Guests better show up with an empty stomach at this year’s Livermore Valley wine festival, which opens Oct. 17.
The annual Taste Our Terroir competition kicks things off, showcasing 15 local wineries paired with local chefs as they create their favorite bites and sips together in the ultimate battle for bragging rights. The three-hour competition at the Bella Rosa Event Center at Livermore’s Garré Vineyard and Winery is just the start of four days of wine-centric festivities, and a ticket ($125) will get you a taste of all 15 pairings, if your stomach can fit that many.
“This is the best event that the Livermore Valley hosts,” said Heather McGrail, chair of the event and president of McGrail Vineyards and Winery. “The competition makes it way more fun. You can’t go into one place and get more great food and great wine in one night. It’s an experience not to be missed.”
Three professional judges — Tonya Pitts (Wine Enthusiast), Jonathan Cristaldi (Decanter) and Reem Assil (Reem’s California) — will decide winners for the best classic pairing, most innovative pairing and overall best pairing. Guests attending the event will also have a say, as they crown the “People’s Choice Award” for the best white and red wine pairings.
Last year’s winners of the judge’s best overall pairing, Cuda Ridge Wines with LB Steak, are teaming up again and must contend with stiff competition if they want to repeat their triumph.
Wente Vineyards, said to be the birthplace of California chardonnay after it became the first California wine to win a French tasting competition in the late 1800s, is the oldest winery entering the competition and will be paired with, of course, its own restaurant, The Grill at Wente.
Sakura Winery, the newest winery in the region, is entering the competition for the first time alongside Japanese restaurant, Kiseki.
The Steven Kent Winery and Locanda Amalfi, winners of the People’s Choice Award last year, are again working together as Kent looks to showcase his cabernet franc.
“We believe that cab franc is the most delicious and alluring and sexy variety (of grape) out there, and it grows extremely well in Livermore,” Steven Kent Mirassou told this news organization in April. “We feel that if we can get a critical mass of wineries in Livermore working toward making great cabernet franc, it will be a magnet for people who love that variety.”
Cabernet franc has shown explosive growth in Alameda County, where crop reports revealed an increase from 15 acres in 2017 to 60 acres in 2022, the most recent reports available.
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“It’s exciting and hot, and a lot of people are starting to produce it in the region,” said McGrail. “It’s starting to win awards. It’s grown well here for years. Peoples’ taste buds are enjoying a slightly less tannic wine, something smoother. This is smoother than a cabernet sauvignon but has a little bit more elegant finish.”
The pairing competition began more than 25 years ago, Graham said, but it expanded to a four-day festival in 2018.
Between three and five events showcasing different local wineries will take place each day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
If you want a more affordable ticket that still allows you to sample all the wines, Graham recommends the Saturday event, Livermore Valley’s signature tasting, where a $65 ticket will get you a two-hour, outdoor tasting with 36 wines from 18 local wineries, live music and a few speeches from the winemakers.
Details: Taste, the Livermore Valley Wine Experience, runs Oct. 17-20. The “Taste Our Terroir” competition is Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. and tickets ($125) are still available. The signature tasting is Saturday, 3:30 to 5:30 p.m., and tickets ($65) are also available. Some of the other events have sold out. Learn more at lvwine.org.