Immigrant Winemaker

In 1949, Miljenko (Mike) Grgich began his studies in viticulture and enology at the University of Zagreb in Yugoslavia (Croatia). In 1954, fearful of political unrest, he fled, and in 1958 he found his way to California. Grgich worked with various winemakers including André Tchelistcheff and Robert Mondavi. In 1972, he began working at Chateau Montelena, where, only a year later, he made the Chardonnay that placed first in the Paris tasting. In 1977, he and his business partners established Grgich Hills Cellar in Napa Valley.