President/Co-Owner (29) Years)

To Scott Osborn, Rochester native, the acquisition of Fox Run Vineyards was the natural culmination of his passion for wine and commitment to the industry.

The son of two professors, Osborn's first interest was international politics. Attending the Friends World College, now Global College, with campuses all over the globe, it is still the only college that is 100% immersible in the culture of each country. He lived and studied in Kenya, India, Thailand, Japan, and England.

He went into real estate development in 1974, later opening an office in Lake County California, a well-known viticulture area. The move there proved to be fortuitous; living so close to the vines Osborn became interested in wine. In 1980 he took his first job at Konocti Winery hand labeling bottles. He then went on to work at Firestone Vineyards, Zaca Mesa, and Byron Winery in Santa Barbara. In 1984 During his time at Byron he came back to visit family and during a wine tasting trip around Seneca Lake tasted a Wagner Vineyards 1982 Barrel aged Chardonnay. It was his first experience with a brilliant cool climate wine, and he realized that this was where he wanted to make wines and ultimately own his own vineyard and winery.

In 1985, there was not a lot of winemaking jobs available here in the Finger Lakes, so he began working for a wine distributor and then went on to be General Manager of Pindar Vineyards on Long Island. In 1993, Fox Run became available and in partnership with Andy Hale they purchased it.

When he purchased Fox Run there were only 14 wineries on Seneca Lake, now there are over 100. Since the purchase of the winery in 1994, he has resided in the beautifully renovated farmhouse originally built on the property in 1870. Initially assuming the responsibilities of winemaking, along with the myriad tasks of management, speaking engagements and travel, he chose to hire a full-time winemaker. His selection of Peter Bell in June of 1995 satisfied his desire to engage the most gifted winemaker in the Finger Lakes region. Their shared vision for quality wine production has freed Osborn to the task of managing the winery and planning for its future. In 2022, after 27 years Peter retired, and we hired Craig Hosbach to take Fox Run on its next journey.
Scott regularly participates in wine judging's, panel discussions, and symposiums dealing with the many challenges of an increasingly sophisticated appellation.
On Christmas day of 1998 three days after turning 50 Scott married long time sweetheart Ruth Worden and in 2012 Ruth’s sister Kathy and her husband Albert became partners and now Fox Run is a family owned winery.
The highly successful working relationship between Scott, Peter/Craig, and Vineyard manager John Kaiser has resulted in spectacular grapes, wines, and successful introductions of State-of-the-Art vineyard practices, keeping Fox Run Vineyards on the cutting edge of grape growing and winemaking.

Scott is constantly working to improve our environmental impact and in 2002 received the Lake Friendly Farm designation from Yates County Soil and Water Conservation. This award is given to farms whose farming practices do not negatively impact the water quality of Seneca Lake. In 2015 he also installed a 151-Kilowatt solar system which provides 100% of the electrical needs for the winery, tasting room and café. In 2020 he planted a 4.5 acre Butterfly and Bee habitat. We have reduced our herbicide and pesticide use and are replacing them with organic and biological sprays that are less impactful on the environment. In 2023 Fox Run received the New York Sustainable designation.
He has been President of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail two times and a founding member and past President of Finger Lakes Wine Alliance; he is a founding member of the New York Wine Policy Institute which was founded in 2009 to represent the Wine Industry to educate legislators in Albany on issues that will impact our wineries and vineyards here in New York State. He was elected by his peers in the NY wine industry as the New York representative on the Board of Wine America which is the national advocacy organization for the American Wine Industry in Washington DC. He now serves as Vice-Chair of the organization.

Contact Information for Scott Osborn:
Phone: 315-536-4616
Email: scott.osborn@foxrunvineyards.com