[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Page 10466]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 84--HONORING THE MEMORY OF ROBERT MONDAVI

  Mrs. BOXER (for herself and Mrs. Feinstein) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary:

                            S. Con. Res. 84

       Whereas Robert Mondavi, a much-loved and admired man of 
     many talents, passed away on May 16, 2008, at the age of 94;
       Whereas Robert Mondavi will be fondly and most famously 
     remembered for his work in producing and promoting California 
     wines on an international scale;
       Whereas Robert Gerald Mondavi was born to Italian immigrant 
     parents, Cesare and Rosa, on June 18, 1913, in Virginia, 
     Minnesota, and his family later moved to Lodi, California, 
     where he attended Lodi High School;
       Whereas, after graduating from Stanford University in 1937 
     with a degree in economics and business administration, 
     Robert Mondavi joined his father and younger brother Peter in 
     running the Charles Krug Winery in the Napa Valley of 
     California;
       Whereas Robert Mondavi left Krug Winery in 1965 to 
     establish his own winery in the Napa Valley, and, in 1966, 
     motivated by his vision that California could produce world-
     class wines, he founded the first major winery built in Napa 
     Valley since Prohibition: the Robert Mondavi Winery;
       Whereas, in the late 1960s, the release of the Robert 
     Mondavi Winery's Cabernet Sauvignon opened the eyes of the 
     world to the potential of the Napa Valley region;
       Whereas Robert Mondavi introduced new and innovative 
     techniques of wine production, such as the use of stainless 
     steel tanks to produce wines like his now-legendary Fume 
     Blanc;
       Whereas, as a tireless advocate for California wine and 
     food, and the Napa Valley, Robert Mondavi was convinced that 
     California wines could compete with established European 
     brands, and his confidence in the potential of Napa Valley 
     wines was confirmed in 1976 when California wines defeated 
     some well-known French vintages at the historic Paris Wine 
     Tasting, or ``Judgment of Paris'', wine competition;
       Whereas, in the late 1970s, Robert Mondavi created the 
     first French-American wine venture when he joined with Baron 
     Philippe de Rothschild in creating the Opus One Winery in 
     Oakville, which produced its first vintage in 1979;
       Whereas the success of the Robert Mondavi Winery, and the 
     many international ventures Robert Mondavi pursued, allowed 
     him to donate generously to various charitable causes, 
     including the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food 
     Science and Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the 
     Performing Arts, both affiliated with the University of 
     California, Davis, and the establishment of the American 
     Center for Wine, Food and the Arts;
       Whereas those who knew Robert Mondavi recognized him as a 
     uniquely passionate and brilliant man who took pride in 
     promoting causes that he held close to his heart;
       Whereas Robert Mondavi's work as an ambassador for wine 
     will be remembered fondly by all those whose lives he 
     touched; and
       Whereas Robert Mondavi will be deeply missed in the Napa 
     Valley, in California, and throughout the world: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress honors the life of Robert Mondavi, 
     a true pioneer and a patriarch of the California wine 
     industry.

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