I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. I've
drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
quite up to its hype. This bottle was no exception. The wine was
medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
rim. Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
sous bois. The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light. I
served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. On a 0-5 scale
my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
One. A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
$350USd....Yikes!

Yikes! indeed.

On 2007-11-19 09:10:11 -0800, "Bi!!" > said:

> I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
> was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. I've
> drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
> quite up to its hype. This bottle was no exception. The wine was
> medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
> rim. Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
> sous bois. The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
> faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
> The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light. I
> served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
> it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. On a 0-5 scale
> my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
> One. A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
> $350USd....Yikes!

Bi!! wrote:
> I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
> was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. I've
> drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
> quite up to its hype. This bottle was no exception. The wine was
> medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
> rim. Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
> sous bois. The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
> faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
> The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light.

1998 was a mediocre vintage in California. In general, Napa
Valley reds were all a bit light, some more than others. I did
taste the '98 Opus One shortly after release and found it quite
light on the palate and vaguely recall even a bit of something like
green olive which *might* have matured into sous bois. After the
string of 1994-1997 vintages of Opus One which seemed to indicate
that Opus One had become a real contender (though still over-hyped),
1998 was disappointing, even when the mediocre vintage is taken
into account. I was a Mondavi shareholder at the time, and went
back to Opus One a few months later to taste the '98 again, with
identical impressions.

> I served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
> it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. On a 0-5 scale
> my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
> One. A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
> $350USd....Yikes!

It's just amazing. I'm sure there are collectors out there that
just have to have a '98 to make complete vertical or something.
I'd much rather buy a case of current vintage BV Rutherford Cab
than one bottle of '98 Opus One.


Dana

In article
>,
"Bi!!" > wrote:

> I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
> was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. I've
> drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
> quite up to its hype. This bottle was no exception. The wine was
> medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
> rim. Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
> sous bois. The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
> faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
> The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light. I
> served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
> it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. On a 0-5 scale
> my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
> One. A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
> $350USd....Yikes!

I have never understood the appeal. I have had 10 different vintages of
what I thought was an OK $25-30 wine.

Dana Myers wrote:

> 1998 was a mediocre vintage in California. In general, Napa
> Valley reds were all a bit light, some more than others. I did
> taste the '98 Opus One shortly after release and found it quite
> light on the palate and vaguely recall even a bit of something like
> green olive which *might* have matured into sous bois.

Dana,
Although '98 was no '97 or '99, many of the better producers made
very credible wines in that year. In many ways, I preferred the wines
of '98 to other, more ballyhooed years -- and that's reflected in my
cellar, where I have more '98 Napa Cabs than '97 or '99. De gustibus,
and all that... And, yes, Opus *is* overhyped :-)

Mark Lipton

--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

Mark Lipton wrote:
> Dana Myers wrote:
>
>> 1998 was a mediocre vintage in California. In general, Napa
>> Valley reds were all a bit light, some more than others. I did
>> taste the '98 Opus One shortly after release and found it quite
>> light on the palate and vaguely recall even a bit of something like
>> green olive which *might* have matured into sous bois.
>
> Dana,
> Although '98 was no '97 or '99, many of the better producers made
> very credible wines in that year. In many ways, I preferred the wines
> of '98 to other, more ballyhooed years -- and that's reflected in my
> cellar, where I have more '98 Napa Cabs than '97 or '99.

I absolutely agree that many good California wines were made in
1998; I suspect I wouldn't be cellaring the vast majority of them
too long, though.

> De gustibus, and all that... And, yes, Opus *is* overhyped :-)

Yup.

Dana

On Mon, 19 Nov 2007 15:11:48 -0500, Lawrence Leichtman
> wrote:

>
>I have never understood the appeal. I have had 10 different vintages of
>what I thought was an OK $25-30 wine.

It's interesting that the general opinion is that Opus One is
overrated. My only experience of it was in a restaurant in Macau in
2000. Thankfully, I wasn't buying. I don't know the vintage but I
found it pleasant and quite drinkable though lacking a little in
elegance.

I recall that there were a number of clarets on the list that I would
rather have had and that my comment to friends on returning to the UK
was that the Columbia "David Lake" Cabernet that we'd been drinking in
the summer of that year was a much better wine.

The only thing to write home about was that the Opus wasn't anything
to write home about.

James

James Dempster

You know you've had a good night
when you wake up
and someone's outlining you in chalk.

On Nov 19, 2:21�pm, Dana Myers > wrote:
> Bi!! wrote:
> > I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
> > was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. �I've
> > drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
> > quite up to its hype. �This bottle was no exception. �The wine was
> > medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
> > rim. �Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
> > sous bois. �The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
> > faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
> > The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light.
>
> 1998 was a mediocre vintage in California. �In general, Napa
> Valley reds were all a bit light, some more than others. �I did
> taste the '98 Opus One shortly after release and found it quite
> light on the palate and vaguely recall even a bit of something like
> green olive which *might* have matured into sous bois. �After the
> string of 1994-1997 vintages of Opus One which seemed to indicate
> that Opus One had become a real contender (though still over-hyped),
> 1998 was disappointing, even when the mediocre vintage is taken
> into account. �I was a Mondavi shareholder at the time, and went
> back to Opus One a few months later to taste the '98 again, with
> identical impressions.
>
> > I served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
> > it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. �On a 0-5 scale
> > my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
> > One. �A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
> > $350USd....Yikes!
>
> It's just amazing. �I'm sure there are collectors out there that
> just have to have a '98 to make complete vertical or something.
> I'd much rather buy a case of current vintage BV Rutherford Cab
> than one bottle of '98 Opus One.
>
> Dana

I understand that 1998 wasn't up to the standards set by other
vintages in Napa but I've had a number of wines (Caymus, Shafer
Hillside Select, Phelps Insignia, etc) from the '98 vintage that were
quite good and are still drinking well. I recently read the "House of
Mondavi" and after reading it I'm surprised that they were able to
produce any decent wine at all. It seems that if it weren't for the
high quality fruit that they were blessed with that they would have
really had a bust on theri hands with Opus. Too many chefs in the
kitchen, etc. I also seem to recall that the pricing for Opus was
basically done by the Baron by taking the benchmark for pricing of
luxury Napa cabernet and doubling it.

In article
>,
"Bi!!" > wrote:

> On Nov 19, 2:21?pm, Dana Myers > wrote:
> > Bi!! wrote:
> > > I ran across a bottle of 1998 Opus One in my cellar which I assume I
> > > was gifted since I haven't bought a bottle of Opus in my life. ?I've
> > > drank it many times from a variety of vintages and never found it
> > > quite up to its hype. ?This bottle was no exception. ?The wine was
> > > medium to light reddish purple in the glass with a bit of pink at the
> > > rim. ?Fairly mature nose of red currant, plum, leather and a bit of
> > > sous bois. ?The palate was underwhleming with little impact other than
> > > faint hints of red plum, a hint of currant and a bit of red berries.
> > > The tannins were fairly inconsequential and the finish was light.
> >
> > 1998 was a mediocre vintage in California. ?In general, Napa
> > Valley reds were all a bit light, some more than others. ?I did
> > taste the '98 Opus One shortly after release and found it quite
> > light on the palate and vaguely recall even a bit of something like
> > green olive which *might* have matured into sous bois. ?After the
> > string of 1994-1997 vintages of Opus One which seemed to indicate
> > that Opus One had become a real contender (though still over-hyped),
> > 1998 was disappointing, even when the mediocre vintage is taken
> > into account. ?I was a Mondavi shareholder at the time, and went
> > back to Opus One a few months later to taste the '98 again, with
> > identical impressions.
> >
> > > I served this wine blind to my dinner guests and they all guessed that
> > > it was a cheap Bordeaux from a borderline appellation. ?On a 0-5 scale
> > > my guests gave it a 1.5 and were shocked when I revealed it to be Opus
> > > One. ?A quick check on Winesearcher shows pricing from $100USD to
> > > $350USd....Yikes!
> >
> > It's just amazing. ?I'm sure there are collectors out there that
> > just have to have a '98 to make complete vertical or something.
> > I'd much rather buy a case of current vintage BV Rutherford Cab
> > than one bottle of '98 Opus One.
> >
> > Dana
>
> I understand that 1998 wasn't up to the standards set by other
> vintages in Napa but I've had a number of wines (Caymus, Shafer
> Hillside Select, Phelps Insignia, etc) from the '98 vintage that were
> quite good and are still drinking well. I recently read the "House of
> Mondavi" and after reading it I'm surprised that they were able to
> produce any decent wine at all. It seems that if it weren't for the
> high quality fruit that they were blessed with that they would have
> really had a bust on theri hands with Opus. Too many chefs in the
> kitchen, etc. I also seem to recall that the pricing for Opus was
> basically done by the Baron by taking the benchmark for pricing of
> luxury Napa cabernet and doubling it.

I had a Shafer Hillside select from 1998 last night with Osso Buco.
Great combination and nice wine so there is plenty of cabernet from 1998
that is good.

Bi!! wrote:

> I understand that 1998 wasn't up to the standards set by other
> vintages in Napa but I've had a number of wines (Caymus, Shafer
> Hillside Select, Phelps Insignia, etc) from the '98 vintage that were
> quite good and are still drinking well.

Sure; I didn't think my statement said there was *no* good
Napa wine in 1998, at least I hope no one gets that impression.
It's really the hallmark of a great producer to make a good
wine in a challenging year, and there were many examples of
that in the 1998 vintage.

If I recall correctly, Wine Spectator basically wrote 1998
off as a flop, which wasn't the case at all, but it's true
that 1998 wasn't a "normal" year for California wines.

Dana

On Nov 20, 4:59 am, Mark Lipton > wrote:
> and all that... And, yes, Opus *is* overhyped :-)
>
> Mark Lipton

Aren't most Cali Cabs? :-)

Salil

Salil wrote:
> On Nov 20, 4:59 am, Mark Lipton > wrote:
>
>>and all that... And, yes, Opus *is* overhyped :-)

> Aren't most Cali Cabs? :-)

I refuse to take that bait, Salil. :P

Mark Lipton
--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

Mark Lipton wrote:
> Salil wrote:
>> On Nov 20, 4:59 am, Mark Lipton > wrote:
>>
>>> and all that... And, yes, Opus *is* overhyped :-)
>
>> Aren't most Cali Cabs? :-)
>
> I refuse to take that bait, Salil. :P

Well, a rising tide hypes all boats, right?

Dana