One day while driving through the area, Dr. Ricardo Aguirre fell in love with the scenery and peacefulness within the vineyards of the Livermore Valley and immediately set his eyes on the future. In 1986 he purchased 32 acres of land among the beautiful rolling hillsides along East Tesla Road in the heart of the wine growing region.
In 1996 he commissioned Wente Vineyards to plant and develop 12 acres of grapes, half Cabernet Sauvignon and half Merlot. Even though Dr. Aguirre was already a seasoned connoisseur of fine wines, his original goal was to produce and sell premium wine grapes. Realizing the high quality of the grapes grown in his vineyards, he was inspired to become a winemaker. In 2000, he crafted a single barrel of wine using a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Zinfandel.
