![]() Opus One’s first vintage was the 1979, though, and the estate seems to be doing rather well so far. Philippe de Rothschild once said that “making a great wine is easy it’s just the first 100 years that are difficult”. We wouldn’t want it any other way, either! The result of this hybrid culture is a meeting of minds and methods that produces truly special wine. ![]() Yet, however much the traditional, ‘old-world’ approach could be imitated, such a project was bound to grow legs (or roots!) of its own. Teaming up with Robert Mondavi, the Baron de Rothschild’s mission was to bring Bordeaux’s viticulture to life on totally new ground, which meant initially importing Bordeaux’s classic grape varieties, oak barrels for the same kind of ageing, and more than a suitcaseful of ancestral know-how. When Philippe de Rothschild took a liking to California’s character, the idea of bringing his vast wine-making experience over the Atlantic was self-evident. Opus One has been an ambitious project since the day it was thought up. Here’s what we learnt with Gwendoline La Burthe, Export Manager France for Opus One. Such a quick shift in the climate sets the scene nicely for a Californian domain born of contrasting cultures, and whose wines we were lucky enough to taste as a team last June. During harvest season, the workers at Opus One don their woolly hats and scarves to pick the estate’s all-precious fruit by night, so far does the temperature plummet. When the sun sets behind this immense landscape, though, what’s revealed is a different world. The hues and contours of California’s Napa Valley are infused with bright sunshine, framed by a broad backdrop of hills and an expanse of vineyards that stretch far, far further than the eye can see.
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