Claret Reserve
⏳ Drinking Window
2023 - 2029
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
roasted prime rib, grilled rosemary lamb chops, aged cheddar cheese
✨ Technical Specifications
Scheid Vineyards' Claret Reserve is a masterful homage to the traditional British term 'claret,' historically used to describe the elegant red wines of Bordeaux. Sourced from select estate blocks in the warmer southern reaches of Monterey County's Salinas Valley, where the daytime heat is tempered by the dramatic evening winds of the Monterey Bay, this reserve bottling showcases the region's ability to produce structured, complex Bordeaux-style blends. The wine is crafted using traditional small-lot fermentation and aged extensively in French oak barrels. This careful elevage coaxes out deep dark fruit characteristics, refined tannins, and a sophisticated oak integration, reflecting both the rugged beauty of Monterey and the elegance of old-world blending traditions.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1972 by pioneer Al Scheid, Scheid Vineyards began as an ambitious viticultural venture in southern Monterey County, initially supplying fruit to major California wineries before evolving into a vertically integrated estate wine producer. Spanning more than 3,000 acres across a 70-mile expanse of the Salinas Valley—encompassing microclimates across the Monterey, Arroyo Seco, and Hames Valley AVAs—the estate leverages thermal diurnal shifts driven by maritime winds off Monterey Bay. Viticulture balances alluvial gravel, decomposed granite, and clay-loam soils across twelve distinct ranch sites, farmed under SIP Certified and Certified California Sustainable standards, with the winery fully powered by an onsite wind turbine. Winemaking prioritizes varietal clarity, tension, and texture across an eclectic portfolio, celebrated for vibrant Sauvignon Blanc Reserve, aromatic Viognier, racy Dry Riesling, and rare regional white bottlings such as Petit Manseng and Roussanne.
🍇 Grapes
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc