Kelby James Russell Nutt Road Vineyard Dry Rose 2014
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Filled with intense strawberry, grapefruit, and floral aromas, this Rosé was bottled just after the start of the New Year to capture all these flavors and prepare it for a Spring release.
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Refreshingly mineral, yet deeply concentrated in red fruit, this wine is a standout amidst a growing contingent of quality New York rosé. It’s revitalizing in acidity and nuanced, showcasing hints of bramble against a backdrop of deep cherry and berry flavors. Dry, elegant and quaffable, it’s an ideal summer staple.
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Kelby James Russell Wines first began as a casual brainstorm at Red Newt Cellars, where owner and winemaker David Whiting suggested that a separate wine project might be an important creative outlet
for Kelby. With a diverse selection of vineyards and wine styles, the label promises to bring something new to the wine world; 'off-beat'; wines both in reference to their musical inspiration as well as their individual spirit. Kelby Russell was born and raised immediately north of New York's Finger Lakes Wine Region. After High School, Kelby attended Harvard University and received his Bachelors degree in Government with a minor in Economics. Having learned enough about both of these disciplines to realize he wanted no part in either, Kelby returned to his native Finger Lakes to pursue a wine industry career in the Finger Lakes.
As luck would have it, Kelby landed on the doorstep of Fox Run Vineyards and legendary winemaker Peter Bell the first day of harvest 2009.
While working at Fox Run, Kelby began taking annual 'vacations'; to work additional harvests in the Southern Hemisphere. Kelby cut his teach as a supervisor while learning the intricacies and non- intricacies of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc at Whitehaven Winery in Marlborough. The following year he worked at Pipers Brook Vineyards/Kreglinger Estates, a long standing Tasmanian producer of single vineyard Pinot Noirs and traditional method sparkling wines. Kelby finally reached the Australian mainland the next year as Nightshift Red Winemaker at Yalumba Winery's premium production site in the Barossa Valley; giving him experience with remarkable quality and old-vine red grapes from across Australia that he will never forget.
Kelby returned from Australia to take a permanent position at Red Newt Cellars and Bistro on Seneca Lake in Hector, New York. He now serves as Winemaker at Red Newt Cellars and treasures the opportunity to work at a 'Riesling House'; striving to make Finger Lake Rieslings a part of dinner tables from the everyday to diverse single vineyard bottlings. Red Newt's continued work with fantastic growers of Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and Bordeaux varietals ensures that the cellar is always busy and always fun.
In a refrain common to teenagers everywhere, Kelby never expected to return home again after heading towards the big city lights of Boston. He now lives in Geneva, New York and is a proud member of the Finger Lakes community.
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
Increasingly garnering widespread and well-deserved attention, New York ranks third in wine production in the United States (after California and Washington). Divided into six AVAs—the Finger Lakes, Lake Erie, Hudson River, Long Island, Champlain Valley of New York and the Niagara Escarpment, which crosses over into Michigan as well as Ontario, Canada—the state experiences varied climates, but in general summers are warm and humid while winters are very cold and can carry the risk of frost well into the growing season.
The Finger Lakes region has long been responsible for some of the country’s finest Riesling, and is gaining traction with elegant, light-bodied Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc. Experimentation with cold-hardy European varieties is common, and recent years have seen the successful planting of grapes like Grüner Veltliner and Saperavi (from the Eastern European country of Georgia). Long Island, on the other hand, has a more maritime climate influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, and shares some viticultural characteristics with Bordeaux. Accordingly, the best wines here are made from Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The Niagara Escarpment is responsible for excellent ice wines, usually made from the hybrid variety, Vidal.