GREENFIELD — Scheid Family Wines, a Greenfield family-owned and operated wine company, is entering its eighth year of being 100% powered by renewable wind energy.
The wine company has embraced sustainability as a core tenet since its inception in 1972 and is the largest winery in California to be entirely powered by wind, putting the wind’s natural power to work to lower its CO2 emissions.
In 2024 alone, Scheid’s 400-foot tall, 1.85-megawatt wind turbine produced 3.9 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of renewable wind energy: 1.3 million kWh fulfilled all winery and bottling operation needs and the surplus — enough energy for 234 homes in the local community — was supplied to PG&E.
“For another point of comparison, the kWh given back to the grid is equivalent to the amount of CO2 sequestered by 1,746 acres of U.S. forest in one year,” according to Scheid.
From its installation in 2017 through 2024, the company’s wind turbine has generated a total of 28.6 million kWh, equivalent to a reduction in CO2 emissions of over 21,000 metric tons.
One of the factors that makes the Monterey AVA ideal for fine wine production also makes it ideal for this form of renewable energy, as the turbine harnesses the power of the region’s year-round winds.
As warm air rises each day in the Salinas Valley, it draws cooler ocean breezes off the nearby Pacific Ocean, which are funneled between the Gabilan and Santa Lucia mountain ranges and down the valley, with increasing force as the day progresses. These winds are consistent and at their peak reach 30 mph, with gusts up to 58 mph.
“At Scheid Family Wines, we’re proud to say that our wines are 100% powered by wind,” said Heidi Scheid, executive vice president of Scheid Family Wines. “Making the switch to renewable energy over seven years ago is just one of the many things we continue to do to reduce our carbon emissions.”
Scheid Family Wines — ranked among the top 25 largest wine producers in the United States — produces high-quality estate-grown wines from its sustainably and organically certified vineyards and grower partners throughout the Central Coast.
Based in Monterey County, Scheid sells internationally to over 30 countries and is one of the largest producers of premium exclusive brands. Visit scheidfamilywines.com for more information.
