NEWS: How the Mondavi Family Lost an Empire

[Jenise]

Readers of the Wall Street Journal will have already seen this, but it (an excerpt from a new book) is available for a short time on line for those who don't subscribe:

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB118186402937636078-lMyQjAxMDE3ODExNTgxNjU0Wj.html

I'm looking forward to reading that book. Thanks -- Clark

Thanks for the link.... sounds like a good read.

Jenise,

So very sad! Some of my first tastes of fine wines back in 1980 were Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and his Fume Blanc. I still have two bottles of the 78 Reserve Cab in my cellar.

I wonder how Marcia ended up with the most money? Guess I'll have to buy the book.

Jim Lester

I should have mentioned this in my earlier posting ...

If you are interested in this wrap-up of the Mondavi empire, you might first want to read Robert Mondavi's book (Harvests of Joy: How the Good Life Became Great Business) published in 1999. Near the end of the book, he inaccurately predicts how well things are going and how they are set for the future. Of course, this latter is basically true from a purely financial perspective for most of the family members. All in all, it is an interesting book.

Do a quick search and you will find new/used copies starting at only a few dollars.

-- Clark

The book author has a link to the article on her web site along with the video clip where she interviews Michael Mondavi.

http://www.juliaflynnsiler.com

I was looking at the Napa Register web site and there are some pictures of Mr. Mondavi at the recent Wine Auction (link below, then click on "Auction Napa Valley June 9, 2007", click through slide show). He does not look good. The last time I saw him, I was having lunch at Auberge du Soleil last September, he was there in a wheelchair, but he was smiling, had some vigor, and was flirting with every woman in sight. Nothing new except for the chair.

http://www.napavalleyregister.com/webextras/auction/

As an ex-RMW employee, it is sad to see him like this. I've stayed in touch with some fellow exers who were there until the end (I left in 1996). They have such hard feelings about how the end came. It wasn't just the Mondavi family that was affected. It's difficult for some of them to muster up any sympathy when they see the fortunes that each of them received for their stock; feel that they were fed lies about how everything was fine, just a little reorganization; and wonder if Michael turned Judas after being fired, possibly helping STZ with the buyout.

Looking forward to getting my copy. I think the annual RMW former employee picnic is next weekend. I'm sure they'll be buzzing about it.

[Jenise]

Chris, thanks for the insight. When you first went to work there, I guess Bob was still running things, and then you lived through the transition to Michael and Tim. Did you feel the change then, was there a sense on the inside that the company was being mismanaged?

I didn't get any sense of mismanagement while I was there. There was always a management council in place, a varied group of such intelligent guys. That seemed to help temper some of the relationships for a while but there were always clashes. Management roles would be established, Mr. Mondavi would announce a "hands-off" role for himself, and then some months later, all bets would be off and he'd have to "come to the rescue". He had a temper. You did NOT want to be driving down Rt. 29 with him tailgating you. We were all happy the day he got a full-time chauffeur.

Cliff Adams was the CEO for a time; IIRC, he was one of the attorneys who represented Mr. Mondavi in the brother vs. brother lawsuit in the '60s (Peter had Joe Alioto).

There were other issues that arose that were rough going: the Gary Ramona incident where he was accused of molestation by his daughter; a good book on this is "Spectral Evidence" by Moira Johnston Block. Moira wrote an article on the Mondavis back in the '80s for New West magazine; I read it before I moved to Napa, before I had an inkling that I would ever work there. Seems like just yesterday.

Sometimes I think that the relationships that these two men forged with Mr. Mondavi didn't help the relationships that he had with his sons.

Articles are in today's San Francisco Chronicle and the Napa Register. It's not the first time someone has written about the family; maybe this will be the last time.

I find it difficult to gin up much sympathy for the Modavis. If Robert hadn't overindulged in philanthropy, the situation might be different. Given what was at stake, I'm mystified that not only Robert but the rest of the Mondavi family decided they'd rather lose the company than see him lose face in front of the University of California.

And in the end, they all did get multi-million dollar settlements. You lost the vineyard where you scattered your mother's ashes? Here's umpty-million to help with your loss....

Among other admirable achievements, the Robert Mondavi Winery stressed educating the American public about wine appreciation. I attended two Mondavi-sponsored seminars during past Triangle Wine Experiences. In one we had a Fume Blanc to which were added varying amounts of acid, sugar, wood taste, etc. With excess doctoring the wine tasted like aspirin or tooth picks or the sweetness on the taste buds impaired your palate for other wines. It was a concrete lesson in balancing the elements of the wine. I don't recall the subject matter of the other seminar, but was grateful for the attention given to educating the public.

The author did not use any material from his meetings with Robert sr. The reason given was that Bob couldn't remember all the dates places, people present, etc. I have no comment, considering I have heard different versions of what "really happened" in the co.
I'm sure I'll get around to reading the book eventually.