Despite having been a wine drinker for over thirty years, I had not previously had an Opus One. I've had several people recommend it and one recommender was from such an insufferable blowhard that I was turned off from trying it for years. While I realize that this isn't a top vintage of Opus, it still has a good score and generally positive reviews.
I now understand why this is such a crowd-pleaser. I found the wine incredibly smooth and soft, but to me it bordered on watery. This wine has never seen, nor even heard of, tannins. And then there's the vanilla. Far too much oak for me, but it seems so popular, a la Caymus and others. There was some red fruit here, and everything is in balance (except the oak/vanilla) but it lacks body and any sense of terroir.
If this is your style, enjoy it! There's nothing wrong with it. For me, it's incredibly generic and the QPR is so far out of line it's oenological malfeasance.
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Medium+ noise intensity with notes of green bell pepper, mint, herbs, black fruits, spices, toast. Medium+ acidity and medium tannin. Medium finish and slightly sweet on the palate. Felt that it could be bottle variation as I had better bottle before.
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My first exp with Opus. Out of mag. Cigar box all over the nose here which was really beautiful. On the palate, this took a while to open up. Needed at least 3+ to start showing itself. I agree with some of the comments regarding this lacking mid palate at this stage. If you can, wait.
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Tasted at the winery along with 2018 and 2019, already showed some leather and cigar box flavor from aging. Good balance and structure, but slightly lacking some mid palette. 93pts
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Decanted a good 1.5h in advance. Intense and aromatic nose with ripe dark fruit,(not the typical sweet jammied fruit you find in many of the Cali wines) pungent spice, leather & smoke. Sweet spice more evident on the palate and would say oak is not entirely integrated just yet. Palate is extremely graceful, texture is so silky, has very fine grained tannins which are well supported by a juicy concentration but still have a good grip. I would rather call this an elegant approach to this BDX blend as I've tasted more powerful examples of this wine.
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Really beautiful nose doing everything we want (after a two hour decant). Tobacco, compost, dried leaves, a sneaky bit of fruit after a while. Palate was extremely boring. Pretty much tannin, alcohol, and nothing else, except perhaps a little bit of overripe blackberry you forgot in the fridge. Conventional wisdom would say age would do this wine well, but I wouldn't agree after tasting even older examples, tbh.
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Leading up to my brother's 35th birthday celebration he had but one request: 'Please bring Opus.' I told him all I had was Overture, so we started the proceedings with that, and he was overjoyed. An hour before dinner, with the help of my girlfriend Katie who distracted him with small talk, we surprised him on the back deck. A befuddled gaze and a sheepish "...but you already gave me my birthday gift" was all he could manage. When he laid his eyes on the '14, shock ensued, "No...you really didn't have to..." followed by an embrace as he unwrapped the Opus-labeled tissue paper.
We slow ox'ed the bottle for 1 hour and paired it with some USDA Prime filet mignon. This bottle was singing right off the bat, but it's a unique vintage, rather Burgundian in nature. Ruby in the glass with red fruits dominating: cherry, red currant, raspberry and strawberry jam combine with graphite, toasted oak and violet on the palate. The moderate acidity forms the backbone of a medium body wine with finessed tannins. The finish is long and velvety smooth. A pleasure to consume now, but will age gracefully through 2034.
(P.S. Safe to say, I secured brother of the year 😊)
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March 2022 - Opus One Winery Tasting (Opus One Winery): TN: This one showed the most age of the first flight, with a garnet rim. Nose is very pure with dark fruit, black cherry, cassis, plum, and secondary oak notes. On the palette, showing a lot of red and dark fruit, cranberry, red currant, plum, blackberry, baking spices, clove, toast.
Still fairly tannic (med+), but not as much as the 2011 and 2012 in the second flight. Compared to the 2018 and 2016, it was the least impressive in terms of complexity, albeit still holding that balance. Also quite Californian in style. 94pt
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Brought this to a steak dinner, on insistence of a friend who wanted to try American wine instead of Bordeaux (was otherwise bringing 1996 Leoville Las Cases, although he didn't know that. So I brought Opus 2014 instead).
93+. Think with time this rating goes up. Tobacco, vanilla, and black fruit on nose. Palate austere and restrained. Nice! Decanted ~2.5 hours. Bordeaux-esque undergrowth and forest floor emerged, fruit remained in-tact, improved further 3+ hours in. Suspect can go way longer, just entering drinking window, with caveat that I drink way more Bordeaux than Napa and unfamiliar with Opus' ageability. If you're a Napa regular you'll have a better opinion than mine. Overall this Opus is a big wine yet still manages to feel very old world-y, good balance, restraint and precision especially after hours in the decanter. Lovely and well made. Vanilla and massive fruit nose gave away new world when popped, but on palate this becomes tougher to discern from the Medoc. More Saint-Julien than Pauillac though. With time in decanter, vanilla nose I got at open resolved a bit and integrated better. Tannins still very intrusive but I can hardly blame anyone this is only 7 years old. I'd expect they'll resolve nicely with time.
For criticism, 1.) a wee bit boring. Very straight down the middle, almost felt "technical", not necessarily a bad thing. But just missing something special. Very good wine but not exclamation point wine. I was expecting Pauillac given all the hype but this is not that, although the young age here may be a factor. 2.) Price is silly. This is pretty good wine that is priced crazy. Seems like there is some luxury label worship going on here. Especially compared to cabernet from the left bank I'm more familiar with, I a little bit scratching my head at this price (paid $2,800 HKD ~$350 USD for this bottle), especially compared to my Bordeaux comps. You can get great 2nd growths from top vintages for this price or less!
Overall a fun evening and nice to try something new. Good wine. Just not something I'll be collecting.
Pronounced nose with notes of cassis, vanilla, smoke, vanilla, chocolate. Medium+ acidity and high tannin. Still youthful, more acidity for the mouth feel. Long finish and full bodied.
Drank it side by side with vintage 2007 and it exhibit similar notes. Prefer the 2007 bottle more as it's more balanced between acidity and tannin.
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Once again what more can be said. Another great showing. Starts with graphite, iron notes and then boom the blackberry fruit emerges. Tremendous acidity and worth holding for many more years. This is beautiful wine of elegance and depth.
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Full body, very big tannin structure, low acidity, lots of fruit. Classic big modern style but well made. Hold for couple more years for the tannins to soften.
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Very good wine. I'm not quite sure if it warrants the price tag but it is smooth, delicious, well balanced, a bit dry but in a perfect way imho. Very approachable and elegant. Medium body and in the early drinking window. I would buy a lot of this if it was a bit less expensive.
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93+ pts. Decanted for 3 hours at first but it was a little closed. It didn't hit its stride until about 6 hours in and then turned into a very beautiful wine. Lovely dark purple color, ripe plum and dark fruit profile, not overly sweet or too rich, more of an elegant Bordeaux style wine in this vintage. Overall, a premium Napa wine that I’d like to try again in the future. I think this has a lot of room to improve.
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54 degrees in the wine cooler; bottle top aerator into hanging decanter. 1.5 hours in decanter. 15-20 additional minutes in the glass. Garnet with thin legs. Mint/eucalyptus and cherries on the nose, along with floral (daisy/sunflower). Smooth in the mouth, light and soft/relaxed tannins. Cherries, pepper, cassis. Dry, oaky finish. Complex is probably the overall observation...love how this wine changes, lots happening between the nose and finish. Two hours later. Still complex. More vanilla on the nose. Peat and leathery in the mouth, with a little more kick/pepper at the finish.
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BBQ mid Jul 2020: decanted for approx. 2 h; rubin red color; perfum-like bouquet of sweet cherries, mint and vanilla; smooth and sweet, almost like cherry juice on the palate; medium body.
Expected a strong, untamed and tannin rich red wine and was surprised about the gentleness and the feminine seduction this 2014 Opus One offered. Really an outstanding wine.
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Wine maybe gets better with age but the finish is so good and long that I really like it and I’m glad I had it tonight. Also a very deep flavor that is not plummy. Deep and rich.
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Classy, sophisticated and elegant. Not the 2013 by any means but I’m pleased overall. Scents of pencils, incense and berries. A nice texture, a little heavy but still wanting to be balanced. Not a monstrosity of a wine like Colgin definitely playing to a more caressing style. I’d wait about 4-5 more years for this one to start its stride.
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Bday Ultraviolet#4. Medium ruby color. Pronounced black fruit and charred oak aromas. Dry, high acidity, medium tannins, over alcoholic flattish taste of charred black fruits. Medium body. Medium finish. Disappointing for Opus One. Too young.
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Opus One (SWS): Darker color--inky. Nose is more black fruit than red. Savory espresso, dark chocolate. Vanilla/oak character on the nose.
On the palate, medium plus tannin (but velvety and fine grained), medium plus acid. Rounder/riper, but still fresh. Some caramel, maraschino cherry, plum skin. More noticeable fruit than the other vintages, but the fruit still balances it. The midpalate is especially creamy here.
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Deep ruby colour. Leather on the nose, with slight, quite elegant, notes of exotic spice. Structured, but pleasant tannins at young age, with some heat on the endless finish.
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On a rare time when the staff was -(willing/able/both/neither/insane and/or renegade enuf)- to pour the 13, 14, 15 by side: I chose the 14. (That horse blanket aroma cloying upon on the 2013 recalled -a tad for myself, too close for comfort— that odor redolent of goddam baking soda-heavy cream from the TL, tbh, and was as evident six months hence, as well.)
I prefer the 15 over the 13 for the same reason today, (Tho the non-erasure oA
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Small pour. Indeed amazing with blueberries, black currants, vanilla and oak. Lots of power with finesse but in a classic way. The oak will integrate with some aging. Really nice.
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Amazing wine. Red fruit of cherry, blueberry, and raspberry all in one on the nose. Smooth on the palate, red fruits on the front and balanced finish. This wine is like liquid velvet.
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It was nice to check in on this wine, but in a flight of other tier one Napa wines, it took last place. If you can forget this wine in your cellar for another 20-25 years, you might have a dead ringer for how superb the 1994 is drinking today. An upside of 2-3pts in another couple decades.
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My first time to have this legendary wine. What a disappointment. Was granted a taste at a restaurant that offered it by the glass. Frankly, it underwhelmed me. I've had many wines that I consider better balanced and more tasty for $30-$50 a bottle. Nose had oak, dark fruit and chocolate. Tasted over oaked in style, some fruit hiding in the back but mostly herbaceous notes and tobacco. Definitely a full bodied wine but the texture seemed nothing special either given the price point. Had a dry finish, not really long, not a big grip, not really smooth. Very disappointing. I'm so glad I didn't pay $50 for more of this.
Terroir-istes International - USA - California, Napa General (Cape Town Law offices): (Tasted Blind): A deep black garnet colour; the nose is captivating with sweet fruits of goji berry, violet, blackcurrant pastilles, and redcurrant, resonating with black olive, Assam tea leaves, undergrowth and creme fraiche. The full-bodied palate is supple with a creamy melted chocolate texture and filled with blackberries, cassis, shrivelled black olives, dry spices mixed with exotic notes of five spice and garam masala. Complex, powdery tannins give some firmness and generosity to the frame. A well-balanced, fairly expressive wine with a long finish that develops nicely. Still fresh and vibrant, there is an elegance and finesse to this well-concentrated excellent wine. Blend of 80 CS, 7 CF, 6 Merlot, 5 PV and 2 Malbec Looking to make this wine distinct. The culture has often been to have a bit of Brettanomyces in the wine. The wine is made with less heavy-handedness than many and they still seem to have quality and vision and passion into what they do.
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Beautiful BDX blend. Had next to a 2015 Realm bard which provided a lovely stylistic contrast. The 2014 Opus was aromatically open, with notes of tobacco, dried herbs, balsamic and pencil lead. Mostly savory rather than fruity qualities. The palate was structured in the manner of 2014, with approachable but present tannins. The nose was really compelling and commands attention - put simply, it smells like old Bordeaux. This wine begs for age, and I suspect it could last 25+ years. Most reminiscent of PLL or Lafite in style
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Coravin at Andrea. Apparently 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot, and 2% Malbec. This beat the Gaja and Sassicaia. Much darker than the other two. Rich with lots of complexity. Pencil lead.
Napa Valley & Chalk Hill AVA winery visits - 5/30 & 5/31, 2018: Aromas and notes of currant, crushed stone, dried violets, cedar, graphite, black tea and spices. Great presence on the attack, mouth-filling and elegant, with layered flavors. Richly layered texture and structure with silky broad tannins. Huge expansive finish. Stellar.
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Drank this at Baltimore airport. Too young to give a good rating. It was very smooth and soft none the less. It really didn't give up anything but from what I could tell it will be outstanding in a few years.
Tasted at Wally's Napa / Sonoma All-Stars 2018 Tasting event. Yea... this was my WOTN. Much better from what I tasted last year in Wally's 2017 tasting event. This was just so tasty. You can't really expect more from it. Like... what more do you want? This is elegant, rich, but has this Opus taste profile that separates it from the crowd. Has the soil, tobacco, and leaves. Loved it a lot.
Tasted this one with All Is Whale who is not a big fan of Opus. I wonder what he scored this...
perfekt: ein schöner Jahrgang in voller Harmonie, vielleicht etwas zu mainstream und gefällig, aber darin wirklich perfekt, schöne Länge, kaum metallisch oder sauer, keine Veränderung über 4h gleichbleibend ... man gewöhnt sich und der Preis tut am Ende etwas weh mit 350€
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Tasted at WINO in New Orleans. Definitely muted cedary nose but the palate expression is a mature bordeaux which is weird given that this is a young napa wine. Virtually undetectable tannins. I can't imagine that this has the bones for long aging. Very nice now, if you can stomach the price point. I've been fooled by Opus One before, which seemed wimpy one year, awesome after a few more years in the bottle. It may turn out to age beautifully in the future. Impossible for me to tell right now. I'm a bit perplexed by the high scores from other reviewers, to me this is an excellent but not great BDX that can be obtained from France for 1/6 the price.
No formal notes taken. Great depth of color, loads of fruit but also some complexity and subtle oak shades. The profile is Bordeaux, though modern. Alcohol is not as bad as expected, yet prominent enough to mark nose and palate and make this tiring to drink. A relatively interesting wine for its modern style, which I never love. Not scored. 14.5% abv
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Tasted at the estate during a tremendous guided tour, highly recommended! Unfortunately I would not say this has a place in my favourite Napa wines, being a Bordeaux Blend I prefer to leave them out of my Napa lists. It is very subtle and reserved in its appearance and aromas. Hints of blackberry and licorice, cedar, and mocha. Definitely a sense of tensity to this wine. Well balanced tannin, which helps the wine be drinkable from day one, 20-30 second finish. This wine shows well, however for the price I would certainly choose many smaller more boutique producers, who I find are able to produce something far more evoking of ones senses.
All in all, If you want to a complex, new world, warm, fruit forward Napa Cab, that truly exhibits the teroir of Napa, this is arguably not the wine for you. If you want a beautifully crafted example of Bordeaux in Napa, tremendous wine.
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I love this style of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine combines concentration, purity of fruit, lush, silky tannins, freshness and length. You can drink it young, if you prefer, youthful, exuberant, fruit, or age it and enjoy the complexities of age. The wine was made from blending 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 6% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec, which is something you could easily find in the Left Bank of Bordeaux.
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K&L "2014 Napa Valley Titans" Tasting (K&L Wines, Redwood City, CA): K&L "2014 Napa Valley Titans" Tasting: Fascinatingly bold fruit aromas somewhere between black and red currant, combined with citrus peel, fresh earth, and leather (bordering on stables). Buttery texture, medium body, with grainy tannins providing lovely structure through the long finish.
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2017 New York Wine Experience Trip; 10/16/2017-10/25/2017 (New York City, NY): This deep ruby wine is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 2% Malbec. It combines ripe Napa Valley fruit with the structure and elegance of fine Bordeaux. Cassis, dark bramble fruits, graphite, anise and pipe tobacco are supported by fresh acidity, seamless alcohol (listed as 14.5%), nicely woven oak and plentiful silky tannins. Fleshy on the mid-palate and long on the finish, this is an impressive wine that may merit an even higher score once it enters its drinking window. Drink 2020-2040.
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The nose was deep and generous with masses of blackberry, blueberry, crushed black cherry, sweet herbs, hints of cedar and spiced orange. On the palate, I found silky, elegant textures that enveloped the senses while saturating blueberry, currants and a brisk wave of acidity added freshness. The finish was long and refined with lingering black fruits, sweet herbs and spice.
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3/31/2024 - Crunge wrote:
No rating as this is not my style of wine.
Despite having been a wine drinker for over thirty years, I had not previously had an Opus One. I've had several people recommend it and one recommender was from such an insufferable blowhard that I was turned off from trying it for years. While I realize that this isn't a top vintage of Opus, it still has a good score and generally positive reviews.
I now understand why this is such a crowd-pleaser. I found the wine incredibly smooth and soft, but to me it bordered on watery. This wine has never seen, nor even heard of, tannins. And then there's the vanilla. Far too much oak for me, but it seems so popular, a la Caymus and others. There was some red fruit here, and everything is in balance (except the oak/vanilla) but it lacks body and any sense of terroir.
If this is your style, enjoy it! There's nothing wrong with it. For me, it's incredibly generic and the QPR is so far out of line it's oenological malfeasance.
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3/25/2024 - Sean Tay wrote: 92 Points
Medium+ noise intensity with notes of green bell pepper, mint, herbs, black fruits, spices, toast. Medium+ acidity and medium tannin. Medium finish and slightly sweet on the palate. Felt that it could be bottle variation as I had better bottle before.
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2/19/2024 - loj Likes this wine: 92 Points
Oak is very well integrated, lovely acidity, very persistent finish. Red fruits, spice, and just a hint of herb.
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2/19/2024 - Bigdong wrote: 93 Points
Soy sauce, red fruit, some spices. Medium body and elegant. Still tannic. At it’s prime.
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2/12/2024 - rnjbond wrote: 91 Points
Napa and Sonoma, January 2024: Tasted at winery.
On the nose, wet cement and old books. Took some time to mellow out and would probably benefit from a decant.
Our server was kind enough to serve a splash of this without a charge, which was much appreciated.
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1/14/2024 - splavski wrote: 95 Points
Tasted at Opus Winery
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12/15/2023 - mfimiani47 Likes this wine: 92 Points
My first exp with Opus. Out of mag. Cigar box all over the nose here which was really beautiful. On the palate, this took a while to open up. Needed at least 3+ to start showing itself. I agree with some of the comments regarding this lacking mid palate at this stage. If you can, wait.
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11/24/2023 - victorzg Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted at the winery along with 2018 and 2019, already showed some leather and cigar box flavor from aging. Good balance and structure, but slightly lacking some mid palette. 93pts
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7/10/2023 - Rubanski Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted a good 1.5h in advance. Intense and aromatic nose with ripe dark fruit,(not the typical sweet jammied fruit you find in many of the Cali wines) pungent spice, leather & smoke. Sweet spice more evident on the palate and would say oak is not entirely integrated just yet. Palate is extremely graceful, texture is so silky, has very fine grained tannins which are well supported by a juicy concentration but still have a good grip. I would rather call this an elegant approach to this BDX blend as I've tasted more powerful examples of this wine.
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6/18/2023 - Frank G wrote: 88 Points
Really beautiful nose doing everything we want (after a two hour decant). Tobacco, compost, dried leaves, a sneaky bit of fruit after a while. Palate was extremely boring. Pretty much tannin, alcohol, and nothing else, except perhaps a little bit of overripe blackberry you forgot in the fridge. Conventional wisdom would say age would do this wine well, but I wouldn't agree after tasting even older examples, tbh.
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4/28/2023 - Dpark8 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Good balance, body. Great example of Bordeaux style wine from CA
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1/27/2023 - Lanec wrote:
Donated to Mercy High School charity auction
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1/17/2023 - pnasseri001 Likes this wine:
Very smooth
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1/8/2023 - copusa wrote:
Enjoyed while visiting Nancy Jo in Foley, AL
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12/22/2022 - ALBL wrote:
Jason's 40th birthday
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8/28/2022 - MagicInABottle Likes this wine: 95 Points
Leading up to my brother's 35th birthday celebration he had but one request: 'Please bring Opus.' I told him all I had was Overture, so we started the proceedings with that, and he was overjoyed. An hour before dinner, with the help of my girlfriend Katie who distracted him with small talk, we surprised him on the back deck. A befuddled gaze and a sheepish "...but you already gave me my birthday gift" was all he could manage. When he laid his eyes on the '14, shock ensued, "No...you really didn't have to..." followed by an embrace as he unwrapped the Opus-labeled tissue paper.
We slow ox'ed the bottle for 1 hour and paired it with some USDA Prime filet mignon. This bottle was singing right off the bat, but it's a unique vintage, rather Burgundian in nature. Ruby in the glass with red fruits dominating: cherry, red currant, raspberry and strawberry jam combine with graphite, toasted oak and violet on the palate. The moderate acidity forms the backbone of a medium body wine with finessed tannins. The finish is long and velvety smooth. A pleasure to consume now, but will age gracefully through 2034.
(P.S. Safe to say, I secured brother of the year 😊)
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3/5/2022 - Michael Hung Likes this wine: 94 Points
March 2022 - Opus One Winery Tasting (Opus One Winery): TN: This one showed the most age of the first flight, with a garnet rim. Nose is very pure with dark fruit, black cherry, cassis, plum, and secondary oak notes. On the palette, showing a lot of red and dark fruit, cranberry, red currant, plum, blackberry, baking spices, clove, toast.
Still fairly tannic (med+), but not as much as the 2011 and 2012 in the second flight. Compared to the 2018 and 2016, it was the least impressive in terms of complexity, albeit still holding that balance. Also quite Californian in style. 94pt
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1/13/2022 - Anders T Likes this wine: 94 Points
Bottle & Bite
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10/6/2021 - AAF2012 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Brought this to a steak dinner, on insistence of a friend who wanted to try American wine instead of Bordeaux (was otherwise bringing 1996 Leoville Las Cases, although he didn't know that. So I brought Opus 2014 instead).
93+. Think with time this rating goes up. Tobacco, vanilla, and black fruit on nose. Palate austere and restrained. Nice! Decanted ~2.5 hours. Bordeaux-esque undergrowth and forest floor emerged, fruit remained in-tact, improved further 3+ hours in. Suspect can go way longer, just entering drinking window, with caveat that I drink way more Bordeaux than Napa and unfamiliar with Opus' ageability. If you're a Napa regular you'll have a better opinion than mine. Overall this Opus is a big wine yet still manages to feel very old world-y, good balance, restraint and precision especially after hours in the decanter. Lovely and well made. Vanilla and massive fruit nose gave away new world when popped, but on palate this becomes tougher to discern from the Medoc. More Saint-Julien than Pauillac though. With time in decanter, vanilla nose I got at open resolved a bit and integrated better. Tannins still very intrusive but I can hardly blame anyone this is only 7 years old. I'd expect they'll resolve nicely with time.
For criticism, 1.) a wee bit boring. Very straight down the middle, almost felt "technical", not necessarily a bad thing. But just missing something special. Very good wine but not exclamation point wine. I was expecting Pauillac given all the hype but this is not that, although the young age here may be a factor. 2.) Price is silly. This is pretty good wine that is priced crazy. Seems like there is some luxury label worship going on here. Especially compared to cabernet from the left bank I'm more familiar with, I a little bit scratching my head at this price (paid $2,800 HKD ~$350 USD for this bottle), especially compared to my Bordeaux comps. You can get great 2nd growths from top vintages for this price or less!
Overall a fun evening and nice to try something new. Good wine. Just not something I'll be collecting.
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8/14/2021 - Sean Tay Likes this wine: 96 Points
Pronounced nose with notes of cassis, vanilla, smoke, vanilla, chocolate. Medium+ acidity and high tannin. Still youthful, more acidity for the mouth feel. Long finish and full bodied.
Drank it side by side with vintage 2007 and it exhibit similar notes. Prefer the 2007 bottle more as it's more balanced between acidity and tannin.
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7/9/2021 - tomoem Likes this wine: 95 Points
Once again what more can be said. Another great showing. Starts with graphite, iron notes and then boom the blackberry fruit emerges. Tremendous acidity and worth holding for many more years. This is beautiful wine of elegance and depth.
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5/30/2021 - tonyhuang Likes this wine: 95 Points
Full body, very big tannin structure, low acidity, lots of fruit. Classic big modern style but well made. Hold for couple more years for the tannins to soften.
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5/23/2021 - zylmanj Likes this wine: 95 Points
Very good wine. I'm not quite sure if it warrants the price tag but it is smooth, delicious, well balanced, a bit dry but in a perfect way imho. Very approachable and elegant. Medium body and in the early drinking window. I would buy a lot of this if it was a bit less expensive.
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3/27/2021 - SonnyChiba wrote: 93 Points
93+ pts.
Decanted for 3 hours at first but it was a little closed. It didn't hit its stride until about 6 hours in and then turned into a very beautiful wine. Lovely dark purple color, ripe plum and dark fruit profile, not overly sweet or too rich, more of an elegant Bordeaux style wine in this vintage. Overall, a premium Napa wine that I’d like to try again in the future. I think this has a lot of room to improve.
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2/20/2021 - Scar510 Likes this wine: 94 Points
2-20-21. Ulu. Liked it but not great. Seems like opus needs many years in the bottle.
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12/31/2020 - danielsjones01 wrote:
54 degrees in the wine cooler; bottle top aerator into hanging decanter. 1.5 hours in decanter. 15-20 additional minutes in the glass. Garnet with thin legs. Mint/eucalyptus and cherries on the nose, along with floral (daisy/sunflower). Smooth in the mouth, light and soft/relaxed tannins. Cherries, pepper, cassis. Dry, oaky finish. Complex is probably the overall observation...love how this wine changes, lots happening between the nose and finish. Two hours later. Still complex. More vanilla on the nose. Peat and leathery in the mouth, with a little more kick/pepper at the finish.
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10/20/2020 - baxter67 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Great balance, tannins well integrated, black fruits, spices. Lacks the weight of the 2013, although probably needs a few more years. ***(**)
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7/15/2020 - Fatty Cat wrote: 96 Points
BBQ mid Jul 2020: decanted for approx. 2 h; rubin red color; perfum-like bouquet of sweet cherries, mint and vanilla; smooth and sweet, almost like cherry juice on the palate; medium body.
Expected a strong, untamed and tannin rich red wine and was surprised about the gentleness and the feminine seduction this 2014 Opus One offered. Really an outstanding wine.
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5/21/2020 - PJB06221996 wrote: 95 Points
Wine maybe gets better with age but the finish is so good and long that I really like it and I’m glad I had it tonight. Also a very deep flavor that is not plummy. Deep and rich.
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3/28/2020 - Order66 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Classy, sophisticated and elegant. Not the 2013 by any means but I’m pleased overall. Scents of pencils, incense and berries. A nice texture, a little heavy but still wanting to be balanced. Not a monstrosity of a wine like Colgin definitely playing to a more caressing style. I’d wait about 4-5 more years for this one to start its stride.
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3/13/2020 - Costes76 wrote: 87 Points
Bday Ultraviolet#4. Medium ruby color. Pronounced black fruit and charred oak aromas. Dry, high acidity, medium tannins, over alcoholic flattish taste of charred black fruits. Medium body. Medium finish. Disappointing for Opus One. Too young.
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2/20/2020 - mkribar Likes this wine: 93 Points
Opus One (SWS): Darker color--inky. Nose is more black fruit than red. Savory espresso, dark chocolate. Vanilla/oak character on the nose.
On the palate, medium plus tannin (but velvety and fine grained), medium plus acid. Rounder/riper, but still fresh. Some caramel, maraschino cherry, plum skin. More noticeable fruit than the other vintages, but the fruit still balances it. The midpalate is especially creamy here.
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1/11/2020 - zylmanj Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very good but the QPR is a little high. Coravin sample. I will let this rest for a few more years.
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12/23/2019 - williames Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep ruby colour. Leather on the nose, with slight, quite elegant, notes of exotic spice. Structured, but pleasant tannins at young age, with some heat on the endless finish.
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7/26/2019 - Scar510 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Opus flight 7-26-19
2014
Better, not as earthly, really good
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3/4/2019 - jdtonic Likes this wine: 94 Points
On a rare time when the staff was -(willing/able/both/neither/insane and/or renegade enuf)- to pour the 13, 14, 15 by side: I chose the 14.
(That horse blanket aroma cloying upon on the 2013 recalled -a tad for myself, too close for comfort— that odor redolent of goddam baking soda-heavy cream from the TL, tbh, and was as evident six months hence, as well.)
I prefer the 15 over the 13 for the same reason today, (Tho the non-erasure oA
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1/5/2019 - Raizes Likes this wine: 94 Points
蓝莓、黑莓，清新的果味中点缀着奶油、香草和雪松的工艺香气，入口酸度和甜美的水果硬糖味道完美融合，细腻、优雅，带着一点小家碧玉的清纯可人。现在喝已经十分迷人，但陈年潜力同样不容忽视。
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12/5/2018 - hprphf wrote: 93 Points
Cherry, currants, pencil, cigar, violet. Good body but nothing special here today. 93
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12/5/2018 - kstoddard wrote:
Shutdown and unapproachable. Unrated.
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10/27/2018 - Burgnick wrote:
Small pour. Indeed amazing with blueberries, black currants, vanilla and oak. Lots of power with finesse but in a classic way. The oak will integrate with some aging. Really nice.
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9/2/2018 - Noel's Cellar Likes this wine: 97 Points
Amazing wine. Red fruit of cherry, blueberry, and raspberry all in one on the nose. Smooth on the palate, red fruits on the front and balanced finish. This wine is like liquid velvet.
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8/19/2018 - JEP007 wrote: 95 Points
It was nice to check in on this wine, but in a flight of other tier one Napa wines, it took last place. If you can forget this wine in your cellar for another 20-25 years, you might have a dead ringer for how superb the 1994 is drinking today. An upside of 2-3pts in another couple decades.
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8/16/2018 - Newbieonekanobi Does not like this wine: 87 Points
My first time to have this legendary wine. What a disappointment. Was granted a taste at a restaurant that offered it by the glass. Frankly, it underwhelmed me. I've had many wines that I consider better balanced and more tasty for $30-$50 a bottle. Nose had oak, dark fruit and chocolate. Tasted over oaked in style, some fruit hiding in the back but mostly herbaceous notes and tobacco. Definitely a full bodied wine but the texture seemed nothing special either given the price point. Had a dry finish, not really long, not a big grip, not really smooth. Very disappointing. I'm so glad I didn't pay $50 for more of this.
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8/13/2018 - rikipedia Likes this wine: 96 Points
Terroir-istes International - USA - California, Napa General (Cape Town Law offices): (Tasted Blind): A deep black garnet colour; the nose is captivating with sweet fruits of goji berry, violet, blackcurrant pastilles, and redcurrant, resonating with black olive, Assam tea leaves, undergrowth and creme fraiche.
The full-bodied palate is supple with a creamy melted chocolate texture and filled with blackberries, cassis, shrivelled black olives, dry spices mixed with exotic notes of five spice and garam masala. Complex, powdery tannins give some firmness and generosity to the frame. A well-balanced, fairly expressive wine with a long finish that develops nicely. Still fresh and vibrant, there is an elegance and finesse to this well-concentrated excellent wine.
Blend of 80 CS, 7 CF, 6 Merlot, 5 PV and 2 Malbec
Looking to make this wine distinct. The culture has often been to have a bit of Brettanomyces in the wine. The wine is made with less heavy-handedness than many and they still seem to have quality and vision and passion into what they do.
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8/2/2018 - Gregboch wrote: 82 Points
Gotta be honest.. It was just OK. Not as much depth as I imagined. Jammy with a nice mouth feel. But almost monotone. Live & learn
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7/17/2018 - jviz wrote: 97 Points
Beautiful BDX blend. Had next to a 2015 Realm bard which provided a lovely stylistic contrast. The 2014 Opus was aromatically open, with notes of tobacco, dried herbs, balsamic and pencil lead. Mostly savory rather than fruity qualities. The palate was structured in the manner of 2014, with approachable but present tannins. The nose was really compelling and commands attention - put simply, it smells like old Bordeaux. This wine begs for age, and I suspect it could last 25+ years. Most reminiscent of PLL or Lafite in style
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7/5/2018 - Oolivia123 Likes this wine:
Opus
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6/28/2018 - Winedog1 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Coravin at Andrea. Apparently 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot, and 2% Malbec. This beat the Gaja and Sassicaia. Much darker than the other two. Rich with lots of complexity. Pencil lead.
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6/4/2018 - MattMauldin Likes this wine:
Napa Valley & Chalk Hill AVA winery visits - 5/30 & 5/31, 2018: Aromas and notes of currant, crushed stone, dried violets, cedar, graphite, black tea and spices. Great presence on the attack, mouth-filling and elegant, with layered flavors. Richly layered texture and structure with silky broad tannins. Huge expansive finish. Stellar.
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5/9/2018 - floridawinedrkr Likes this wine:
Drank this at Baltimore airport. Too young to give a good rating. It was very smooth and soft none the less. It really didn't give up anything but from what I could tell it will be outstanding in a few years.
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4/17/2018 - Keeping It Real wrote: 98 Points
Tasted at Wally's Napa / Sonoma All-Stars 2018 Tasting event. Yea... this was my WOTN. Much better from what I tasted last year in Wally's 2017 tasting event. This was just so tasty. You can't really expect more from it. Like... what more do you want? This is elegant, rich, but has this Opus taste profile that separates it from the crowd. Has the soil, tobacco, and leaves. Loved it a lot.
Tasted this one with All Is Whale who is not a big fan of Opus. I wonder what he scored this...
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3/23/2018 - DENKMAELER Likes this wine: 96 Points
perfekt: ein schöner Jahrgang in voller Harmonie, vielleicht etwas zu mainstream und gefällig, aber darin wirklich perfekt, schöne Länge, kaum metallisch oder sauer, keine Veränderung über 4h gleichbleibend ... man gewöhnt sich und der Preis tut am Ende etwas weh mit 350€
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3/7/2018 - skurtz Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted at WINO in New Orleans. Definitely muted cedary nose but the palate expression is a mature bordeaux which is weird given that this is a young napa wine. Virtually undetectable tannins. I can't imagine that this has the bones for long aging. Very nice now, if you can stomach the price point. I've been fooled by Opus One before, which seemed wimpy one year, awesome after a few more years in the bottle. It may turn out to age beautifully in the future. Impossible for me to tell right now. I'm a bit perplexed by the high scores from other reviewers, to me this is an excellent but not great BDX that can be obtained from France for 1/6 the price.
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3/6/2018 - petitblanc wrote:
No formal notes taken. Great depth of color, loads of fruit but also some complexity and subtle oak shades. The profile is Bordeaux, though modern. Alcohol is not as bad as expected, yet prominent enough to mark nose and palate and make this tiring to drink. A relatively interesting wine for its modern style, which I never love. Not scored. 14.5% abv
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2/11/2018 - J.S Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted at the estate during a tremendous guided tour, highly recommended!
Unfortunately I would not say this has a place in my favourite Napa wines, being a Bordeaux Blend I prefer to leave them out of my Napa lists. It is very subtle and reserved in its appearance and aromas. Hints of blackberry and licorice, cedar, and mocha. Definitely a sense of tensity to this wine. Well balanced tannin, which helps the wine be drinkable from day one, 20-30 second finish. This wine shows well, however for the price I would certainly choose many smaller more boutique producers, who I find are able to produce something far more evoking of ones senses.
All in all, If you want to a complex, new world, warm, fruit forward Napa Cab, that truly exhibits the teroir of Napa, this is arguably not the wine for you. If you want a beautifully crafted example of Bordeaux in Napa, tremendous wine.
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11/14/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
I love this style of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine combines concentration, purity of fruit, lush, silky tannins, freshness and length. You can drink it young, if you prefer, youthful, exuberant, fruit, or age it and enjoy the complexities of age. The wine was made from blending 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 6% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec, which is something you could easily find in the Left Bank of Bordeaux.
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11/4/2017 - daveyk39 Likes this wine: 98 Points
K&L "2014 Napa Valley Titans" Tasting (K&L Wines, Redwood City, CA): K&L "2014 Napa Valley Titans" Tasting: Fascinatingly bold fruit aromas somewhere between black and red currant, combined with citrus peel, fresh earth, and leather (bordering on stables). Buttery texture, medium body, with grainy tannins providing lovely structure through the long finish.
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10/19/2017 - La Cave d'Argent Likes this wine: 94 Points
2017 New York Wine Experience Trip; 10/16/2017-10/25/2017 (New York City, NY): This deep ruby wine is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 2% Malbec. It combines ripe Napa Valley fruit with the structure and elegance of fine Bordeaux. Cassis, dark bramble fruits, graphite, anise and pipe tobacco are supported by fresh acidity, seamless alcohol (listed as 14.5%), nicely woven oak and plentiful silky tannins. Fleshy on the mid-palate and long on the finish, this is an impressive wine that may merit an even higher score once it enters its drinking window. Drink 2020-2040.
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9/22/2017 - Stevenwsims Likes this wine: 97 Points
Forget about this for 5 years. Complex long finish. Needs time to develop but has huge potential. Surprisingly not as approachable as the 2013
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8/19/2017 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 94 Points
The nose was deep and generous with masses of blackberry, blueberry, crushed black cherry, sweet herbs, hints of cedar and spiced orange. On the palate, I found silky, elegant textures that enveloped the senses while saturating blueberry, currants and a brisk wave of acidity added freshness. The finish was long and refined with lingering black fruits, sweet herbs and spice.
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