Flagship · amador tempranillo Since 1998

Spencer Ranch {Jackson Valley, Amador County}

The foundation of Spain’s great reds, carefully grown in a cool Sierra Foothill valley since Tim Spencer took the path less traveled.

The Vineyard · Since 1972

SPENCER RANCH

In 1970, Tim Spencer bought 43 acres in the Jackson Valley at the western edge of Amador County and made a decision few others would have considered: he planted Iberian grapes. It was a road less travelled — Portuguese and Spanish varieties had no foothold in California, no proven market, no rulebook. But Tim had a vision.

The land was a good match. To the north sits the old Greenstone Quarry, cut into the ancient bedrock of the Sierra foothills — lean, iron-rich country where a vine earns everything it gets. Along the southern edge runs Jackson Creek, a tributary of the Mokelumne River. During the Gold Rush it drew dredging operations working the gravels for placer gold, drawn here by the sandy loam the creek had laid down over millennia. The miners came for what the creek carried down. We stayed for what it left behind.

By the early 1990s, Tim found success producing both port and table wines from these obscure grapes. And then phylloxera came. After losing the whole vineyard Tim did the only thing he knew how — replant and keep going.

Sitting low on the valley floor, scorching afternoons give way to cold Sierra air that pools in the valley overnight. That daily temperature swing is precisely what Portugal's and Spain's heirloom varieties evolved to thrive in, ripening fully while holding onto their natural acidity. One of the most naturally suited sites in California for Iberian grapes — and it is no accident that this is where our family chose to plant them.

Our story · Since 1972

MY DAD WENT LEFT WHEN EVERYONE ELSE WENT RIGHT.

California was falling in love with Chardonnay and Cabernet. Tim Spencer planted Iberian grapes nobody had heard of — and never looked back.

My parents bought 43 acres in the Jackson Valley of Amador County in 1970. My father was raised on a dairy and had no winegrowing experience, but he had a stubborn curiosity and zero patience for following trends. Instead, he planted obscure Portuguese varieties and set out to make world-class port.

After losing the vineyard to phylloxera in the early 90's, when most people would have dispared, my father saw opportunity. There had been no Tempranillo cuttings available when he first planted — but by the nineties a few had found their way to UC Davis, and he worked with them to trial two in our vineyard: a Spanish clone from Ribera del Duero and a Portuguese clone. That Ribera del Duero clone has been the source of our Tempranillo for more than twenty years.

Like Ribera del Duero the well-drained sandy loam in our vineyard helps preserve aromatics and fruit, to produce a wine delicious in its youth and equally capable of aging gracefully for 20+ years.

by the vintage

EVERY YEAR HAS A STORY TO TELL.

Hail, frost, heatwaves and everything in between. Each vintage delivers a story, and it is our job to tell it.  

2024

Tempranillo
Spencer Ranch

A warmer growing season with extended hang time — concentrated fruit with classic Lodi structure.

14%    ABV     750mL     $24

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2023

Tempranillo
Spencer Ranch

A warmer growing season with extended hang time — concentrated fruit with classic Lodi structure.

14%    ABV     750mL     $35

Tech Sheet

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2022

Tempranillo
Spencer Ranch

A warmer growing season with extended hang time — concentrated fruit with classic Lodi structure.

14%    ABV     750mL     $35

Tech Sheet

Purchase

recogNITION

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