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Circa 1850, Adrian’s great-great-great grandfather, Charles Jewell, and his brother Thomas, competitively raced steam boats on the Ohio River. One race in particular they were neck-in-neck with the other boat. To send them over the line to win the race and the competitor’s boat, they burned their valuable Chippendale furniture in the furnace. The race winnings totaled $80,000, about $3.5 million in today’s money.
Growing up Adrian’s father wore a special ring won by Charles and Thomas with a ruby gem in it. When Adrian blends the Rubies cuvée each year, he aims for the final wine to shine with a ruby hue like his father’s ring.
The 2022 Rubies opens with a deeply expressive nose, where intensified aromas of ripe red cherries and black raspberries dominate, revealing the vintage’s greater concentration. The fruit is enveloped in lush layers of wild strawberry compote and dried orange peel, with hints of crushed redwood needles and damp earth lending an evocative, grounding complexity. A waft of steeped green tea and subtle sandalwood spice adds aromatic sophistication.
On the palate, the concentrated red and dark fruit flavors unfurl with cherry and raspberry denser and more structured than in the previous vintage, layered with the savory depth of tea leaf and forest floor. Accents of blood orange and ruby grapefruit deliver bright acidity and tension. The finish is long and resonant, echoing with citrus zest, spice, and woodland herb.
Decant 30-60 minutes prior to enjoying
For each vintage, we select the best barrels and age the wine for 18 months in French Oak before bottling without fining or filtration. Our goal is to capture the purity and precision of each vintage from our home here in the Russian River. The 2021 vintage is made up of four vineyards, Starscape, Bucher, Hallberg, and Bootlegger’s Hill, consisting of five clones of Pinot Noir, Martini, Dijon 115, Dijon 777, Pommard, and Swan.
The 2022 vintage in the Russian River Valley highlighted opportunities for exceptional wine quality. The region experienced drought conditions, which reduced soil moisture levels and required careful irrigation management to sustain vine health. Pinot Noir crops were smaller than normal due to a frost event early in the season. While this reduced the overall yield, it contributed to greater concentration in the wines, enhancing their depth and intensity.
Warm summer temperatures accelerated ripening, leading to an earlier harvest. All fruit was picked before the significant Labor Day heatwave, ensuring optimal grape quality. The 2022 Russian River Valley wines are expected to showcase vibrant flavors and a rich profile, reflecting the vintage’s unique conditions, the benefits of a focused, smaller crop, and the careful management required during a challenging drought year.
