On Friday afternoon, October 16, we hosted “A Taste of Stories,” a sold-out literary happy hour and one of the featured events of this year’s TASTE: Livermore Valley Wine Experience, which ran across the valley October 14–19.
The idea came from Alex Henkelman, co-owner and co-winemaker at Omega Road Winery and head of the Women’s Wine Collective of Livermore Valley, who brought it to life with bookstore owner Linda Maggi. Alex pitched several concepts to the TASTE committee, and the book pairing was the one that won them over, partly because it brought the festival into downtown Livermore and gave guests an easy Friday stop before heading on to other events.
Linda curated a lineup of women-authored books arranged like a wine flight, moving from a light white or rosé to a deep red. The selections ran from a classic beach-read rom-com to more traditional women’s fiction, and each title was paired with a wine and a bite inspired by the story.
The pairings came from local chefs Tiana Megofna of the Mego Kitchen, Amanda Skog of Beyond the Table, Jill Victor of On the Vine Catering and Kim Gamble of Lanna Thai, along with female-led wineries Del Valle Winery, JMC Cellars, Rodrigue Molyneaux, McGrail Vineyards & Winery and Retzlaff Vineyards.
One pairing started as a challenge: Nancy Rodrigue of Rodrigue Molyneaux asked Linda to find a book that begins in Italy to go with the winery’s Sangiovese. She chose Still Life by Sarah Winman, which Rodrigue read and loved. It was served with RM’s 2021 Sangiovese and a pasta e fagioli from Tiana Megofna.
The event was covered by The Independent (“New Bookstore Welcomes Women In Wine During TASTE,” Oct. 22, 2026).