Posted By : Jay Corley

Bob Mondavi will no doubt be recognized as the most influential wine personality in Napa Valley wine history. He had a vision and recognized the full potential of what could be done by our collective winegrowing and winemaking talents.

Forty years ago, when I first came to Napa, he was one of the most important figures in the industry that I met. He was encouraging, sharing and forthright in his vision for his wines and for the future of Napa wines. In many ways we all rode his coattails to the lofty position that Napa has attained in the Wine World.

He was a friend, mentor and visionary that inspired all of us to strive to be the very best winegrowers and winemakers possible. He also understood that it was necessary to reach out and market aggressively the quality of our wines and the virtues of Napa Valley.

We owe Bob a great debt of thanks for his leadership and life long dedication to the wines of Napa Valley.