Opus One

Opus One was founded by Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Château Mouton Rothschild and Napa Valley vintner Robert Mondavi. According to the winery, the idea for the joint venture bloomed in 1978, when the two men, meeting at Château Mouton Rothschild, agreed to focus exclusively on one wine: a Bordeaux-style blend from Napa Valley grapes, made by their French and American winemakers working side by side. The first vintage was made in 1979, and the 1979 and 1980 vintages were both released in 1984. The winery explains the name through music: an opus is a masterpiece, and Opus One marks a composer's very first. In 2004 Constellation Brands bought Robert Mondavi Winery and other Mondavi holdings, including the 50 percent stake in Opus One; the winery is owned 50 percent by Constellation Brands and 50 percent by the Rothschild family, according to The Press Democrat and The Napa Wine Project.

• Baron Philippe de Rothschild (1902-1988) was born in Paris; at Château Mouton Rothschild he began bottling entirely at the château in 1924 and introduced artist-designed vintage labels in 1945
• On the baron's death in 1988 he was succeeded by his daughter, Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, as reported by The Press Democrat
• Robert Mondavi founded Robert Mondavi Winery in 1966; his father Cesare had acquired the Charles Krug Winery in 1943
• A case of the 1979 vintage sold for $24,000 at the first Auction Napa Valley in 1981, then the highest price paid for a case of Napa Valley wine, according to The Napa Wine Project
• In 2012 Opus One established Opus One International in Bordeaux

As of September 2026, Chris Lynch is Opus One's CEO and Michael Silacci is its winemaker. Silacci was brought on as Director of Viticulture and Enology in 2001 and was appointed the winery's sole winemaker in 2003, assuming responsibility for all aspects of vineyard management and winemaking. On July 9, 2026, the winery announced that he will retire following the completion of the 2026 harvest, his 25th and final vintage with Opus One; a search for his successor will begin in early 2027, and Silacci will remain involved to support the transition. In spring 2025 Opus One hired its first director of winemaking, Meghan Zobek, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The culinary program is led by Executive Chef Sean Koenig.

• The 1979 vintage was produced at Robert Mondavi Winery under the combined direction of Tim Mondavi and Lucien Sionneau, the winemaker of Mouton
• The 1982 vintage was vinified under the joint direction of Tim Mondavi and Patrick Leon of Château Mouton Rothschild, Leon's first experience with Opus One
• Silacci initiated programs to protect and restore the winery's land along the Napa River
• Under Silacci, Opus One developed a native yeast program using wild yeast isolated from the vineyard where each lot originated, and clonal field blends, according to the San Francisco Chronicle

The estate vineyards of Opus One comprise four parcels in the western portion of the Oakville AVA. Two parcels, totaling 100 acres, are within the To Kalon Vineyard; they are complemented by the Ballestra and River parcels, a combined 70 acres, which envelop the winery. The estate is planted predominantly to Cabernet Sauvignon (80%), with Cabernet Franc (6%), Merlot (6%), Petit Verdot (6%) and Malbec (2%). Opus One states that it farms to California Certified Organic Farming standards, and it began implementing regenerative farming practices across the estate in 2023; by 2024 approximately 70 acres were under regenerative management.

• Hand-harvesting and other traditional approaches are used wherever they work best; modern techniques are researched and evaluated before being integrated
• Grapes were purchased from select growers in the past, but today the focus is on estate fruit, according to The Napa Wine Project
• The vineyards around the winery are trained low to the ground with very tight spacing, all on Guyot trellising, according to The Napa Wine Project
• Vineyards surrounding the winery are irrigated with processed wastewater from the cellar and rainwater collected across the property

Opus One is made as a single wine, a Bordeaux-style blend whose proportions change with each vintage, and the estate also produces Overture. Each stage of winemaking, from tasting berries to sorting and extended aging in new French oak barrels, follows the same standard: after 18 months in barrel the wine is bottled and held an additional 15 months before its release on October 1. The winery's trade page says its vintages, from 1979 to today, are each distinguished by "a signature silky structure and velvety tannins." Silacci told the San Francisco Chronicle, "We pick earlier than most people, but we have to pick so we maintain that acidity, which needs to balance the tannins and allow the wine to age."

• Opus One 2022: Cabernet Sauvignon 80%, Petit Verdot 8%, Cabernet Franc 6.5%, Merlot 5% and Malbec 0.5%; 20 days of skin contact; 18 months in new French oak
• Opus One 2021: Cabernet Sauvignon 93%, Cabernet Franc 4%, Petit Verdot 2%, Merlot 0.5% and Malbec 0.5%; 19 days of skin contact; 19 1/2 months in new French oak
• Opus One 2023, introduced on October 1: 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot and 1% Malbec, aged 19 months in French oak
• The 1979 debut was Cabernet Sauvignon 80%, Cabernet Franc 16% and Merlot 4%, with 24 months in new French oak
• Grapes are sorted with an optical sorter and gravity fed into the tanks, and the semi-circular Grand Chai holds approximately 1000 French oak barrels, according to The Napa Wine Project

Baroness Philippine de Rothschild and Robert Mondavi broke ground on the winery in July 1989, and it opened its doors in October 1991. Designed by the architecture firm Johnson Fain, the building incorporates limestone, arcades, peristyles and guard towers linked to the classic châteaux of the Médoc, and at some 80,000 square feet it rises so gently from the earth that it is difficult to discern from the surrounding vineyard. The winery produced its first wine within its own walls during the 1991 harvest. In late 2016 Opus One broke ground on an expansion of 40,000 square feet of production and guest space, completed in August 2020, according to The Napa Wine Project.

• Visits are by appointment, and all guests must be over the age of 21
• Opus One Estate Tasting: a guided tasting of two vintages of Opus One alongside Overture, approximately 60 minutes, $150 per person
• Opus One Experience: the current release and two library wines in the Partners' Room, a 90-minute experience with a winery tour, $250 per person
• Art of the Table: a four-course wine and culinary pairing of about 2.5 hours, $793 per person with a 22% service charge included
• The berms planted in 1991 were reimagined with landscape architects Reed Hilderbrand, turning more than an acre of the estate into pollinator habitat

In the United States, Opus One works with its distribution partners to allocate wine on an individual account basis; internationally it is distributed through the Bordeaux négociants of the Place de Bordeaux, as it has been since 2004. From its Bordeaux office, established in 2012, a dedicated team manages distribution across more than 90 countries. The Napa Wine Project puts current production at around 25,000 cases a year and describes Opus One as the global benchmark for luxury Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley. The Press Democrat has described Opus One as one of the world's most celebrated and expensive wines.

• Opus One introduced a second blend, Overture, in 1993, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle and The Napa Wine Project
• The winery calls Overture a natural extension of Opus One and the timeless expression of its estate vineyards
• Opus One joined International Wineries for Climate Action in 2022
• Since February 2021 Opus One has sourced 100% California renewable electricity through MCE's Deep Green program

Primary sources (producer's own site): https://www.opusonewinery.com/estate/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/current-releases/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/plan-your-visit/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/estate/winemaking/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/globally-responsible/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/vintage-notes/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-story/opus-one-announces-planned-retirement-of-winemaker-michael-silacci-after-2026-harvest/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-wines/silacci-final-harvest-at-opus-one/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-story/why-does-opus-one-have-a-home-in-bordeaux/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/main-featured/opus-one-2023-awaits-you/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/for-the-trade/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-story/who-was-baron-philippe-de-rothschild/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-story/who-was-robert-mondavi/, https://www.opusonewinery.com/moments/our-wines/what-is-grown-across-the-opus-one-estate-vineyards/. Secondary sources: The Press Democrat (September 23, 2005), The Napa Wine Project (Opus One), San Francisco Chronicle (Silacci retirement). Where the producer's site and a secondary source disagree, the producer's site governs. Last verified 2026-09-23