Livermore's Wine Country and Downtown Hold Their Holiday Celebrations on the Same Saturday
Holidays in the Vineyards is scheduled to end at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5. Downtown, the Holiday Sights & Sounds Parade starts on First Street at 6 p.m. The two halves of Livermore hold their holiday celebrations on the same day, but the hours don't overlap. That leaves about 90 minutes between the event's scheduled end in wine country and the first float on First Street.
Those 90 minutes fall in a downtown that changed this fall. A French supper club opened next to the Bankhead, an Italian restaurant built itself a new building at Blacksmith Square, and a 22-year First Street regular announced its last day. Wine country has changed too. It arrives at the holidays with a national title it didn't have last December.
The Livermore Valley Wine Community lists Holidays in the Vineyards for Dec. 5 and 6, noon to 4:30 p.m. Admission is free, and tasting fees vary by winery. It's the first edition since Wine Enthusiast named Livermore Valley its 2026 American Wine Region of the Year, an award the Wine Community announced on Oct. 15, 2026. "This is a significant moment for Livermore Valley," Executive Director Brandi Lombardi said in that announcement.
The event also has a giving side. Bring an unwrapped toy to any participating winery, and Pacific States Petroleum will match it toy for toy, up to $25,000. The toys go to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve's Toys for Tots program for children in the area.
These wineries have posted their own plans for the weekend:
| Winery | Address | Days | What's listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pruett Estate Winery | 5385 East Avenue | Sat., noon to 5 p.m. | Live music from Patrick Russ, Taco Madre, food and gift vendors, hostess gifts |
| Retzlaff Organic Vineyards and Estate Winery | 1356 South Livermore Ave. | Sat., noon to 4:30 p.m. | Steve Fread, Fratelli's Pizza, local gift vendors, Toys for Tots drop-off |
| 3 Steves Winery | 5700 Greenville Rd. | Sat. and Sun. | Mulled wine; Beyond Oakland Roots and Debbie's Doodles Cookies on Saturday |
| McGrail Vineyards and Winery | 5600 Greenville Road | Sat. and Sun., noon to 4:30 p.m. | Free entry, local artisan and vendor pop-ups |
| Charles R Vineyards | Greenville Road area | Sat. and Sun., noon to 4:30 p.m. | Free entry, live music, Quake Catering, holiday vendors |
Three of these wineries sit within a few hundred feet of each other on Greenville Road: 3 Steves at 5700, McGrail at 5600, and Charles R. That stretch works as a single stop. Retzlaff, on South Livermore Avenue, is the closest participating winery to downtown. That makes it the natural last stop on Saturday before the parade.
Downtown streets inside the parade area are marked no parking, and cars left inside the closures get towed, according to Livermore Downtown Inc.'s parade details page. The City of Livermore's calendar lists parade road closures on Dec. 5, and the city's event page is where closure and parking details go up. Check both pages before you leave the vineyards. That way you park once, outside the closed blocks.
Downtown has an afternoon option too. At 3 p.m. the Bankhead hosts the Livermore-Amador Symphony's Free Family Concert.
Downtown businesses also run a daytime open house ahead of the parade, according to Livermore Downtown Inc. Several of the participating shops cluster on South Livermore Avenue and nearby blocks:
The early-evening gap fills differently this year because the dining options have changed since last December.
Le Nocturne opened at 2470 First St., Suite 100, in late October. Tri-Valley Weekly reported it open as of Oct. 30. The space is the former Last Word, which was briefly rebranded as Syndicate, and sits next to the Bankhead. Gianni Schell, who also owns Rebel Kitchen & Libations, runs it. According to Diablo Magazine's Diablo Dish, the menu includes steak frites, coq au vin, trout amandine, escargot, and Point Reyes oysters. The wine list pairs French labels with Livermore Valley bottles. Schell told Diablo Dish, "Livermore has a fantastic food scene, but we wanted to bring something a little different to the community."
Doppio Zero set its grand opening at 23 S. Livermore Ave. for Tuesday, Nov. 17, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., with free pizza, pasta samples, live music, and select drinks. The Italian group, known for Neapolitan wood-fired pizza and fresh pasta, built this location from the ground up in a newly expanded section of Blacksmith Square. Diablo Dish reported plans for an indoor-outdoor bar overlooking the square's central park. It's two doors from Sweet Hope Naturals on the same block as Wingen. That puts the South Livermore Avenue open-house cluster and a new sit-down dinner within a short walk of each other.
Dumont Creamery & Café is the dessert stop. It opened its first East Bay location in September at 2375 Railroad Ave., Suite 101, in the former Teaspoon space, serving ice cream, coffee, boba, slushies, and milkshakes, Livermore Vine reported.
There's one subtraction. Zephyr Grill & Bar, which opened on First Street in 2004, announced it would close Oct. 31 after 22 years, according to Livermore Vine. Its owners keep Zephyr Grill & Bar in Brentwood and Smith's Landing Seafood Grill in Antioch open. If Zephyr was your family's parade-night dinner spot, plan somewhere else for this year.
Here's how Saturday lines up once the vineyards close:
The night before is busy too. Charo plays the Bankhead on Friday, Dec. 4, at 8 p.m.
On Dec. 6 the vineyard half runs again from noon to 4:30 p.m., with no parade to rush back for. McGrail, Charles R, and 3 Steves all list both days, so the Greenville Road stretch stays open. Pruett's own page says Taco Madre serves both days. That makes the East Avenue winery an easy lunch stop on Sunday too. Remember the toy drive. The Pacific States Petroleum match applies to unwrapped toys dropped at any participating winery all weekend.
At Refined Real Estate, we track what opens, closes, and changes in the towns we serve, from Blacksmith Square to Greenville Road. If you're a Livermore homeowner curious how this year's downtown and wine country activity shows up in your home's value, Request Your Free Home Valuation and we'll walk you through it.
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