Opus One 2011
Napa Valley, California, USA 🇺🇸
Overview
A Bordeaux-style blend from one of Napa’s most iconic estates, co-founded by Robert Mondavi and Baron Philippe de Rothschild. The 2011 vintage was a challenging, cool year in Napa, producing wines of lower alcohol, more restraint, and higher acidity compared to the opulent, sun-soaked vintages before and after. Blend typically centers on Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec.
Aromas & Flavors
Opens with blackcurrant, cassis, and dried cherry layered with graphite, violets, tobacco leaf, and hints of cedar and espresso. As it evolves in the glass, notes of leather, savory herbs, and cocoa powder emerge.
Mouthfeel
Medium-bodied compared to more powerful Opus vintages, with fresh acidity and fine-grained tannins. Elegant and balanced, showing more finesse and structure than richness. The finish lingers with red and black fruits, spice, and a touch of earth.
Winemaking Notes
Aged in French oak for 18 months. The cooler season resulted in smaller yields, but a style closer to classic Bordeaux restraint rather than plush Napa ripeness.
Food Pairing
Beautiful with herb-crusted lamb, grilled duck breast, wild mushroom risotto, or aged cheeses like Comté.
Verdict
A vintage that divided critics due to its lighter profile, but for those who enjoy elegance and classical structure, the 2011 Opus One is a refreshing outlier. Drink now, though it still has a few years of graceful life ahead. Cheers!
— 4 days ago
🍷Cheers to this compelling Morgon crafted by one of the region’s luminaries!✨
We’re talking about the ‘Côte du Py’ Morgon (Gamay Noir) by the revered Jean Foillard.
This Gamay hails from Morgon – a “Cru” within the broader appellation of Beaujolais – with a reputation for producing structured & age-worthy wine.
👁️ This wine is medium ruby in color, like a gemstone with the delicate haze you’d expect from an unfiltered wine.
👃 The aromas & flavors are perfumed with ripe red and black cherry, wild strawberry, blueberry, pomegranate, blood orange, mulberry, rosehips, hibiscus, lilac, black tea, rooibos, black licorice, star anise, potting soil, gunflint, & clove.
👄 On the palate, it’s dry with vibrant acidity, warming alcohol, a medium body, fine, ripe tannins, followed by a persistent finish.
In sum, this is a captivating, soulful, & expressive wine; a beautiful representation of Morgon, so deliciously drinkable now, with its layers of lush fruit, florals, & spice, while demurely holding the spine, structure, & intensity to age…
I can imagine it gaining mushroom, earthy, leather, & cured meat dimensions with time.
It offers power and elegance; a wine to sip, savor, & appreciate. — 24 days ago
Medium lemon color with aromas of tropical and stone fruit with citrus and toasty oak notes. On the palate flavors of apple, pear and peach, lemon zest, vanilla oak and wet stone notes. Nice balance with tangy acidity on long creamy finish ending with fruit, oak and rich nutty mineral character. Classic, very nice! Needs a little cellaring. — 2 days ago
Medium ruby garnet , quite thin garnet rim , quite youthful in appearance. Quite exuberant and open from the off blackcurrant , cedar , tobacco , touch of earthy sous bois and grafite, still really quite alive . On the palate this is quite fine boned and elegant , cassis , cedar , blackberry and grafite notes . Refreshing acidity and resolved tannin , with quite reasonable length and good saline balance . Really quite classic , and though not a big , or intense wine , it is well balanced and at peak . Now and over the next 5 - 10 years. Surprises positively for a 1994. — 9 days ago
Medium lemon color with aromas of ripe stone and citrus fruits and floral notes, no MLF. On the palate flavors of pear, apple and melon with notes of lemon citrus, honeysuckle and vanilla oak. Well balanced with acidity, long finish ending with fruit, toasty oak and mineral notes, consistent! A Fav!! — 2 days ago
it’s giving dirt! In the best way. Stone fruit. Fresh acidity. Barnyard funk. I love this — 13 days ago
First bottle of the 2010. This is gonna be a really special wine but I think it need another 5-7 years. Tannins and softened, fruit is there, acidity is still strong, and don’t get me wrong it’s great now with a couple hour decant, but in a few years it’ll be really nice. Getting black, blue, and dark red fruit, ripe and juicy. Man so silky in the mouth. Graphite, stone, forest floor, cedar, hints of camphor, black licorice. Wonderful. Nice medium + finish. Really nice, only going to get better! — 11 days ago
Doug Powers
From 750-ml, this great Sauternes is hopelessly youthful at age 25, dried apricot, great acidity, long, lingering finish, top notch!! — 4 days ago