The House of Mondavi: The Rise and Fall of an American Wine Dynasty

• #27 in Best Wine Books

60 Reviews

Sort by: Most Helpful ▲ Date Rating

I had an opportunity to meet Robert Mondavi in 1995 at his Napa vineyard during one the famed "Summer Concerts in the Vineyard." We had a shared interest since we were both involved in IPOs (Initial Public Offerings) managed by Goldman Sachs. He took the family business, Robert Mondavi Corp., public in 1993 and I was taking a life science business, KeraVision, Inc., public in 1995. Mondavi impressed me then as an American gem - hard working, visionary, entrepreneurial, humble and generous.

Julia Flynn Siler's "House of Mondavi" chronicles the life of this American gem, how he changed the wine industry in America and how his generosity caused him to lose control of a his company during the turbulent early 2000s. Generosity, not greed, brought the downfall - an outlier in a period when greed was the headline story.

After being banished from the family in 1965, Robert, the son of an Italian peasant, started over with virtually nothing and built the biggest name in the American wine industry. His wines took their place proudly with the world's finest.

His generosity with major gifts, including the largest single gift of $35 million (in pledged stock) to the University of California at Davis for a cultural center, put him in harm's way when the Mondavi share price plummeted. A board coup followed with Mondavi Chairman, and former Mckinsey & Co. partner, Ted Hall, firing Mondavi's son, Michael, and putting an end to the dual class ownership of the company's stock...and a loss of control by the Mondavi family.

The book also sheds light on the fragility of family succession and control in even the most established of enterprises - and how botched transfers of power from one generation to another caused conflicts that separated the family from its legacy. Running any family business is notoriously troublesome and very few ever make it into the fifth generation. This one did not as the public spotlight on Michael Mondavi's performance in a time of crisis (a general collapse of wine prices)weighed heavily in the final outcome.

Julia Flynn Siler has written a tight, well researched book that will keep most readers turning each page - particularly those interested in behind the scenes business stories, entrepreneurs, large family-run businesses, Napa Valley and its wine industry, and/or Robert Mondavi the person.

The story does not end with the loss of control as there is a silver lining which saved the Mondavi family from financial ruin. I will leave that and other details of the Mondavi chronicles for the reader to learn first hand.

I just finished the book after a few days of intense reading and I loved it. This is a great read whether you're a wine enthusiast, a Napa lover or a student of American business. The book is well-researched and fair to all parties involved, even though I imagine it must have been tremendously difficult to be impartial at times.

One minor criticism, though, that kept this from being a 5 star book - what is with all the typos? About a 1/3 of the way through the book, I started keeping track of the mistakes and found more than 25 misspellings, typos, missing words, missing punctuation marks, etc. The book is packaged beautifully and the story is great, so why not hire someone to do some basic copy editing? At points, I was almost embarrassed for Ms. Siler, and I hope future editions correct some of the errors. They don't take away from the read, but they certainly distracted me.

This is a terrific history of the Mondavi family and the rise and fall of its wine empire. Family infighting and unwise business decisions and a dash of bad luck are part and parcel of this story. The author, Julia Flynn Siler, writes in a spellbinding manner. The approach and theme (page ix): "Over a period of two and a half years, the author interviewed all of the principle family members involved in the events leading to the sale of Robert Mondavi Corporation, seeking to understand how and why a seemingly "takeover proof" family-controlled company was sold over the objections of several key family members."

The book takes us through four generations of the family. There at the beginning: Cesare and Rosa Mondavi (there is a useful genealogy on the inside of the cover page). The book describes their journey to California and the start of the family wine business.

The book is divided into four parts--Foundation, Construction, Expansion, and the lugubrious finale, Demolition.

Key themes: family infighting. Cesare's two sons, Robert and Peter had a major falling out, with Peter winning the family battle and ousting him from the family business. The father had sought a single condition when he began the purchase of the Charles Krug Winery--(page 23): "Robert and Peter must work together to build the business." The promise failed.

After he left Charles Krug, Robert Mondavi engaged in a legal scorched earth policy against his brother and mother (who sided with Peter). The end result? Robert won and the rest of the family, in essence, lost. This sad story is told engagingly and leaves one scratching one's head as to what could have accounted for a family meltdown.

Robert began his own wine business and brought his sons and daughter into key positions. Over time, he acquired other businesses and the venture expanded. However, eerily reminiscent of his own family falling out, his two sons had serious tensions between them, with very different visions of where the company should go.

Interesting vignettes: the joint venture with the legendary Baron Philippe de Rothschild and his wife, who took aver the reins after the Baron's death, Baroness Philippine de Rothschild.

The book itself reads almost like a Greek tragedy, where the reader can see all the fault lines and can see disaster looming; however, the characters themselves as they lived their lives were unable to control events.

This is a well written book that brings one into the world of winemaking and one family's successes and failures.

This meticulously researched story about the rise and fall of the House that Robert built was a revelation. So much has been writen about Robert Mondavi. He's an icon, a charismatic visionary who not only built a small winery into an empire, but was responsible, more than any other individual, for giving the maligned American wine industry the world-wide respect it now enjoys. As far as I know, this is the first book that explains how and why the House of Mondavi fell in 2004. The answer is complex, of course, but is rooted in Robert Mondavi's determination to have a family-owned company. That family -- all 4 generations of it -- is colorful, volitile and driven by conflicting views. The author paints individuals easy to remember, as are the outsiders who become involved in the business. No need to have a winemaking or busines background to follow what's happening. Thanks to Flynn-Siler's story-telling skill, the reader learns, while engrossed in the conflict and poignancy of the human drama occuring as the business rises and falls. Highly recommended. Note: Even the finest vintage contains the occasional sour grape, apparently. Noticing 'Whines's review in October made me wonder if he's read the same book as the NY Times reviewer and I. Very puzzling.

"The House of Mondavi" is a fascinating tale of how the Mondavis' internal family feud, and Robert Mondavi's struggle to balance his sons' ambitions (while never wanting to give away control) ultimately cost the family the global brand winery they built with so much passion.

Julia Flynn does an awesome job with her fluid and wonderful narration that makes this book extremely enjoyable. There can be no doubts that she is a gifted story teller. The book reads like a best-seller fiction set in the backdrop of a high profile family drama mixed with feud, anger, betrayal and pure emotions.

The most interesting and racy part of this book is where the author moves the story like a thriller detailing Robert Mondavi's fisticuffs with brother Peter in 1965 and sending him out of his family's Charles Krug winery, inspiring him to strike out on his own.

Similarly, the book also gets interesting where the differences between Robert's sons Tim and Micheal are detailed. Tim lobbying for higher-quality wines while Michael focused on the bottom line -- and their father as pitting them against each other.

All in all, "The House of Mondavi" is not just simply an historic account, It's a very well narrated literature that will make you feel as if you just read a novel with twists,turns and classic plots.

N.Sivakumar
Author of: America Misunderstood: What a Second Bush Victory Meant to the Rest of the World

Beautifully written and masterfully researched, Flynn Siler tells the inside story of one of America's most influential families. The Mondavis reinvented the way we eat and drink in this country. This book chronicles that amazing achievement and celebrates the visionaries who made it happen. But it's also a cautionary tale of how difficult it is to maintain such magic once the values of Wall Street get involved. Salute to Flynn Siler for such tremendous storytelling and journalism!

As the author of Extraordinary Comebacks, I collect comeback stories. Rarely have I seen such a powerful one, followed by such a plummeting (albeit cushioned by millions) comedown.

Seems no Italian opera yet written could rival the raw emotion, collusion, betrayal, exultation and devastation of the real life story of winemaker Robert Mondavi and his family.

Born to immigrants (1913), his father, Cesare, founded a vineyard and wine business. It was Cesare's dream that it be a family business, and in name and function it was. But in spirit? Young Robert, and his siblings all worked in the business, but feuds abounded. In his mid-fifties, in a fateful incident, he came to blows with his younger brother, Peter. His mother sided with Peter. It would prove costly: not long after, the patriarch died, and Robert was booted out of his own company. When he told his mother he was starting his own company and would use the original Italian pronunciation of the family name (Mon DAH vee), she slapped his face, and his eyes filled with tears.

So at a time many begin to contemplate retirement, Robert, age 52, with no savings, just the dream of (yet another) family business, started all over (1965), building the Robert Mondavi Winery. He was able to borrow $200,000 from Napa Valley winegrowers as a result of the good name he (and his father) built up over the years. His two sons, Michael and Timothy, and daughter, Marcia, worked alongside him, but again, feuds sparked, simmered and raged. Marcia was smart; she moved to New York to sell the wines and stay out of the daily contretemps; the brothers duked it out, metaphorically it must be added, back home. Michael was for expansion, Timothy wanted to make high-end, select wines. The feud would never be resolved.

Meanwhile, Robert tried to reconcile with his mother, but after a violent argument (in Italian) she fell off her chair, and was helped into bed. She told a friend "I have two sons. One has short legs and he is a saint (Peter). One has longer legs and he is a devil (Robert)." A few days later, she died of heart failure (July 4, 1976).

Besides business matters, affairs of the heart --- infidelity, adultery and ultimately divorce(s) --- shook the terra firma under the clan. Patriarch Robert left his wife of many years, Marjorie, and mother of his children to court and wed Margrit Biever. His first wife would die of alcoholism; others maintained she died of a broken heart. Son Timothy followed in his footsteps, divorcing his first wife while courting and eventually wedding an employee, Holly Peterson, though counseled to remain faithful by his father and other family members. They, too, would later divorce.

Even though family life, and business life were so intertwined among the Mondavi's, the family might have weathered these stresses, even Robert's disinheritance of his own children in favor of philanthropic endeavors ("you've got enough") but the beginning of the end occurred when the firm sold shares to the public (1993). For the first time, non-family members became company managers. At the same time, Robert made a series of huge philanthropic gifts (University of California, late 1990s, $35 million) that almost led him to bankruptcy when his stock plunged to a eight-year low of $18.53 (March, 2003).

Though now under corporate governance, Michael and Timothy kept the conceptual wars going, making investors nervous. While the company had good years, and in fact, expanded, a fact which Michael was not given full credit for, its up and down financial condition deteriorated. Constellation Brands from the Finger Lakes, NY area, seized on the opportunity to launch a hostile takeover for $1.36 billion (2004).

Each of the Mondavis emerged from the harrowing loss of its namesake company with many millions, but resentments, even hatreds, for the sins of the past lingered. While bearing deep scars, Timothy and Marcia reconciled with their father, and so did brother, Peter, at least in public, but eldest son Michael by and large kept his distance, counseled by a therapist to minimize interaction. And so the curtain rang down on a family dream that devoured the family it was supposed to exult.

It is often said that the Mondavis were a model for the soap opera Falcon Crest from the 1980s. A seeming contradiction, Robert Mondavi's autobiography was titled Harvests of Joy (1998) but this later volume (2007) by Julia Flynn Siler chronicles the lives of the Mondavis as the culmination of endless hours of research and original interviews, and summarizes it all as the "rise and fall."

Indeed.

Insightful, instructive.....sobering.

Monumental accomplishment. Hats off to author Siler.

There are quite a few biographies and histories of the California wine industry, and this certainly ranks as the most accurate describing the Mondavis. The story of the Mondavis is both a classic and a soap opera. I indulge both kinds of stories, so I was fascinated by the rise of the wine empires of the Mondavi family, and enjoyed the cold detail of cheating spouses, wayward children, and family fights and lawsuits. But Julia Flynn Siler is an inelegant writer, and she rarely succeeds at bringing you into the moment. I empathize, and she warns you that she has spent more than 500 hours interviewing Mondavis and their entourage, and spent countless hours reviewing tens of thousands of court documents. But, given the opportunity to create a compelling narrative, she instead falls back on reciting the history. Too bad.

It seems as if the editors phoned it in. I didn't find the plethora of typos mentioned in another review, but the awkward phrasing remained, and I rewrote many passages in my head (and, believe me, I'm no writer) to get me through one page or another. For instance, if you removed the phrase "As well" that started so many sentences, the book would be 20 pages shorter, and improve the flow without damaging the syntax.

Read the book, and then wait for the more readable and enjoyable book that's based on this one.

This book is part about the wine industry and the development of the Napa Valley, and part about family business and ego. It is an interesting study of of the fact that because you are born into a family does not make you smart enough to run the business. The story could have read much faster with alot more interest if much of the detail was left out. There were hugh amounts of detail relating to four generations of families, that did not really benefit the story but mearly displayed how much research the author had done.

I don't read a lot of non-fictions in general but this treatment of the Mondavi family and corporation history is such an engaging read. Julia Flynn Siler writes with fluidity that helps the reader navigate this complicated piece of history with ease. I used to wander through Napa Valley tasting wines and have associated the town as a posh vacation spot. It was very interesting for me to read about how the town started with humble vinters and remains largely conservative saved for the marketing efforts initiated by the Mondavi family to elevate the town's image to a high-end destination. I will visit Napa again in the near future, now with new knowledge and appreciation for what goes on behind the scenes. Who knows, maybe I'll even stop by the Court House.

Not only was this book so well written I could hardly put it down, but the author definitely did her research. I have lived in the Napa Valley for 22 years, and know a lot of the people in the book....! The book was not only entertaining but very informative about our beautiful Napa Valley.

Our entire family enjoys good wine. Working in the food business for many decades, we've had several opportunities for private tours at Robert Mondavi and Opus One in Napa Valley, and Lafite Rothschild in Bordeaux as well as many, many other wineries. All of the tours were enlightening, but I never gained such insight into the Mondavi empire until I read this great book. Understanding the personalities of the players involved from the first generation forward gave me a clear picture of the rise and fall of this remarkable family business. For those who love to travel and visit the wine regions of the world, you too will enjoy The House of Mondavi.

A terrific story with an almost biblical feel. Sibling rivalry, generational friction, love, infidelity, modern business, success, craftmanship, family pride, hubris and ambition all intersect in the picturesque Napa Valley. Despite its almost 400 page length, the book is a quick, exciting read. You'll never open a bottle of wine from Napa Valley without thinking about the story of the valley's first family.

Julie Flynn Siler has written a serious, well-researched story of this wonderful family who have made incredible contributions to the prominence of Napa Valley wines.

The company went public in the early 90's for sound reasons. However, the pressures and disciplines of being a public company changed during the following decade, and the family was not able to adjust its operational and governance disciplines to the dramatic changes. As one of many participants on the board of the company during that decade, I can say that the author has portrayed events leading to the sale of the company accurately and dispassionately.

This great family is now off on two separate new wine ventures which will surely be successful.

This book is a really good read. I was going on vacation and wanted to bring a book along - I heard the author interviewed on the radio and it peaked my interest. Being from Northern California I am very familiar with California wines and know some people that work in the industry, but I was not familiar with the soap opera playing out behind the scenes for the Mondavi family. It just goes to show that a house divided against itself cannot stand. It is also a sad commentary on our times how divorce and remarriage and the breakdown of the family are killing our culture and devastating families and especially children. The book was a page turner and I could not put it down.

I found this book very educational and filled with drama! The Mondavis write a very interesting story.

My wife and I both enjoyed this book very much. A must read if you have any interest in wine. Very well written and tells a fascinating story about Robert Mondavi who had such a tremendous impact on the wine industry in NAPA. A tremendous success story with an unhappy ending due to family conflicts.

I really enjoyed this book through the first 200 or so pages, but as I approach the end, am having a tough time finishing. It may be less the author's fault than the subject matter. I'm just bored, bored, bored of hearing about this petty, money-grubbing bunch of back-biters and the way they treat one another. YAWN.

And, as someone else noted, there are a number of typos in the book. "Nieman Marcus"?! Shame on Gotham for churning this out before it was properly reviewed. Very sloppy.

I met Robert Mondavi during a Stanford University telephone bank fundraising session at the winery during the mid 1990's. Of course, the fundraising session was coupled with wine tasting and an exquisite dinner. I have two words to describe Robert Mondavi: magnificent and gracious.

I believe that this book captures these two descriptors of this great man. It was an excellent book, well researched and consistent with the flavor of the events as I understood them at the time. In fact, I couldn't put it down.

For those who love wine the Mondavi family represents one of the greatest names in the business. Just like Henry Ford, they brought wine to the masses but exceeded Ford by producing a product of superior quality. This book throughly reports on the brilliance and dysfunction of an amazing family in stark details. If there is one criticism I would leverage, and it keeps the book from being perfect, the author gives few details on the larger wine industry therefore making it seem as though the Mondavi family turmoil was taking place in some type of void and not in a rapidly changing industry.

The compelling nature of change within the wine industry between those who focus on fine wines and those with more of a marketing sense is still a compelling story but is completely missing from this story. There is only scant mention of super Vinteres like Screaming Eagle or on the other end equally scant mention of Trader Joe's well known, "Two Buck Chuck". No mention is also made of wine passing beer as this country's top alcoholic beverage.

But please read this book none the less for compelling family drama and a superb wine industry history.

After quickly buying in an airport bookstore, I devoured the contents like a nice pate and a fine Pinot, where you want to enjoy slowly but the tastes are too good to sip and savor.

As a wine lover who always like to know that all families have dysfunction, just some happen to have more zeros attached to their net worths - I absolutely loved this book. It would have been hard to keep up with the family members, but the family tree inside the cover was a nice addition so you could easily refer to the generations and many branches of the Mondavi dyansty.

I remember Ms. Silver's WSJ article and was fascinated by this ongoing drama back then. I'm very happy she followed up with a book to give those of us who are always curious to see the inner workings of such an interesting family with roots straight from the vines of Italy, and a curiousity of how corporate takeovers develop and then take place leaving waves of devestated egos and bank accounts crushed in the process.

I've been to Napa twice and have been planning on going back. I'm moving that trip up on my to-do list now as I have a new apprecition for the history of Napa and the ambassadorship of the Mondavis to the area and their role in American's fascination and consumption of wine.

Would recommend this book for anyone who likes wine, family drama, and history of businesses. Great job.

This is a big, sprawling epic of a biography, centered on the legendary vintner and California wine promoter Robert Mondavi but really about the Mondavi family, beginning with Robert's father Cesare, an Italian immigrant.

After some bootstrapping struggles in the Minnesota mine fields, Cesare moves his family to California's San Joaquin Valley, where he prospers as a grape wholesaler and bulk winemaker. Family conflicts develop early as Robert and his younger brother Peter compete for their parents' approval, conflicts that build to the point that Robert is ultimately forced from the family's properous Napa Valley winery. The split results in a famous lawsuit which eventually leads to Robert's apotheosis as the head of his own eponymous winery and his role as the elder statesman of California wines.

Robert repeats his parents' mistakes in raising his own family, resulting in fights between his two sons for primacy in his winery and the ultimate loss of control of his legacy.

Like "Moneyball", which told the story of the success of the Oakland Athletics baseball club, "The House of Mondavi" is about much more that the wine business, and will no doubt find a place on business school reading lists as a cautionary tale of how not to develop a family business. Very readable, it is written with great authority by a former Wall Street Journal reporter. Anyone interested in the wine business, or business and entrepreneurism generally should find it fascinating.

Great book. I couldn't put it down and read it in 4 days. Anyone who enjoys Napa wines and is interested in the history of the region will enjoy the book (although at times it felt like I was reading the Napa version of US Weekly). Highly recommend it.

My book club read this title and I never would have finished it otherwise. It recounts with painful detail the saga of the Mondavi family. The author obviously did very thorough research, and like some kind of minutiae pack rat, didn't want to throw any of it out. Reading it made me wonder if she had an editor, and if so, why the details weren't more distilled. To make matters worse, none of the characters inspired any kind of sympathy. I truly didn't care who died or who won legal battles. Perhaps, if you're a wine gossip connoisseur, of if you know these people, you will like the book.

Julia Flynn Siler's work is a masterful narrative of the Mondavi family, its contribution to the wine industry in the United States and internationally, and the internal dynamics and dysfunctions of individuals and the businesses they ran. Siler clearly has a passion for language and narrative. The story--part family chronicle, part business history--is compelling as it moves the reader from one generation of the Mondavi family to the next, illustrating patterns of love, loyalty, lust, passion, and dysfunction, demonstrating the human fallibility of an exceptionally accomplished family.

When I bought the book, I read it cover to cover, and couldn't put it down. Siler conveys skillfully the tragic flaws of the Mondavis which undermined and burdened their accomplishments, apparently every step of the way. And yet, I was still left with a sense of admiration for all that was accomplished by the family, a sense of empathy for that which was lost, and--even more pronounced--sense of frustration and even judgment at the inability of various family members to step out of the self-defeating patterns of behavior, despite their self awareness.

By the end of the book, Siler too, let her judgment of the family seep into the ink on the page. The Robert Mondavi family, for example, was repeatedly characterized as having `sold out' their shares in the business, even though she had already explained in detail the complicated pressures and commitments which led them to sell (Timothy couldn't bear the thought of his father in financial trouble, Marcia recognized the dysfunction of the family and sought to step away from the generations-old pattern).

The only regrettable shortcoming of the narrative is its patrilinear structure. Siler writes in compelling clarity the ambitions, motivations, and psychological dynamics of the Mondavi men. But, while we know the actions of the Mondavi women, we're left without a full understanding of their motivations. Entire patterns of behavior are explained by succinct statements ("Rosa was protective of Peter"). But what motivated the Mondavi women? Surely they weren't simply complements to the Mondavi men. They, too, dedicated themselves to the success of the Mondavi brands, but we never did learn why.

Overall, an excellent contribution. I recommend it without reservation.

As a wine/spirits industry insider, I consider this book a must read for anyone interested in learning more about the wine business. People often forget that wine is a business despite the industry's romantic aspects. I also think this book should be read by anyone running a family business and dealing with generational succession issues.

Since I was in the wine business in the corporate world with operations in Napa, I found the book to be well written and factual. Bought back the old days of Napa Valley, but now I am in Naples Florida wine auction kings!

The author is to be commended for making this story so fascinating to read. What a treacherous family!

Only a writer with cloth ears would start a sentence with "As well, ..." Ms. Siler does so at least 50 times in this book. I cringed every time.

As well, she devotes far too much space to irrelevant minutiae. See what I mean?

Julia Flynn Siler's The House of Mondavi starts with everything that makes a great story: a wonderfully complex and larger-than-life character, a lush wine-country setting, a conflicted family, and a great undertaking. She brings the story to life with a journalist's eye for the telling detail and a fine fiction writer's sense of plot, pacing, and instinct for the great tragedy that so often results from excesses of pride. The result is a page-turner that leaves the reader not just with the sense of having enjoyed a satisfying story, but also with a deep knowledge of the history of the rise of California's wine industry and a better understanding of human nature. I would recommend this book to anyone.

As a Napa resident and someone somewhat familiar with the characters from the valley identified in this Mondavi family history, this was a very fun book, though sad as can be. One always thinks that the dysfunction in their family is unique, and here they are, a famous wine family on a course of self-destruction all because on matriarch chose to favor one son over the other. As they say: the apples do not fall far from the tree. Very sad, but well written and beautifully read on the audio version I listened to.

Once you start reading the story of this astonishingly dysfunctional family, you will not want to put it down; I was completely gripped by the decades of strum and drang. The book is not only a reporting tour de force -- Siler managed to persuade almost every member of this famously close-mouthed family to talk to her -- but it's also written with just the right blend of empathy,objectivity and insight. You don't need to be in business or know much about wine to enjoy it. But it's surely a must-read cautionary tale for anyone with a family business.

I have read many biography books and many business books but I haven't read many that combine these two genres into one. "House of Mondavi" is one such book. It covers the foundation of the Mondavi's in the wine business; the decision by Robert to break away and start his own company; the bitter fight between Peter and Robert over the Mondavi name; the personal lives of the men in the family; and the ultimate loss of the winery after going public.

I don't consume very much wine but even a non- connoisseur like me knows the Mondavi name. The name is synonymous with wine, and when I heard about this book, I was anxious to read it. I knew about the Mondavi's but I was generally unaware of the family saga so often associated with the Mondavi name. I did not know about the family feuds, the endless fighting, the legal battles, etc., that had plagued the Mondavi family for so many years. I also did not know that the Mondavi family no longer controlled the Robert Mondavi Winery. These and many other interesting facts are uncovered in this book, and they make it a definite page- turner.

When I first decided to read this volume, I was interested in two key points: First, I wanted to know how the family got into the wine business and what seeds were planted that led to the family squabbles. Second, I wanted to know what caused the company to fall from grace. From reading this book, I discovered when the Mondavi family got into the business and I found out all I ever wanted to know about the legal fight between Peter and Robert. I also found out many other things along the way; like the tendency of the Mondavi men to let their eyes wander; the broken families; the secret affairs; the decision to become a stock company; and the slow demise of the business thanks to the inability of Michael and Timothy (Robert's sons) to run the company.

One thing I like about this book is that it doesn't waste time with unimportant details. It jumps right into the action in the first chapter, talking about Cesare Mondavi and his migration to the United States. His time living and working in Minnesota are not that significant to the book's outcome, so it switches quickly to the warm California sun and the decision by Cesare and wife Rosa to enter the wine- making business. Then, in Part II, the book moves quickly to the fighting between Peter and Robert for control of the Mondavi name, and it remains focused on this subject for the duration of the reading. I like that Julia Siler doesn't waste the reader's time talking about insignificant life events in the early years. The book is mostly about the family tensions and the ultimate loss of the winery, so it makes sense that it devotes most of its pages to these topics.

This book has a certain tragic feel to it, and it's something I knew was coming based on the book's title. And as I read more and more about the background of the Mondavi's and the events that led to the ultimate takeover, I felt like I was reading scenes from a tragic novel. Cesare Mondavi labored long and hard to build his business and he and his wife fully expected Peter and Robert to run the company, and then later pass it on to their own sons. Never would Cesare have predicted what happened. His two sons could not agree on much and the tensions continued to the point that Robert broke from the ranks to found his own business. He and Peter should have been able to resolve their differences, but they seem to have one problem after another. It really is sad to think that they lost everything their father had built for them all because of some simple disagreements and the lack of any effort to compromise.

This book offers meticulous research to back its story. Julia Siler includes notes, bibliography, sources, and an index along with two sections of black and white photos. She spent a great deal of time finding out facts about the Mondavi family, both personal and business, and she includes a little bit of everything in this book. She talks about the business decisions that led to the collapse of the business as well as the numerous affairs that led all of the Modavi men (except for Cesare) to make several appearances in courts of law, either for the purpose of obtaining a divorce or for the purpose of working out child custody issues.

Overall, House of Mondavi is a very good book that will be enjoyed by anyone with either an interest in wine or an interest in family business biographies. There are lessons to be learned in this book, and it serves as a reminder that any business- even a family business that seems safe and secure- can falter and even collapse under pressure. The Mondavi winery was lost for several reasons, but at the core of the issues was the family feud between Robert and Peter. It is a tragic case of bruised egos and bad decisions and it shows what can happen when personal lives get too intertwined with the realities of the business world.

The family squabbles where mildly interesting even if too detailed, but the background of establishing how Napa Valley wine was accepted world wide was worth the read. Bob Mondavi with all his warts was the mainstay of what put our wines on the world's tables.

Very detail in the history of the Mondavi dynasty, from Ceasar to current day. Written very well.

Current history that reads like a novel. It is a well writen and engrossing look behind the scenes of the American Wine Explosion of the 20th Century. Siler kept me going to the dictionary with her marvelous use of the English (and other) languages. This is current history that reads like a novel. She paints vivid pictures of the Mondavi Family Members and their associates and weaves the story together in what seems to be a fair minded manner. If you love wine and have enjoyed the explosion of the wine industry in this country, you will like this book.
One criticism. Siler's editors did a shoddy job of 'fact checking', by identifying the town of Igloo, South Dakota as being in North Dakota. As a Dakota Native, it didn't read right. But the book again forced me to confirm my suspicion, by consulting an atlas. It's a small matter in the big picture, but creates doubt about what else may have been wrongly reported. In the end, I'm willing to look beyond this factual error and hope it was the only such lapse. After all the content deals with much wieghtier issues and I'll have to leave it to those who know those facts to raise any other inconsistencies.

Interesting read about the Mondavi family. Not a typical biography. Plenty of drama to hold my interest.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It gave an interesting insight into the power struggles within a family-owned wine business, the anguish of deciding to go public or not (IPO), and the importance of maintaining a relationship with parties critical to the success of such a buisness (suppliers, distributors, board members, etc.)

Anyone that is big into Wine and has been to Napa knows Mondavi Winery is one of the biggest player in the Valley. It was very interesting to read how the winery came about and the split up of the family....Charles Krug winery.

An interesting in-depth review of a famous family, from success to downfall. This book navigates the ascendacy of this dynasty to the top of the California wine industry, hindered by the breakdown of personal relations and the final fiasco of the business. Sad, but fascinating.

THis is a great book about the early fine wine industry in California. The TV show "Falcon Crest" pales when compared to the real life story of the Mondavis. This book was a best-seller for a reason. Read it an enjoy.

This is a great book to read if you have interest in the Mondavi wine business. My interest was piqued after a recent trip to the Napa/Sonoma wine region and visiting the Opus Winery, amongst others. Mondavi is a legend in the California wine business and after reading Robert Mondavi's book entitled Harvests of Joy: How the Good Life Became Great Business I was further drawn to learn more about the family story. In Harvests of Joy: How the Good Life Became Great Business Robert Mondavi tells his side of the story but in this meticulously researched book the big picture is further explained and goes deep into the demise of the wine empire. The ins and outs of the busines, complete with sordid stories, success and faillures, makes this book an epic tale of a family in turmoil. The conflicts between the elder brothers, the Robert Mondavi heir brothers, Michael and Timothy is given an impartial reporting that is refreshing. The book does focus primarily on the fall of the Mondavi empire but it is done in such a way that the background information on the rise of the empire puts everything into perspective. The contributions to the wine industry cannot be denied and the author acknowledges the innovations and techniques the Mondavi family brought to making wine, as well as making Caifornia wine world renowned and mass consumed. The expansion of the business to other parts of the world is quite interesting. It is a tragic story in the end as big business takes over the Mondavi name but not before many years of drama, which Julia Flynn Siler so eloquently describes. If you are interested in the Mondavi story this book is without question the one to read. The book has two sets of pictures that put faces on the characters in this real life soap opera. It is a very satisfying read that leaves you thirsting for more every time you stop reading it. Check it out, highly recommended, especially if you are a wine enthusiast or a person involved in business.

I just LOVED this book. I wasn't sure I would, simply because I read almost nothing but literary fiction. But it was so readable, and had so many of the things I love about fiction - a great story, interesting characters, good writing, evocative settings - that I couldn't put it down.

There is something so epic about the story of the Mondavi family. As you read, you can't help but think of all the family dynasties that have self-imploded; there are echoes of King Lear, of Oedipus, of all the founders whose basic character flaws are the seeds of the family's undoing. To watch the Mondavi family rise so spectacularly from its' immigrant roots, and then fall from its' own weight, is so timeless, so sad, and so compelling.

One of the book's great strengths is its' perfect blend of journalism and storytelling. The Mondavi story is full of juicy facts - wild parties and love affairs and alcoholism - that a lesser author would milk for profit. Siler, however, treats them with the even-handedness of the journalist she is. At the same time, Siler elevates the book well above the dryness of much non-fiction with her skillful storytelling, and brings to vibrant life so many scenes in the lives of the Mondavi family and the Napa Valley.

Witness, for example, the masterful storytelling of the prologue, set in a wine auction in June 2005. This scene encapsulates a turning point for the Robert Mondavi Corp., the beginning of the end. The aging Robert Mondavi, in his wheelchair and bolero hat, has sold his lot of wine at a fire-sale price, while a boutique wine has just sold for a quarter-million per lot. "Robert and Timothy (Mondavi) stared up at the screen, silent in the midst of the raucous celebration of the bid. They seemed isolated, as the Hoopla Commitee and the television camera moved elsewhere. For that moment the Mondavis were no longer the center of attention. When the spotlight returned in the the months to come, it would blaze mercelessly on the dismemberment of their empire." Wow.

I highly recommend this book. It is readable, interesting, well-written, and a fascinating story. And it's fun to discuss over a glass of wine.

"The House of Mondavi" is a quintessentially American tale. A penniless immigrant couple travels to the new world, where they become so successful they are able to send their two sons to Stanford University. The family buys a decrepit winery, turning it into a success. The patriarch dies: war erupts in the family -- leading to one of the most famous court cases in California history. Then, the cycle repeats itself, and successive generations of siblings battle again. This is a must-read for anyone interested in families, fortunes, or the wine business -- and the sensational aspects of the story that make this a true-life "Falcon Crest."

Julia Flynn Siler has accomplished something amazing with the House of Mondavi. It is clear the book was meticulously researched. Her experience as a reporter for the Wall Street Journal obviously guided her writing. Unlike some nonfiction books in which the author speculates where the facts end, Ms. Flynn Siler supports each element of the story with multiple sources. The book is not about Ms. Flynn Siler's opinions of what could have happened. It is about the complex, fascinating web that is the Mondavis. That said, the story reads almost like a novel, and at times is a page-turner. Some reviewers have complained about typos in the text, but any typos are due to a lapse at the copyediting stage and have little if anything to do with Ms. Flynn Siler or the quality of the story being told. The House of Mondavi is a engaging, compelling read which deserves accolades for its substance.

I found Siler's book very interesting. Many places, schools, Cal professors were all familiar to me. But even if it were not so, I would still find the book fascinating. The interaction of the family members was absorbing and business was also of interest. If a reader ejoys biographies especially, I would surely recommend The House of Mondavi.

I dove into this book learning a lot about the history of California wine and just why exactly the Mondavi name had come to prominence. The first part of the book which follows the life and the two sons of the patriach and particularly the bon vivant Robert Mondavi is very interesting.

Although Robert is weaved through the second half of the book, the second half sticks to telling the story of Michael Mondavi's missteps that ultimately lowered the prestige of Mondavi wines. Though it is true and no fault of Stiler, one cannot help feel that Michael squandered the family name and acted (together with his brother Tim) like a spoiled brat bent on greedily dominating the wine industry.

Therefore, the first half is interesting, the second half tiresome.

What a great family history, with drama, jealousy, backbiting, and all the other things that make California Italian wine families interesting.

Even if you don't follow the California wine industry, it's a great read.

I often prefer fiction, yet this packs California wine history into an enjoyable read. It even educates about wines without being heavy handed. And we get to "taste" some intriguing vineyard personalities. For those in family businesses, there are valuable cautionary lessons as well. Definitely worth my money and my time.

This book was disappointing, if only because with decent editing it would have been much more enjoyable to read. The author appeared to write this as a series of stories, rather than a single work of non-fiction, as evidenced by her insistence on re-identifying many major players and events throughout the story. And like many authors these days, tightening up the book by 75 pages or so would have trimmed the fat yet left the full flavor of a compelling saga.

Have only read one half of story as it was so long and drug out for so many pages that it became tiring and we had to put it down and will readdress it at a later date. So much turmoil in a family. So Sad

Intriguing story -- three generations of a famous, semi-dysfunctional winemaking family. The book is easy reading, though it is a little long; but the tale itself carries the day. Recommended.

I love nearly everything about the California wine country, especially beautiful Napa Valley. I also love wine, and having visited the Mondavi Winery several times during the years 1992 and 2002, I was intrigued with this story. I saw Robert briefly outside the winery during one of my earlier visits, and I was very interested in the story behind the scenes, especially since it was a family saga. The story is a long, detailed, interesting one, but the author did not present it in an enjoyable or impartial way. I struggled through most of this book, forcing myself to finish it, and although I sympathized with Robert, I felt the author's obvious bias toward him made the book less credible.

Having spent some time in the Napa area and not knowing anything about the history, I thought this would be a first good start. The book is OK. It really is a very detailed review of the House of Mondavi, however it is just that. A long, detailed history text and nothing more.
I felt that the writing was awkward in places and I found some editing issues. I also hate when people use "gifted" as a verb that indicates giving someone a gift. Its a poor use of English. I am no writer or grammer jockey, however, when I read a book of this nature, I expect better. I read to improve my vocabulary and grammer, not hear "Seinfeldesque" words like that.
DB

Although this book got a little tedious at times, it was a fascinating story to me of the History of Napa. The narrator was excellent and made the story even more enjoyable.

Term Paper would be a good title for this book, a read for people who want to feel like they know everything about the wine industry to impress their friends over dinner. This is too long, too dry - pardon the pun - and reads like a homework assignment for a college course.

Don't waste your time unless you would enjoy a tiresome Wall Street Journal account about a dysfunctional family consumed by ego and greed.

Book is a good insight of what happens in growing a family business with disparate personalities. Also good overview of wine industry. Absolutely too much detail and minutiae...who cares what shade of orange taffeta dress the bride wore, or how the canapes tasted!

If you like the wine industry, you'll enjoy this book. I found it a bit tedious to read. Too much wine not enough interpersonal relationships.

This book is a great tale of Mondavi family issues and the spectacular growth of the California wine industry. However, the book is as important for the myriad of business issues it exposes:

- Before splitting from the family business, Robert Mondavi wanted growth and to invest in the business, and Peter Mondavi wanted more distributions.
- Robert traveled extensively and picked up many of his facility and "wine pairings" and "famous chef" event ideas from the French.
- Robert was a master at using education to sell.
- Using public relations and hospitality to grow a brand.
- The costly delays in making decisions that occur when there is divisiveness in a company.
- How the fall in 1980 of the Fair Trade Act radically impacted the wine distribution business.
- How the rise of Price Club (founded in 1976) and Costco changed the game of selling wine at retail (and the balance of power)
- Broaden the product line and face "doing too many things at once" or keep it narrow (and let competitors establish beach heads in their category?
- How philanthropy, ill planned, can put one in a pickle.
- and much much more.

This business and this family faced it all.