Robert Mondavi and CK Mondavi - Separated at Birth?
Last weekend I wrote about the CK Mondavi Chardonnay that was a hit with the Mother's Day crowd. Today I started thinking about Mondavi. Everyone knows the name "Mondavi." It's synonymous with good wine. But until today it never occurred to me (silly me) that there are actually TWO Mondavi wine producers in California - Robert Mondavi and CK Mondavi. I just assumed that all Mondavis were the same. After doing some Internet research today however, I realized that the two wineries, though both sharing a last name and a state in common, are completely unrelated. Robert Mondavi has been making wine since the 1960's in Napa Valley. CK Mondavi began in 1943 as the winery of Italian immigrants Cesare and Rosa Mondavi who bought the Charles Krug (hence "CK") winery in St. Helena. Both are family wineries... but despite the same name, it's a different family.
This info was kindly confirmed by the proprietors of XTC Wines in Port Washington, Richard and Marilyn, who I ran into at a seminar at the Port Washington Public Library.
Mark and I will be going to Napa/Sonoma for a week in July, so I hope to check out both Mondavis and report back!
posted by Ann Latner at 9:26 PM
6 Comments:
Au contraire. Cesare and Rosa Mondavi were Robert Mondavi's parents, and did indeed buy Charles Krug back in 1943. For a while Robert ran Krug with his brother, Peter; but the brothers infamously quarreled, and Rosa and Peter ousted Robert from Krug.
Peter Mondavi was left in charge of Krug -- his sons run it today. In 1966 Robert started his own Robert Mondavi Winery which went public in the 90s and was bought by Constellation in 2004.
For a rundown of the history, see:
http://www.sanfran.com/archives/view_story/1083/
You are correct my friend... I found that out and put in a correction two postings up. Keep reading!
The two companies sell to very different markets. C.K. Mondavi, while it does sell some more upscale wines under the Charles Krug label, is primarily a producer of low-priced wines, working in the same general market as Gallo.
Robert Mondavi, while it does have one line of fairly low-priced wines, Woodbridge, is primarily engaged in the production to moderate-to-high priced wines, including some very high-priced wines that are produced in collaboration with the Philippe de Rothschild concern of France.
I am a little late, however, did you visit the Mondavi vineyards back in July 2006 as planned? AND, what are your thoughts/comparisons between the two?
I have a fundraiser in a week and am trying to decide whether to serve CK Mondavi or Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi. Interested in economy and crowd-pleasing. Thanks
Wow, how could you be so way off on something as basic as are they related?
Well maybe we can think about it this way in their own right and to much respect we can consider Cesare and Rosa Mondavi King and Queen of the Napa Valley Wine Industry along with the other wine Pioneers of their day we can then consider Peter and Robert as Princess
and their sisters as Princesses of the wine kingdom and what was the kingdom " Charles Krug Winery " of course. Now we have to understand Cesare and Rosa raised thire children to become Kings and Queens of the Wine Industry in their own right whatever caused the
division is really of little consequence the reality of the matter is that there can only be one King of a kingdom we should believe that Robert
Mondavi sincerely knew that his parents raised him to be a King in the Wine Industry we can say that Peter Mondavi inherited the Kingdom
From his parents which makes Peter Mondavi a King of Wine in his own right Robert Mondavi inherited his parents knowledge and bulit his
own Wine Kingdom which made Robert Mondavi a King of Wine in his own right so here's the question ? To ask is Peter Mondavi's ( CK )
Wine better than Robert Mondavi's Wine or is Robert Mondavi's Wine better than Peter Mondavi's ( CK ) Wine. Well here's my answer to the
Question; King Cesaer and Queen Rosa Mondavi Wine empire spans over a hundred years only Soloman King of Israel can answer that.
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