The man responsable for popularizing the concept of quality American wine died Friday at the age of 94.

California winemaker Robert Mondavi managed to put the Californian Cabernets and Chardonnays on the world’s select wine-tasting map being refered to by the Wine Spectator industry journal as "one of the most influential and admired winemakers in California history."

The Robert Mondavi Winery was founded in 1966 and since then it has evolved into a $500 million-a-year business. The company became the Robert Mondavi Corp in 1993 and started selling shares to the public before being acquired by Constellation Brands Inc. in December 2004. Constellation is the world’s biggest wine company, with it’s main office in Fairport, New York, and decided to acquire Mondavi’s business for $1.35 billion keeping Mr. Mondavi as chairman emeritus of the unit.

Robert Mundavi was born on June18, 1913 in Virginia, Minnesota of two italian immigrants. The family later decided to relocate in Lodi, California and Mundavi ended up graduating from Stanford University in California with a degree in economics and business in 1937.

The family bought Napa Valley's Charles Krug Winery for the price of $75,000 in 1943 and that’s when he started learning the secrets of the wine-making business. After 22 years of partenership with his brother Peter, due to a series of disputes over the business’s direction, Robert Mundavi decided to leave Krug in 1965.

Just a year later he built his own winery in Oakville, which was the first one in the Napa Valley since 1933. The business became a huge success and in 1979 Robert Mondavi Corp. bought Woodbridge Winery in Lodi and also signed for a partnership with the French winery Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA for a special edition cabernet sauvignon-based red wine.

His three children, Michael, Tim and Marcia are also involved with the company.

Over the years he conducted numerous philanthropist activities and will be surely remembered for all of his accomplishments.