![]() In the vineyards, hand-harvesting and other traditional approaches are taken wherever they work best. These are complemented by the combined 70 acres of the Ballestra and River parcels, which envelope the winery. In 1981, Mondavi sold part of his share of the vineyard to the newly launched Opus One venture, providing high-quality grapes that serve as the backbone of the blend. The To Kalon vineyard is jointly owned by a number of famed Napa producers and is generally considered the best winemaking land Napa has to offer. Two parcels, totaling 100 acres, are within Napa's legendary To Kalon Vineyard. The estate vineyards of Opus One, comprised of 4 parcels, sit in the western portion of the famed Oakville AVA. Its name is another musical reference, meaning an orchestral piece at the beginning of a composition. Overture is made with the fruit that doesn’t quite make the Opus One grade. The flagship Opus One is a Cabernet-dominant Bordeaux blend, which also contains smaller quantities of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Merlot. Opus One produces just two wines: Opus One and Overture. It wasn’t until the 1982 vintage that the brand adopted the name Opus One. The very first vintages of Opus One were labeled Napamédoc, a nod to the wines’ Franco-American heritage. It achieved near-overnight critical acclaim, matching the lofty aspirations of its name. The Opus One project then officially debuted in 1980. Château Mouton Rothschild’s winemaker, Lucien Sionneau, and Robert Mondavi’s son Timothy made the first joint vintage at the Robert Mondavi Winery in 1979. The venture was first suggested by the Baron during a 1970 meeting between the pair in Hawaii, and its fate was sealed when Mondavi visited Rothschild in Bordeaux in 1978. Launched in 1979, when interest in Napa winemaking was still nascent, Opus One was an ambitious joint venture between two of the world’s most esteemed winemaking figures. A musical term that comes from the Latin oper, Opus One is attributed to a composition generally considered to be a composer’s first masterpiece. Naming a winery Opus One sets some seriously high expectations. This singular mission shapes every vintage, today and for generations to come. Together, these founders set out to create a single wine dedicated to the pursuit of uncompromising quality. Opus One is the realized dream of two men: Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Chateau Mouton Rothschild in Bordeaux and Napa Valley vintner Robert Mondavi.
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