Peter Mondavi, one of the most important wine pioneers in California, died Saturday at 101. Mondavi was son to Cesare Mondavi and Rosa Grassi who emigrated from Sassoferrato in the Marche region of Italy and settled in the Minnesota city of Hibbing.
Mondavi not only changed the way the industry started using cold fermentation to produce white wines, but he was also the first one using French oak to age wines and planting pinot noir and chardonnay grape in the the Carneros region of the valley.
In 1943, his parents purchased Charles Krug Winery, that, in 1861, was founded by Prussian emigrant Charles Krug. Together, with his famous brother Robert, he grew Charles Krug into one of the biggest wineries in Napa Valley during the 1950s and ’60s. Robert used to take care of the business while Peter made the wines. Peter became CEO when his mother died in 1976.
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