Livermore’s historic Concannon Vineyard, a 230-acre estate winery and vineyard founded in 1883, has been acquired by Lemmons Family Vineyards LLC and Darcie Kent Winery LLC from The Wine Group LLC, which has owned the property since 2004. The purchase price was not disclosed.

“The sale of Concannon supports The Wine Group’s continuous focus on aligning our portfolio to our long-term goals,” said John Sutton, CEO of The Wine Group. “We’re honored to have played a role in Concannon’s rich history and are pleased to sell it to local winegrowers who will continue to build on the legacy of one of Livermore’s foundational wineries. We look forward to watching the brand’s continued success in the Livermore Valley Wine Community and beyond.”

Tom & Paige Lemmons, lifelong residents of Livermore (Go Cowboys!) and owners of Lemmons Family Vineyards, see a bright future ahead for Concannon. “We will be phasing out the international bottling operations and concentrate on re-planting the vineyards to the historic grape varietals, such as Cab Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, that made Livermore famous in the 1880s without losing sight of Concannon’s pioneering efforts with Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah. We will bring back organic farming techniques and hope to repurpose the 60,000 square foot bottling pavilion as the long-awaited Livermore Valley Wine Country Center to provide high quality maker space for small family wineries and the visitor-attracting amenities that were envisioned when the Agricultural Preserve was created in 1991 but are still missing.”

History repeats itself at Concannon. Tom Lemmons is a retired Army Captain, serving over 20 years as a Blackhawk Helicopter Pilot and as a Commander in both the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Likewise, Capt. Joe Concannon – a staunch defender of freedom – returned home to Livermore to lead the winery his father founded after serving in the U.S. Calvary under Gen. John Pershing and Lt. George Patton.

David & Darcie Kent, owners of Darcie Kent Estate Winery, will head up winery operations at Concannon. “We want to thank The Wine Group for their beautiful restoration of the historic redwood winery that will enable us to build on their success. The Concannon hospitality team has been retained and it is our goal to ensure that what guests loved about the Concannon tasting room experience will be preserved under new ownership. We are also excited to announce that our second winery, Almost Famous Wine Company, will relocate to the former TWG headquarters building by mid-2025 and state-of-the-art equipment to produce and bottle ultra-premium sparkling wine will be installed. To better serve our neighbors, we hope to provide much needed custom crush and storage capacity to local winegrowers by next harvest.”

Family will be front and center. Multiple generations of both the Lemmons and Kent families will guide the operation moving forward. Together they will endeavor to make the beloved Concannon family proud. Tom’s father-in-law, John Godkin, was instrumental in completing the transaction and senses the work ahead. “We plan to meet with City and Tri-Valley Conservancy staff soon and discuss how best to proceed. This will be an exciting new chapter for this cornerstone brand.”

Colliers International represented The Wine Group. Larson Lindenau Law Group, P.C. advised the Buyers.

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