New York

Finger Lakes

White

Early picked hybrid varieties make for a naturally lower ABV bubbly with juicy stone fruit and chalky characters. A few hours skin contact adds to the texture and mouthfeel, before pressing, cold settling, racking, and fermenting wild. Made in the Charmat method, we used unfermented juice for tirage instead of adding sugar, and stopped the secondary fermentation early to leave balanced residual sugar and a lower ABV.

Finger Lakes Session Sparkling White

United States

Living Roots

Finger Lakes Late-Harvest Vidal

Finger Lakes Bone-Dry Riesling

Adelaide Hills Cabernet Tannat

Finger Lakes Red Rizza

Finger Lakes Session Rizz

Finger Lakes Chardonnay

Finger Lakes Pinot Gris

Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc

Finger Lakes Dry Rosé

McLaren Vale Grenache

Adelaide Hills Shiraz

Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir

Finger Lakes Off-Dry Riesling

Finger Lakes Session Sparkling Rosé

Finger Lakes Pét-Nat Riesling

Finger Lakes Session Gold

South Australia Depths of the Earth Red Blend

McLaren Vale Shiraz

Living Roots is a winery in both the Finger Lakes region of New York and in the Adelaide Hills region of South Australia. Our Aussie family has made wine for six generations, and we’re following in their footsteps making styles we love to drink, with varietal and regional expression, minimal inputs and maximum quality. We source grapes from a number of growers, including both of our families, and each vintage is an opportunity to highlight the regions surrounding our hometowns while exploring new vineyards, varieties, styles, and low input techniques.

Barbera

Cabernet Franc

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cayuga White

Chardonnay

Gewürztraminer

Grenache

Marquette

Nero d'Avola

Petite Sirah

Pinot Gris

Pinot Noir

Riesling

Shiraz

Tannat

Traminette

Vidal

Sebastian Hardy, along with his wife Colleen, started Living Roots, a winery melding the best of their hometowns in the Finger Lakes of New York and the Adelaide Hills of South Australia. The Living Roots story can be traced to Thomas Hardy, Seb’s great-great-great grandfather, who immigrated from England and planted some of the first vines in South Australia in 1853. Seb grew up around his dad’s vineyards and went on to pursue winemaking with vintages in Australia, Austria, France, Italy and the US, a degree in Viticulture and Oenology from the University of Adelaide and a six-month exchange at UC Davis. Seb and Colleen met in 2014 and started Living Roots in 2016. They currently split time between South Australia and New York, doing two harvests each year and experimenting with a wide range of varieties and styles that highlight the natural strengths of each region.

Sebastian Hardy

Vidal with juicy peach and melon characters into the tropical fruit spectrum, balanced with pretty florals and beeswax. We picked the grapes into early winter after the first snows for a rich and concentrated late-harvest wine, and stopped the ferment early for a naturally semi-sweet style with high-acidity to match.

Our take on Finger Lakes Dry Riesling, fermented with native yeast until bone-dry and aged on lees for twelve months. High-toned citrus and steely notes on the nose meet a textural palate with good fruit intensity and racy acidity. 

Cabernet Sauvignon Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon [53%] and Tannat [47%] from our family's vineyard in Kuitpo. After destemming both, we gave the Cabernet two punch downs per day for more typical extraction and covered up the Tannat for 10 days carbonic maceration to push a brighter fruit spectrum and soft tannins. Vibrant strawberry and cherry characters are balanced with savory herbal notes, supple tannins, and spice on the finish.

100% Riesling juice fermented wild on fresh Cabernet Franc skins before aging in old French oak. Citrus characters and fresh acidity from the Rizza [Aussie slang for Riesling] meet darker fruits and soft tannins from the Cab Franc skins that were previously pressed for Rosé.

Riesling is well suited to lower alcohol styles with its racy acidity, fine tannins and good flavor concentration. This one was sourced from several sites in the Finger Lakes and picked early for fresh acidity and lower natural alcohol. White flower aromas, zippy citrus characters and balanced residual sugar make for a refreshing and delicious Rizz [Aussie slang for Riesling].

Chardonnay fermented naturally in neutral French oak before aging on lees for nine months. The grapes were sourced from our family's vineyard overlooking Keuka Lake, as well as another block on the east side of Seneca Lake. Delicate fruit characters from the cooler vintage and flinty minimality are complimented by creamy texture and driving acidity.

A rich, yet fresh, style of Pinot Gris from a cooler vintage in the Finger Lakes. The wine was fermented naturally in stainless steel and aged on lees for ten months. High-toned aromatics and varietal pear characters are balanced with gingery spice and fresh acidity.

An elegant style from a cooler vintage, with zippy acidity and classic varietal characters. A high percentage of whole berries in the ferment pushed the bright red fruit spectrum, while tannins and peppery spice were slowly extracted as the berries broke down prior to pressing. Wild ferment. Unfined. Unfiltered.

Rosé

Rosé made from Cabernet Franc [80%] and Marquette [20%], both grown on Keuka Lake with plenty of leaf-plucking during the season to ensure optimal sunlight and ripening. Cabernet Franc brings strawberry characters, spice and high-toned aromatics to the blend, while the Marquette [a high-quality French-American hybrid] contributes body, acidity and darker red fruits.

Grenache made in a vibrant style with lots of whole berries in the ferment and very little oak influence. Juicy cherry and strawberry flavors are balanced with spicy white pepper and a bit of savory complexity. Fermented wild in 1-tonne picking bins, we incorporated some carbonic maceration for pretty aromatics, lifted fruit, and a soft mouthfeel.

Vibrant Shiraz with lifted dark fruits, fresh acidity, and balanced spicy, savory characters. The grapes were destemmed, but not crushed, for a high percentage of whole berries. Half of the batch was fermented in open fermenters and punched down twice a day while the other half was covered up for 10 days carbonic maceration, all wild. 2019 was a relatively cool vintage with low yields and high quality.

Pinot Noir destemmed and fermented wild with a high percentage of whole berries, resulting in aromatic and juicy fruit characters balanced with earthiness, fresh acidity and spice. A couple different clones of Pinot from Seb's uncle Bill's vineyard come together for a delicate yet concentrated wine. 115 brings bright cherry notes to the blend while MV6 contributes riper fruit and a bit of meatiness.

Finger Lakes Riesling picked with some 'noble rot' botrytis, concentrating the grape sugars and contributing to richness on the palate. Bright aromatics and tropical fruit characters keep the palate fresh, with racy acidity balancing the natural residual grape sugars left in the wine.

A blend of primarily hybrid varieties with pretty florals, juicy fruit, and refreshing acidity. This was picked early for lower natural alcohol and made in the Charmat method. We used unfermented juice for tirage instead of adding sugar, and stopped the secondary fermentation early to leave balanced residual sweetness. The palate evokes watermelon Jolly Ranchers in all the best ways.

Brut Nature

Riesling whole bunch pressed to minimize phenolics, fermented wild, and finished off in bottle to create natural bubbles. The grapes were primarily sourced from a vineyard on the west side of Keuka Lake, with a small portion coming from a pristine vineyard near Lake Ontario. Pithy lemon and juicy peach characters are balanced by chalky minerality and a bone-dry palate.

Orange

Cayuga White fermented on Aromella skins; Vidal fermented on Traminette skins. This is our take on an orange wine made from some of our favorite hybrid varieties, with great texture and only 8.5% ABV. Aromella and Traminette both have particularly expressive skins, with well-balanced tannins that are suited to extended contact.

A play off the classic Shiraz Cabernet blend, but in no way typical. Cabernet Sauvignon from three distinct regions centers the blend with a combination of brightness and richness of fruit with its subtle herbal edge and good tannin structure. This is balanced with richness from Adelaide Hills Shiraz, acidity and spice from Adelaide Hills Petite Sarah and bright red fruits from juicy McLaren Vale Barbera.

Shiraz made from organic grapes with perfumed fruit, a plush palate, and well integrated oak. Fermented with a high percentage of whole berries and some covered up for carbonic maceration to push the fresh fruit spectrum. Dark plum and cherry characters are balanced with subtle olive and black pepper notes, silky tannins, spicy clove in the background, and a chocolatey finish.

New York

Living Roots

N/V

Finger Lakes Session Sparkling White

Finger Lakes

Release Price

Drink Window

ABV

pH

TA

RS

Winemaking

More from this Producer