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What is a tasty way to enjoy more of the Livermore Valley wine region? The second annual TASTE: The Livermore Valley Wine Experience, held Oct. 17-20, enticed guests with a wide variety of 13 events from wine brunches and grape stomping to pairing competitions and gourmet dinners.
The Livermore Valley Winegrowers Association presented TASTE and invited an acclaimed set of wine experts from outside the Tri-Valley who are wine critics, educators and writers, and a chef to headline at two events.
Three professionals judged the TASTE Our Terroir competition on Oct. 17 to determine the winner among the 15 winemaker and chef teams presenting wine and food pairings in three categories: Most Innovative, Best Classic Pairing and Best Pairing. Organizers encouraged the 500 attendees to vote for two People’s Choice awards.
The fourth wine expert moderated the six-course Luxury Sommelier Dinner on Oct. 18 attended by over 70 guests. After the events, the four professionals provided a unique perspective on the state of Livermore Valley.
TASTE Our Terroir judges
Jonathan Cristaldi is the Napa Valley critic and correspondent for Decanter, the top U.K. wine magazine, and has written for Food & Wine and other magazines. “I have been chained to Napa Valley or home in Marin County while writing for Decanter these last few years. I am happy to reconnect with Livermore Valley,” Cristaldi said.
Cristaldi announced the judges’ award for Best Classic Pairing. The winning vintner and chef named their pairing “Buffalo and Burgundy” — which begs for explanation.
Bob Pruett, who launched Pruett Farms Winery in Livermore in 2023, and Brandon Wood, owner of The Cheese Parlor in Livermore, collaborated on a surprising riff for wine and cheese: Pruett’s 2022 Reverie Reserve Chardonnay was matched with Wood’s choice of Bufarolo, a mild, fresh buffalo milk cheese from Italy, accompanied by bresaola, candied pecans, honeycomb and tarragon.
“At the judging table, we thought the well-crafted Chardonnay was from Wente, but it was from newcomer Pruett who makes delicious, artisan wine. The food and wine made each other taste better,” Cristaldi added.
Reem Assil is an Oakland-based, Palestinian-Syrian chef who owns Reem’s California Arab bakery and restaurant in San Francisco’s Mission district and a bakery-snack food kiosk at the Ferry Building.
Assil was a James Beard finalist for Outstanding Chef (2022) and also the author of “Arabiyya”, an IACP award-winning cookbook with Arab recipes (Ten Speed Press, 2022).
Before the event, Assil acknowledged that as a Bay Area chef, she was embarrassed for never visiting Livermore Valley. “TASTE is an opportunity to highlight a region that may be overshadowed by the more frequently covered Napa and Sonoma County food and wine scene. I am excited to discover a new culinary scene,” Assil said.
Assil announced the winning team for Most Innovative pairing: Zephyr Restaurant in Livermore serving Pani Puri Wellington paired with Darcie Kent Winery’s 2022 Triska Vineyards Pinot Noir.
“Zephyr’s chef Jesus Martinez melded cultures and nostalgia into a reimagined, one-bite British beef Wellington,” Assil said. “Chef replaced the traditional pastry wrapped over beef by filling Indian pani puri — deep-fried, hollow, spherical shells — with duck confit, mushroom foam and more. The textural contrast between the crispy pani puri and duck confit-mushroom mixture was excellent. The Pinot Noir stood up well to the richly flavored food.”
Tonya Pitts is writer-at-large and a wine reviewer for Wine Enthusiast magazine. She is also the wine director and sommelier at acclaimed One Market restaurant in San Francisco, a judge for wine competitions across the country and a mentor for others in hospitality. In the past few years, she visited Wente Vineyards and Murrieta’s Well.
Announcing the Best Pairing, Pitts and the winning team were excited to discover the results. Sakura Winery, established in 2021, presented their 2022 Petit Verdot Rosé with poke bites of tuna, salmon and ono sashimi in a creamy, spicy poke sauce from chef-manager Paul Srirattana of Kiseki restaurant, opened in Livermore in 2023.
Sakura owner-winemaker Jennifer Sahara named her winery for the Japanese word meaning cherry blossom, and the flower themes appeared on the cracker holding the poke and the table decor.
Pitts spoke highly of Sakura Petit Verdot Rosé, saying, “There are many styles of Petit Verdot, and this one is an elegant, balanced version with delicate, fruity notes of mulberry and yellow plums.”
The task of the blind tasting, then scoring, and discussing the 15 wine and food pairings took three hours at Bella Rosa Event Center at Garré Winery.
The scoring for the top pairings was tight, according to Cristaldi. “In some cases, though, the wines were fine, and the food was good, but the pairing was not a happy marriage,” he said. Pitts wished several chefs had taken more creative risks and that some vintners had presented older vintages.
Luxury Sommelier Dinner moderator
A nationally known wine educator, judge, writer, and consultant based in Portland, Kristy Wenz first visited Livermore Valley in 2023. This year she participated in the Cab-Franc-a-Palooza event organized by Steven Mirassou of Steven Kent Winery.
During the dinner at Almost Famous Wine, Wenz confessed, “Cabernet Franc is my boyfriend. It was my favorite wine before I came here, and now, this area feels like home. Next year I want to work a Cabernet Franc harvest.”
Wenz shared her simple philosophy on describing wine: “Just ask yourself, ‘Do you like it or not?’ Then consider, ‘Does the food make the wine taste better, and does wine make the food better?’ If not, make another choice.”
During the dinner, the winemaker whose wine accompanied the course joined Wenz to answer pointed questions about their wine and the history of their winery. During the first course of roasted squash soup, fifth-generation Karl Wente spoke about Wente Vineyards Eric’s Chardonnay, made in the lean, Burgundian style preferred by his father Eric, who attended the dinner and was recognized by the guests.
When the course with Three Cheese Potato Gnocchi with duck and mushroom Bolognese paired with Steven Kent L’Autre Côte Cabernet Franc arrived, Mirassou and Wenz began a lively discussion on their favorite varietal. Mirassou stated that Cabernet Franc is the future of wine in Livermore Valley. Wenz noted that all styles of Livermore Valley Cabernet Franc including Mirassou’s rare L’Autre Côte Cabernet Franc Blanc (white) are excellent.
The experts’ reflections
After the events, the four wine and food professionals expressed the desire to learn more about the wine and food scene and to spread the word on the region.
Cristaldi reconfirmed his impression of the area. “Livermore Valley has joie de vivre baked in. I want to tell my readers about the consistent quality of the legacy wineries and the artisan production from newer vintners.”
Assil was impressed by the diverse vintners and chefs participating in the TASTE Our Terroir and the two other events she attended. “I felt the positive community vibe. Everyone helps each other. It’s an equal system where they want each other to succeed whether fifth generation or immigrant.”
Pitts wants to visit the region more often. “My guests at One Market Restaurant and consumers who read Wine Enthusiast as a wine source need to know about Livermore Valley.”
Wenz added that events like TASTE enhance tourism, which is key to the success of the region.
With 1,300 attendees, TASTE exceeded last year’s total, and a third of the events sold out quickly. TASTE 2025 is already on the agenda for the wine community.
Wenz shared her reflections on Livermore Valley, saying, “This region is not pretentious and obsessed about scores on their wine. They view wine as a beverage which brings people together.”
Guests have their say
The winery and restaurant winners for the TASTE Our Terroir two People’ Choice awards did not match the judges’ picks.
For the Best White Wine Pairing, guests voted Las Positas Vineyards 2023 Estate Reserve Albariño with the winery’s LPV Lounge ahi tuna tartare and for Best Red Wine Pairing, Wood Family Wines 2021 Big Wood Zinfandel with Sons of Liberty Alehouse lamb ragu.
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