Livermore's Best-Kept Wine Secret
Downtown Livermore · Livermore · Wine Bar & Retail Shop · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · July 11, 2026
RagingWine reviewed First Street Wine Company’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walking into First Street Wine Company feels less like entering a restaurant and more like walking into your most wine-obsessed friend's living room — if that friend happened to stock Silver Oak and Domaine Carneros. The list is compact at around 35 labels, but it's curated with intention, leaning hard into California and Livermore Valley pride without completely ignoring the wider world.
The backbone here is California — Caymus Napa Cab, Belle Glos Dairyman Pinot, Rombauer Chard, Daou Soul of a Lion — all crowd favorites done right. But there are a few smart detours: Pirouette's Walla Walla blend brings some Pacific Northwest credibility, and Sager & Verdier Sancerre keeps the Loire represented for anyone who needs their whites on the brighter end. Sparkling gets proper attention with both Schramsberg Brut Rosé and Piper-Heidsieck 1785 Cuvée on the menu — not an afterthought. The gaps are real though: if you're hunting for Old World depth, Italian, Spanish, or Rhône, you're going to leave wanting.
Seventeen by-the-glass options is genuinely impressive for a list this size — nearly half the cellar is open and pouring, which is exactly what a wine bar should be doing. Prices run $12 to $50 a glass, and the range covers sparkling, white, red, and rosé without doubling up on boring defaults. The $15 Sancerre and $15 Belle Glos glass are the obvious stars of the pour lineup.
Sager & Verdier Sancerre 2024 — $15/glass
Sancerre at $15 a glass is a legitimate steal. Crisp, mineral-driven Loire Sauvignon Blanc at a price that makes you order a second pour without guilt — this is the kind of value that keeps regulars coming back.
Pirouette Blend Walla Walla Washington 2020
Everyone's ordering the Caymus and the Belle Glos — which means the Pirouette Walla Walla blend sits quietly on the list, underordered and underrated. It's a serious, structured red blend from one of Washington's most compelling appellations, and at $70 a bottle it competes favorably with bottles that cost twice as much.
Caymus Napa Cabernet
Caymus is fine. It's always fine. It's also available at roughly every restaurant with a wine list in America, and you're paying a premium here for a bottle you could grab at Costco. This is the safe call for people who don't really want to think about wine — but you're at a wine bar. Think about wine.
Schramsberg Brut Rosé + Cheese and Charcuterie Board
Sparkling wine and a well-built charcuterie board is one of those combinations that exists for a reason — the bubbles cut through the fat of cured meats, the acidity lifts the funk of aged cheese, and Schramsberg's Brut Rosé brings enough red fruit to bridge both sides of the board without overwhelming either.
The Bottom Line
First Street Wine Company is punching well above its weight for a small-town wine bar in the Tri-Valley — fair prices, knowledgeable staff, and a by-the-glass program that actually gives you something to explore. If you're passing through Livermore and need a reason to stop, this is it.
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Small but Thoughtful
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Surprising Depth
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Basic Stemmed
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Seasonal Rotation
Proper
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