Betsy Spann - Winemaker/Winegrower

My love of wine was fostered by a move to Bordeaux with my family in 1975 where I explored the wines and cheeses of southeastern France. After returning to California to attend college I went to work in a small wine shop where my interest grew, then I opened my store in El Dorado County where we featured local wines. I sold the store to become an independent wine broker representing small high quality producers and then moved to Dry Creek Valley where I helped with the startup of Lake Sonoma Winery, working both in the vineyards and in wine production. An interest in Aviation then took me to New Mexico, but the wine business was in my blood. I planted a small vineyard for home winemaking and worked for a wine distributor in southern New Mexico before being recruited for the fine wine team of a large importing company. That job moved me to Dallas, Texas, where I meet Peter, who charmed me with a keen sense of wine and an amazing wine cellar. We fell in love, and married on one condition: that we would ultimately move back to my beloved California. When we moved we decided to buy a vineyard and sell the grapes but when it came time to do so we decided we would take the plunge and make our own wines instead.