Robert Mondavi
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
operator whose technical improvements and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines
California wine
California wine has a long and continuing history, and in the late twentieth century became recognized as producing some of the world's finest wine. While wine is made in all fifty U.S. states, up to 90% of American wine is produced in the state...
of the Napa Valley
Napa Valley AVA
Napa Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Napa County, California, United States. Napa Valley is considered one of the top wine regions in the United States...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. From an early period, Mondavi aggressively promoted labeling wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
s varietally rather than generically. This is now the standard for New World wines. The Robert Mondavi Institute (RMI) for Wine and Food Science at the University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
opened October 2008 in his honor.
Family history
Robert Mondavi's parents emigrated from the MarcheMarche
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...
region of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and settled in the Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
city of Hibbing
Hibbing, Minnesota
Hibbing is a city in Saint Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 16,361 at the 2010 census. The city was built on the rich iron ore of the Mesabi Iron Range. At the edge of town is the largest open-pit iron mine in the world. U.S...
. Robert Gerald Mondavi was born in Virginia, Minnesota
Virginia, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,157 people, 4,333 households, and 2,270 families residing in the city. The population density was 486.1 people per square mile . There were 4,692 housing units at an average density of 249.1 per square mile...
. From Minnesota the Mondavi family moved to Lodi, California
Lodi, California
Lodi is a city located in , in the northern portion of California's Central Valley. The population was 62,134 at the 2010 census. The California Department of Finance's population estimate as of January 1, 2011 is 62,473....
, where he attended Lodi High School
Lodi High School (California)
Lodi High School, serving grades 9-12, is one of four comprehensive high schools in Lodi Unified School District. The physical plant encompasses three gymnasiums, 59 permanent classrooms, one cafeteria, 30 portables, four computer labs, one theater complex, a college and career center, one...
. In Lodi, his father, Cesare, established a successful fruit packing business under the name C. Mondavi and Sons, packing and shipping grapes to the east coast primarily for home winemaking. Mondavi graduated from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1937 with a degree in economics and business administration. While at Stanford he was a member of the Phi Sigma Kappa
Phi Sigma Kappa
-Phi Sigma Kappa's Creed and Cardinal Principles:The 1934 Convention in Ann Arbor brought more changes for the fraternity. Brother Stewart W. Herman of Gettysburg wrote and presented the Creed, and Brother Ralph Watts of Massachusetts drafted and presented the Cardinal Principles.-World War II:The...
fraternity. In 1943, Mondavi joined his father and brother Peter after the family acquired the Charles Krug Winery located in St. Helena, CA from James Moffitt. The winery had first been established by Charles Krug
Charles Krug
Charles Krug was among the original pioneers of winemaking in the Napa Valley, and was the founder of the winery of the same name. Krug immigrated to the United States from Prussia in 1851 and served as an apprentice winemaker for both Agoston Haraszthy and then John Patchett before establishing...
in 1861.
After a feud between himself and his younger brother Peter over the direction of winemaking at Krug, Mondavi was fired from in 1965 and subsequently started his own winery in Oakville, arguably out of spite. Today, the Robert Mondavi Winery is located between Oakville and Rutherford, California (though its corporate headquarters are in nearby St. Helena
St. Helena, California
St. Helena is a city in Napa County, California, United States. It is part of the northern San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 5,814 at the 2010 census....
).
In 1966, he founded the Robert Mondavi Winery in the Napa Valley with the goal of producing wines that would rival the finest wines of Europe. Robert Mondavi is the first major winery built in Napa Valley in the post-Prohibition era. Part of Mondavi's original vineyard land included the To Kalon (a Greek term meaning "the beautiful") vineyard originally established by Napa Valley pioneer H.W. Crabb in 1868. The winery bearing Mondavi's name produced high quality wine in the California mission style.
In 1967, the woman who would later become Robert Mondavi's second wife, Margrit (Kellenberger) Biever Mondavi
Margrit Mondavi
Margrit Biever Mondavi is Vice President of Cultural Affairs at Robert Mondavi Winery. A pioneering woman of the modern-day California wine industry, she joined the winery in 1967, pursuing a life-long interest in uniting wine with fine arts, music and culinary artistry...
, joined the winery. They married in 1980 in Palm Springs, California, almost immediately after his divorce from his first wife, Marjorie Ellen (Declusin) Mondavi.
Wine history
In 1968 he made a dry oak–aged Sauvignon BlancSauvignon blanc
Sauvignon Blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French word sauvage and blanc due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France., a possible descendant of savagnin...
, an unpopular variety in California at the time, and labeled it "Fumé Blanc". The wine was a success and, in time, Fumé Blanc became accepted as a synonym for Sauvignon Blanc.
Mondavi successfully developed a number of premium wines that earned the respect of connoisseurs and vintners alike. In 1979, he built the Mondavi Woodbridge Winery in Lodi, California developing it into a leader of popular-premium wines. He also entered into a joint venture the Baron Philippe de Rothschild
Philippe de Rothschild
Baron Philippe de Rothschild was a member of the Rothschild banking dynasty who became a Grand Prix race-car driver, a screenwriter and playwright, a theatrical producer, a film producer, a poet, and one of the most successful wine growers in the world.-Early life:Born in Paris, Georges Philippe...
of Château Mouton Rothschild
Château Mouton Rothschild
Château Mouton Rothschild is a wine estate located in the village of Pauillac in the Médoc, 50 km north-west of the city of Bordeaux, France. Its red wine of the same name is regarded as one of the world's greatest clarets. Originally known as Château Brane-Mouton it was renamed by Nathaniel...
to create Opus One Winery
Opus One Winery
Opus One Winery is a winery in Oakville, California, USA. The wine was called napamedoc until 1982 when it was named Opus One. The winery was founded as a joint venture between Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Château Mouton Rothschild and Robert Mondavi to create a single Bordeaux style blend based...
, and since the 1990s has set up joint ventures with local partners in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Interested by his work and his success, in the 1990s Mondavi's story and his wine company became topics for specialists of wine.
In the Grand European Jury Wine Tasting of 1997
Grand European Jury Wine Tasting of 1997
In the Grand European Jury Wine Tasting of 1997, the Grand Jury Européen, consisting entirely of European judges, conducted a blind tasting of 27 Chardonnay wines from seven countries. Held in Bordeaux , 70 percent of the entries in the wine competition were from France...
, the Robert Mondavi Chardonnay Reserve was ranked number one.
In 2005 Robert Mondavi and his younger brother Peter made wine together for the first time after their feud. Using grapes from both family vineyards, they produced one barrel of cabernet blend, which was sold under the name "Ancora Una Volta" ("Once Again").
Legacy
Robert Mondavi was selected as the DecanterDecanter (magazine)
Decanter is an up market magazine on wine and spirits, published in over 90 countries on a monthly basis. The magazine content includes news from the industry, vintage guides and wine recommendations. Decanter organizes the annual Decanter World Wine Awards.-Wine Ratings:Decanter employs a 1 to 5...
"Man of the Year" in 1989. His autobiography Harvests of Joy was published in 1998.
In 2003, Mondavi expressed regret and criticized his sons for the business strategy that emphasized the inexpensive Mondavi lines, Coastal and Woodbridge, over the premium wines, allowing the company name to lose its association with fine wine it held in the past. He said, "We've got to get our image back, and that's going to take time."
In the 2004 documentary film Mondovino
Mondovino
Mondovino is a 2004 documentary film on the impact of globalization on the world's different wine regions written and directed by American film maker Jonathan Nossiter...
, the Mondavi family featured prominently, in close application to its theme of globalization
Globalization
Globalization refers to the increasingly global relationships of culture, people and economic activity. Most often, it refers to economics: the global distribution of the production of goods and services, through reduction of barriers to international trade such as tariffs, export fees, and import...
. At the time, the Mondavis had recently acquired the Italian "cult wine" Ornellaia
Ornellaia
Tenuta Dell'Ornellaia is an Italian wine producer in the DOC Bolgheri in Toscana, known as a producer of "Super Tuscan" wine. Ornellaia is considered one of Italy's leading Bordeaux-style red wines...
winery, Tenuta Dell'Ornellaia.
On December 22, 2004, Constellation Brands
Constellation Brands
Constellation Brands, Inc., headquartered in Victor, New York, is the world’s leading wine company with a broad portfolio of widely admired premium brands across the wine, beer and spirits categories.-History and description:...
acquired the Mondavi winery for nearly US$1.36 billion in cash and assumption of debt. Following the sale of the company, Mondavi traveled the world as an ambassador for wine.
Due to the contributions of Robert and Margrit Mondavi, the Mondavi Center
Mondavi Center
The Mondavi Center, or Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, is a performing arts venue located on the UC Davis campus in Davis, California...
at UC Davis in Davis, California
Davis, California
Davis is a city in Yolo County, California, United States. It is part of the Sacramento–Arden-Arcade–Roseville Metropolitan Statistical Area...
for performing arts was named after him. The two were founders and major benefactors behind COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts
COPIA
COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts was a cultural museum and education center dedicated to the discovery, understanding, and celebration of wine, food and the arts in American culture. COPIA was located in the Napa Valley in the town of Napa, California...
, which opened November, 2001 in the city of Napa, California
Napa, California
-History:The name Napa was probably derived from the name given to a southern Nappan village whose people shared the area with elk, deer, grizzlies and cougars for many centuries, according to Napa historian Kami Santiago. At the time of the first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823, the...
.
Robert and Margrit were also founding supporters of the restoration of the 19th-century Napa Valley Opera House
Napa Valley Opera House
The Napa Valley Opera House is a theatre in Napa, California, USA. It opened on February 13, 1880 with a production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s HMS Pinafore. At the time, the town had a population of 5,000 people...
and the Oxbow School
Oxbow School
The Oxbow School is a private single semester arts school for high school juniors and seniors located in Napa, California, sitting near an oxbow of the Napa River...
, a new art school in Napa that provides grants and instruction to art students in their junior year of high school. They have contributed to the restoration of the Lincoln Theatre in Yountville, California
Yountville, California
Yountville is an incorporated town in Napa County, California, United States. It is in the North Bay portion of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 2,933 at the 2010 census. Almost one third of the town's population lives on the grounds of the Veterans Home of California.The town's name...
, and have supported the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
.
Mr. Mondavi was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1991.
On December 5, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
and First Lady Maria Shriver
Maria Shriver
Maria Owings Shriver is an American journalist and author of six best-selling books. She has received a Peabody Award, and was co-anchor for NBC's Emmy-winning coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics. As executive producer of The Alzheimer's Project, Shriver earned two Emmy Awards and an Academy of...
inducted Mondavi into the California Hall of Fame
California Hall of Fame
Conceived by First Lady Maria Shriver, the California Hall of Fame was established at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts to honor individuals and families who embody California’s innovative spirit and have made their mark on history...
, located at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts
The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts
The California Museum, formerly The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts – home of the California Hall of Fame – is housed in the State Archives Building in Sacramento, one block from the State Capitol...
.
Vintner's Hall of Fame
Robert Mondavi was inducted into the Culinary Institute of America'sCulinary Institute of America
The Culinary Institute of America is a non-profit culinary college located in Hyde Park USA, founded in 1946. The CIA also has branch campuses in St. Helena, California, and San Antonio, Texas, as well as a campus in Singapore. It is a not-for-profit academic institution of higher learning...
Vintner's Hall of Fame in 2007.. The election was based upon ballots from seventy wine journalists. The decision for their election of Mondavi is for contributions to the wine industry of California during his life-time.
Inductions with Robert Mondavi on March 7, 2007 included Agoston Haraszthy
Agoston Haraszthy
Agoston Haraszthy was a Hungarian-American traveler, writer, town-builder, and pioneer winemaker in Wisconsin and California, often referred to as the "Father of California Viticulture," or the "Father of Modern Winemaking in California"...
, Andre Tchelistcheff
André Tchelistcheff
André Tchelistcheff was America's most influential post-Prohibition winemaker. Tchelistcheff is most notable for his contributions toward defining the style of California's best wines, especially Cabernet Sauvignon...
, Georges de Latour, Charles Krug, Gustave Niebaum
Gustave Niebaum
Gustave Ferdinand Niebaum acquired his maritime schooling in Helsinki, Finland. By the end of 1850s - now a Sea Captain - Gustave Niebaum had become the world's leading fur trader. Among his many known accomplishments Captain Niebaum founded the Alaskan Commercial Company in San Francisco,...
, Brother Timothy, Maynard Amerine, Barbara Tropp
Barbara Tropp
Barbara Tropp was an American chef and cookery writer, who helped introduce Americans to Chinese cuisine.-Background:...
, and Harold Olmo
Harold Olmo
Dr. Harold Olmo was a pioneering viticulturalist and professor at the University of California, Davis where he created many new grape varieties known today as Olmo grapes. In the 1950s, he helped to establish California's first quarantine facility on the UC-Davis campus to permit California...
.
External links
- Robert Mondavi official site
- Napa Valley Wine Co. the story and historical documents re. Charles Krug, Jacob Beringer/Beringer Bros., and Cesare/Robert Mondavi (in german)