The Steven Kent Winery

When Mitty C. and Yvonne K. told me we were going to a winery in Livermore, I didn’t believe them at first. I totally didn’t know there were a bunch of wineries only 20 – 25 minutes away from Fremont! No need to drive to Napa for wine anymore, hah.
Mitty C. was hosting a Rotary alumni event in the patio area of Steven Kent Winery. The patio was huge with lots of tables and seats… which was perfect since the weather was also beautiful. The tasting room is a little small, but not sardines-​in-​a-​can small. Although the bathrooms are outside, they’re pretty clean!
Wine tasting in the Barrel Room (12 – 4:30pm): make a reservation or drop in. If you have more than 6 people, you need to make an appointment! Flights are around $ 15.

We went to Steven Kent, Winery Tasting Room for our Anniversary. We had an excellent time, the décor was great and the staff were polite and knowledgeable about the wines we tasted. We both agreed this is by far one of the most pristine wines, that we ever tasted.
Thank you for making our Anniversary memorable.

The worst wine tasting I’ve ever been to, dumped all four pouring and regretted our stop to this dark and dingy tasting room. Other people in the tasting room seemed to like it, but I won’t be back.

Steven Kent
3.5 Stars
2014 «Lola» White blend. Livermore Valley
Citrus: lemon, grapefruit. lime peel.
Hints of honey. Good acidity. Finish is a little hot. 2.5
2010 Pinot Noir. Dutton Ranch. Russian River.
Red fruits: strawberries, cranberries, red apples. Warm spice: cinnamon. Flowers: Violets. Also, black tea. Full bodied Pinot. Creamy texture. Good acidity. Little oxidation. 3.0
2012 Lot 29. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Deep nose full of Black fruits: plums, blackberries, wild berries. Cedar, some earthy notes too. 3.0
2013 Syrah, Morning Gift. Livermore Valley.
Deep black fruits: plums, sweet blackberries. Some blueberries too.
Warm spice: cloves. Also hint of banana. Great concentration on the palate.
Firm ripe tannins. 3.5
12 Radius X
Cabernet-​Syrah. Livermore Valley
Black fruits: blackberries. Wild berries too.
Some earthy notes. Good acidity, firm tannins.
A Slightly awkward mid palate and slightly bitter finish too. 3.0
12 Cabernet Sauvignon. Livermore Valley.
Black fruits: plums, blackberries.
Not unlike an old napa cab (before they got to be too sweet for me) with nice rusticity, pencil shavings, and some earthy notes. Woody oaky finish.
Smooth.
Nice bite at the end. 3.5

For $ 15 you will have the opportunity to taste 5 different types of wines.
The wine tasting room is small, so make sure you make reservations ahead of time for wine tasting. The gal that was pouring for us that day was really friendly. Come check out this place!

If you like Cabs, then you’ll love Steven Kent Winery. Real serious Cabs that can hold their ground with the best Cabs in Napa. Great tasting room and the wine attendants are helpful and experienced.

The only reason this is even getting two stars is because the wines tastes good. The sales practices were horrid. We went in for a tasting and they require $ 50 each to waive the tasting fee, which would be fine if they didn’t make their wines $ 24 or $ 48 meaning in order for it to get waived you can’t simply buy one. Not only that but we were offered a club wine to taste from the evening before our server however did not mention that it would be at an extra 6.50 per person which was a bit disappointing and frustrating, had we known we wouldn’t have agreed to taste the wine, WAS NOT worth it. Warning their selling practices are not only rude but inappropriate, good wine alone does not make a good winery.
Updated only one star the wine we tasted and chose to buy ended up being no where near the same taste as it was when we were there which makes us wonder what on wart is going on with this winery.

I absolutely love this place, and I am always telling my friends if they want a good wine to come here with me. Every time I go here the staff makes me feel like a VIP. You should call to see if you need a reservation because they do get busy, and they want to make sure you get the best experience you can. One thing I love is every time I have a question about the wine it is answered and not in a way that makes me feel like a dummy for asking. I could go on and on but just go and see for yourself.

This is a small tasting room so make a reservation.
We went on a beautiful Saturday without a reservation and the tasting room was full. We were bummed but they gave us a reservation time about an hour later and two free tastings for the trouble. That WAY made up it especially since we didn’t think to make reservations.
Everyone was nice. The venue was a little dark but otherwise I would recommend this place.

Some of the best wined in livermore! Of course, some of the more pricy wines as well, but you get what you pay for. They would be an average price wine in Napa, but would be a favorite in Napa, so I’d still consider it a really good buy.

Livermore’s flagship winery quality-​wise. It could proudly stand with Napa wineries particularly with the introduction of the stratospherically wonderful (and appropriately priced) Lineage. The Premier cabs are just a shade below. Just a shade. The SKW labeled wines remain wonderful. The regular tasting is $ 15, a little high for Livermore but you get what you pay for. There are many wonderful wineries in Livermore but Steven is raising the bar. Come to Livermore to taste wine and come often. If you’re serious about wine, when you come, start here.

Kathy was amazing, courteous and friendly. We enjoyed our tasting in the ambiance of the cellar.

It’s a nice winery to visit when in Livermore. I Iike how the wine barrels are used as tables and the ambience is vey cozy too. This place offers complimentary bread sticks for snacks and they also sell snacks such as cheese, crackers, page, nuts etc that can be brought outside to eat with the wine tasting. I would definitely visit this place when in Livermore.

Steven Kent Winery was a blur, near the end of my tastings.
event: LVBTW (3÷21÷15)
barrel tastes:
–2012 home range Cab-​too much tannin
–2013 home range Cab-​passed
2.5 stars
drips:
–not a cab drinker so cab addicts should disregard my review.
–parking in unpaved dirt?

My husband and I love Livermore wines… So we frequently visit. Steven Kent has always been a big fav! There Cab’s are great! Full bodied… with a smooth finish! We also love the tasting room… and recently we’ve had Amy as our server. She has been very pleasant and definitely knows the wines!

Ugh. Don’t go in the afternoon when the staff is ready to go home… or when they have private parties… or without a reservation. Now that I think about it, just don’t go there.
After three times of trying (as we live right around the corner) we got in at about 4:15 on a Saturday afternoon. We were quickly ushered to a table by the irritable hostess. Within a few minutes, Mr. Personality (Bruce) made it very clear that it was time for them to go home and we were no longer welcome. The wine is palatable; but nothing special. Based on the price, it’s very apparent that they think it’s better than it is. If I intend to pay a premium price, I would hope to get a premium wine.
Long story short, I wouldn’t waste my time stopping in. There are much better wines in the area where the staff actually wants you there.

On a whim we decided to drop in for our first visit ever. We were lucky as they were able to accommodate us at the last open ‘Barrel’ inside. I really like the setup here. The room is cozy and the tables are far enough apart that you can enjoy a private conversation. There isn’t a bar where everyone stands crowding each other while jockeying for position. I loved the tasting room décor which included fabulous paintings and shadow boxes detailing the history of ‘Merrillee’.
Our sommelier on this day was very friendly and shared to the history of the wines as she poured them. While there is a little refrigerator with delicious looking cheeses we were not able to savor any with our wine. Of course we all know that isn’t SK’s fault but rather Livermore code. Sad Face. They did bring some light crispy bread sticks which paired well with the wines.
There is a $ 15 tasting fee per person which is applied to any wine purchase. Best part was she brought our purchases to the table and handled everything herself so we never had to deal with a cashier as some others have mentioned.
I am definitely considering a purchasing a membership as Steven Kent offers some of my favorite wines.

This place was our first stop on our wine tour this weekend and everyone in our 20+ group enjoyed themselves.
The staff was very friendly, patient and attentive to our large group. They set our tasting up on the outside patio that provided a beautiful backdrop of Livermore’s wine country. My only suggestion would be to get better shade because we were all a sweaty mess by the time our tasting was over.
The location was easily found and accessible for our large tour bus.
The pours were generous and the staff was very knowledgeable. We even got to keep the cups! Thank you so much for hosting our event.

Great spot! Who knew Livermore had wineries? I didn’t!
When my brother told me a bout wine tasting in Livermore my eyebrow sure went up but of course I had to try it! Prices are great and it sure beats the long drive to Napa.
This place is great. For $ 10 you get to try three different wines. They give you the option on having your wine tasting inside where you and your friends stand on one of the many barrels made into tables while they walk around and serve you wine or you can go outside on their patio at a bar where they also serve pizza! They also have a live band that plays great music! So you can do a little dance shake your booty while you get your buzz on! Although, the lady who works there said they only have them on Summer. So hurry and check the place out!
Staff is very nice and friendly! Place is BEAUTIFUL and clean. Friends and I had lots of fun.

Wow! So when we first walked into the tasting room, it was crowded and busy. We had to wait 10+ minutes to pay for our tasting (this was the least satisfactory part of the winery). Once we got taken to our table, Greg made sure to take care of us! It’s a $ 10 tasting fee and we’re given a list of 4 wines to try; but that day, we got to try like 12 different wines! They had had a release party the night before and had other wines open (Bordeaux varietals) for us to try. I left feeling very happy and taken care of. Greg made the experience worth it. Also, they have some pretty fabulous wine too :)
Wine is a bit high end so more expensive. The pinots were pretty good (I liked ²⁄₃ that was poured) and the Bordeaux varietals were excellent. Again, a bit expensive though.
My only suggestion is that they dedicate one cashier to process only tasting fees so we don’t have to stand there waiting for so long.