Wine Tasting in Livermore, CA (Not Napa)

When people think of California Wine Country, the immediate word that comes to mind is Napa. And while the Napa Valley is rightfully famous, it’s far from the only place that makes great wine in California. There is Sonoma, Lodi, Monterey, Santa Barbara.... the state has a Mediterranean climate which makes it ideal for viticulture. Even so, when one of my oldest friends suggested doing wine tasting (the first time I’ve ever gone in California) in Livermore when I visited last weekend, I was surprised to say the least.

Livermore in my head was that kinda out of the way place where the National Labs were. Not a wine spot. But apparently it is quite the hip, emerging wine spot in the Bay Area. And having been there, I can honestly say, yeah; that’s legit. The wines were good, it’s beautiful (as is all of the Bay Area), and it’s closer to East Bay (where we grew up) than Sonoma, the next closest option. The tastings were also reasonably priced, in my opinion.

We ended up going to four places: McGrail, Big White House, Cedar Mountain, and Michael Katz. All of them produced quality wines, and my thoughts for each one (in order of my visit) are below.

McGrail
I was not a big fan of McGrail, which was the first place we visited. It was crowded and that meant the service was rushed and not particularly personalized. This is not the fault of the vineyard, if anything it’s good for them because that means they make more money. And the place is well regarded in the Bay Area, has a fantastic location, and makes good wine. It’s a place that shows up on media lists of where to go in Livermore. But I was neither impressed nor disappointed by the wine I had there. It was fine. It’s a good place, but not good for me, especially since I’m not a fan of crowds.

Big White House
Big White House was my friend’s favorite, and just down the hill from McGrail. Unlike McGrail it was very empty. Which is a shame because the wine and service there were excellent. The woman who helped us was super friendly, and their tasting list was extensive, as were the notes accompanying it. Most of the wines I’d never heard of, some were hybrids bred in California and found no where else. I nearly bought a bottle of an obscure red I liked. The whole place was decorated by paintings done by the owner’s sibling, and were reproduced on the winery’s labels. It was the vineyard equivalent of a comforting local coffee shop.

Cedar Mountain
Of the four places we went, this was my favorite. Instead of having a set wine tasting menu, they had their entire selection - probably 10 wines and 10 ports - and you could taste 6 of them. Yes, they made port too, which was a good chunk of why my friend recommended it. Both of us decided to share each tiny port taste, so we could try, in effect, six ports between the two of us. I liked basically everything I tried (although the Sauvignon Blanc was very banana-y) except the sherry. The ports were excellent. I actually bought as small bottle of my favorite, despite having to transport it back to DC with me. Luckily, most of these places waive the tasting fee if you buy a bottle.

Michael Katz
This was the last place we visited. The lady who helped us at Big White House recommended this place, so we figured we may as well try it. Unfortunately we arrived just after (like less than five minutes) 4:30 which was when then ended their wine tasting. And they would not unbend, which I though was not terribly Californian of them. Far too rigid. I disapproved. But, they were still offering wines by the glass and I went with their Sangiovese, which was specifically recommended by the lady at Big White House. And it was excellent. So while I have nothing to say about their manners, or their facilities (they didn’t have proper bathrooms), the wine itself was excellent.