During the summer months it’s hard to believe that this hot, dry, and thoroughly suburbanized valley was actually once awash with water as creeks from the surrounding hills drained down into a natural basin. The only reminders of the once-abundant waters are reservoirs such as Lake Del Valle—a recreational oasis in the hills south of Livermore created when one of the few remaining Livermore creeks was dammed in the 1960s.

The heat and the gravelly, well-drained soils left behind by the ancient creeks were identified early on in California’s wine-making history as a perfect combination for growing wine grapes and compared favorably to Bordeaux’s Graves region. The first vines were planted here in 1844, before even the Napa and Sonoma wine industries had gotten started. It would be more than 50 years until Livermore’s first nonagricultural industry—brick making—got its start.

Despite these ideal growing conditions--some say they are as good as parts of the Napa Valley—Livermore wine has never really hit the big time since it was resurrected after prohibition. Without the marketing muscle that a big-name appellation like Napa or Sonoma provides, wineries must squeeze more out of their vineyards to make cheaper, but inevitably lower quality, wines that will sell. They’re stuck in a wine marketing catch-22.

That might change in the future if the current resurgence of wine making in the area can bring in the accolades and the dollars. As urban sprawl ate into the vineyards during the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, the number of vine-covered acres fell dramatically. Property taxes become favored over agricultural taxes. Now vineyard acreage is on the rise again thanks to agricultural protections put in place in the early 1990s. By early 2007 the number of wineries had increased to 39, though that’s still short of the 50 or more that existed back in the valley’s Victorian wine heyday.

In the last decade the wineries have generally fallen into two camps. There are high volume producers with national distribution that have achieve brand recognition without necessarily creating recognition for the Livermore Valley, and there are small, family-run wineries slogging away producing good wines at reasonable prices but without the distribution networks or 90+ point reviews to make a big name for themselves, let alone the Valley. More recently, a number of boutique wineries have emerged producing only high-end wines that may or may not hit the big time and give a boost to Livermore. Time will tell.

Until then, the Livermore Valley remains a wine region of unusual contrasts, where the land is divided between subdivisions and vineyards, and the wineries are divided between corporate behemoths and small family businesses. It’s a strange place to visit and lacks the picturesque nature of other parts of California’s wine country that have managed to remain largely rural. Beyond the urban trappings, however, there are some exciting wines to be found.

The Wines

As anyone who has driven through the valley in July or August and actually left their car will know, the Livermore Valley gets very hot in the summer. In terms of the way grape-growing climates are measured, this is a Region III climate, which is about the same as the Alexander Valley, the upper Napa Valley, and Tuscany. It certainly gets hot during summer days but enough cool marine air finds its way through the hills from the coast to keep nights relatively cool, perfect for grape growing.

High daytime heat and relentless sun during the summer makes this a land of big, fruity wines. The Livermore Valley produces all the greatest hits of wine – cabernet, merlot, chardonnay – but many smaller wineries also branch out into the more unusual, from Italian and Spanish wines to interesting ports and unusual blends. In general, you’ll get the most from wine tasting here by sampling wines you might not have tried elsewhere.

The white wines, in particular, can be a little different. Small amounts of semillon are sometimes blended into chardonnay and sauvignon blanc, for example, creating a style that might appeal to you if the buttery chardonnays and grassy sauvignon blancs of other wine regions turn you off. The classic red wines (cabernet and merlot, for example) tend to be softer and less complex than Napa or Sonoma reds, although prices are also cheaper.

The valley’s wineries generally don’t charge for tasting (unless noted), though you’ll typically have to pay to taste some reserve or library wines. Tasting fees will probably start to creep in during the life of this book but wine tasting in the Livermore Valley will always be a cheaper proposition than in Napa, Sonoma, or even Mendocino.

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