Schramsberg Reserve 2008

Winemaker Notes
Schramsberg Reserve is their top Pinot Noir-focused brut sparkling wine. Representing about 3 percent of their annual production, this richly flavored and full-bodied sparkler is made from only the finest base-wine lots produced each year. Over seven years old upon release, this fruitful, yet dry, toasty and creamy bubbly will age gracefully for a good 20 to 30 years beyond the vintage date.
The Reserve is well-suited with a main course, such as fruit-stuffed veal, pork tenderloin, roasted duck with mango, cedar-plank grilled salmon and curried chicken salad. This flavorful bubbly can also be served as an aperitif with smoked oysters, caviar and hard cheeses such as aged Swiss Sbrinz, Sonoma Vella Jack or Irish Coolea.

Critical Acclaim
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
Powerful and sturdy, the 2008 Schramsberg Reserve exhibits tremendous richness and complexity. The wine offers ripe fruit, savory oak, and appealing nuttiness. Pair with shellfish in cream sauce. (Tasted: September 18, 2017, San Francisco, CA)
Wine Enthusiast
An especially deep-gold color and enticing, expansive aromas indicate the extra aging time this Pinot Noir-based bubbly went through. Ripe pear, honey and toasted-almond notes weave across the palate as a rich mouthfeel is picked up by fine yet persistent bubbles. It is a delicious, mature wine that shows how complex and rewarding California sparkling.
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2008 Reserve has a lovely spiciness to the citrus and berry preserves with notes of clover honey, croissant, yeast extract and potpourri, plus a touch of allspice. The palate fills the mouth with toast and berry preserves flavors with loads of baking spice flavors coming through and a good, long, refreshing finish.
Wine Spectator
Appealingly mature, with candied ginger and spice aromas and spirited baked apple, orange zest and toasty hazelnut flavors.