Description

Situated high on Torrey Ridge overlooking one of the deepest parts of Seneca Lake is Fox Run -- a winery with fifty-five acres of vineyards producing a remarkable range of fine wines. Under the dynamic, forward-looking ownership of Scott Osborn and Andy Hale, Fox Run is poised to become one of the handful of truly great producers in the Finger Lakes. Scott Osborn is a strong advocate of the place of wine in a healthy life-style, and he appreciates the health benefits of garlic as well. On a culinary level, as the Fox Run Garlic Festival demonstrates, the pairing of good wine and well-prepared flavorful garlic is nothing short of sublime. Native grape varieties put the Finger Lakes on the map a century and half ago, and French-American hybrids, bred for cold resistance, still have an important niche in the region. But Osborn and Hale are convinced that non-hybrid European Vinifera grapes can yield wine excellent enough to put the Finger Lakes in the ranks of the world’s top fine wine producers. For more than a century the dairy farm that is now Fox Run was perched on the steeply sloping shores, overlooking Seneca Lake. The first grapes were planted in 1984 and the Civil War era dairy barn was converted to a modern wine-making facility in 1993. In 1996, farther up the slope a new facility was completed with state-of-the-art capabilities and view of Seneca Lake that is unrivaled. Working closely with winemaker Peter Bell and vineyard manager John Kaiser, Osborn and Hale have introduced a program of minimal intervention winemaking and revitalized the vines by converting to a new trellis system which has had excellent results in Germany, France and Australia. Fox Run now has 55 acres planted with Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Gamay Beaujolais, Lemberger, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. Current releases cover Chardonnay, Reserve Chardonnay, Semi-Dry Riesling, Dry Riesling to Merlot, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon -- plus two proprietaries: Arctic Fox, a blend of whites and Ruby Vixen, a semi-dry blush. Interesting new releases include a Meritage blended from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, and an intensely flavored ruby-style Port.