global trade networks. Producing roughly 25,000 cases annually and exporting a majority of that production, Opus One was built to be broadly visible in fine-wine markets worldwide, something few Napa estates—French-owned or otherwise—were ever structured to achieve.
The Bottom Line
Opus One remains a carefully constructed wine with a clear point of view. It combines Napa Valley fruit with a Bordeaux-informed approach to structure, aging, and presentation, and it was positioned from the outset to function credibly on a global stage.
There are many excellent wines in Napa with similar ambition, and many in Bordeaux with longer histories. What Opus One ultimately offers is consistency and continuity—a style that remains recognizable year to year, shaped less by trends than by design.
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