I meant the Livermore Valley, and wine tasting in the Livermore AVA. A small group of us are wine tasting and cycling* here in Livermore this weekend. Wine grapes have been cultivated here since 1882 with the founding of Cresta Blanca Winery. In fact, its first vintage (1884) won the Grand Prix at the 1889 Paris Exposition, becoming the first California wine to win a competition in France. In the 1960s, Livermore had as much area under vine as Napa Valley, led of course, by Wente Vineyards, with 700,000 cases annually. Wente and Concannon were both established in 1882. Raindrop Wine is the third largest producer. The rest are mostly new and considerably smaller. These wineries include Murrieta's Well, The Winemakers' Studio, Steven Kent Winery, Wood Family Vineyards, McGrail Vineyards, Cuda Ridge Winery, Retzlaff
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