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{ SOMMjournal.com } 83 L ivermore Valley's historical significance as a cradle of California wine was a natural starting point emphasized by vintners and growers greeting visiting sommeliers during our Livermore Valley Somm Camp, taking place this past October 9–11, co-spon - sored and organized by the Livermore Valley Winegrowers Association. The other point of emphasis was this salient fact: There are geographic reasons why Livermore Valley was the first place major varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc were planted in California. In his 1948 book California's Best Wines, Robert Balzer put it in this fanciful fashion: "If Bacchus has a Mecca in California, it is . . . Livermore." If Livermore Valley is such a natural environment for classic wine grapes, why did its reputation for top-quality wine slip behind other California wine regions, such as Napa Valley, Sonoma County or Santa Barbara? Scale has a lot to do with it. In its expanded state today, Livermore Valley is home to nearly 4,000 total acres of wine grapes and about 50 winery bonds. Compare that to over 45,000 acres and 400 wineries in Napa Valley, or the 26,000 acres and 200 wineries in Paso Robles. This is what our participating som - meliers also experienced first-hand: The movement, only within the past 20 years, of plantings within the valley from flatter, gravelly arroyos—marked by the rich yet well-drained soils originally favored by the 19th-century pioneers—to lower- yielding hillside terrains where clay and sandy loams hold even greater potential for the intensely concentrated, acid- driven styles of wine in fashion today. Day 1 Livermore Valley 101 and Historic Sites Also in his 1948 book, Balzer quoted a letter penned by Louis Mel, whose wife wrote the original letter of introduction for Charles Wetmore—California's first Viticultural Commissioner and founder of Livermore Valley's Cresta Blanca Winery— to Château d'Yquem's Marquis de Lur Saluces, who graciously furnished the cuttings of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and "Muscatel du Bordelais" (aka Muscadelle) that were planted by Wetmore in 1882. Wrote Mel: Mr. Wetmore kindly gave me some of those original cuttings which I propagated in my El Mocho Vineyard. Mrs. Mel and I visited several beautiful districts and finally decided that both soil and climate of the Livermore Valley more closely resemble those of "la belle France" where we had both passed our younger days. Mrs. Mel, née de Bire, was born there. Our initial foray into Livermore Valley began in a late afternoon at the Mels' original El Mocho site, which was acquired by Ernest and Herman Wente—the original "Wente Brothers" and sons of Wente Vineyards founder Carl H. Wente—in the 1930s. The old El Mocho Vineyard is now called Louis Mel Vineyard. There we were greeted by fifth-generation wine - grower/winemaker Karl D. Wente, who led us into his family's adjoining property, Sachau Vineyard. Standing at the top of one of the Sachau Vineyard blocks, at an eleva - tion about 875 feet, Wente delivered a Livermore Valley 101 lesson in his- tory and viticulture: "This is where it all began for Livermore Valley wine. Where you're standing, you get a panoramic view of the alluvial fans and gravelly, coarse sandy soils making up the valley floor, where my family planted their first vineyards in the 1880s—right next to Louis Mel's original property, close to where he built his own gravity-flow winery." The winery is now home to Murrieta's Well, a boutique luxury wine brand and tasting room, which was founded by Philip Wente and Sergio Traverso in 1990. Pointing towards the sun setting over hills to the west, Wente explained: "Less than 30 miles away is the San Francisco Bay, and just beyond that the Pacific, where currents of cold water flowing down from Alaska into deep ocean canyons create the cold air that is sucked up into these higher elevations, giving us diurnal shifts as much as 35 to 40 degrees [Fahrenheit] during the growing season. This is what contributes to balancing acidity in our grapes and the bright quality of our wines. Livermore Valley 101: Our Somm Campers get an overview of the Livermore Valley AVA at sunset with Karl D. Wente (center, with hat) as guide. Karl D. Wente is Fifth Generation Winegrower at pioneering Livermore Valley winery Wente Vineyards.