Apollo’s Praise: Meeting New York's most exciting new producer

Julia Rose Hoyle and Kelby James Russell are too busy for pinch-me moments.

The pair launched their Finger Lakes-based winery, Apollo’s Praise, in 2023 and are deep in the work.

Partners in life and love, they’ve got their hands full, from farming to fermenting, bottling to selling.

‘We’re working phenomenally hard on the back end because we recognise that we’ve been given the chance to help push the Finger Lakes forward,’ explains Russell.

With a charge like that, there is little time to pause – even when the praise is good.

Within three months of launching, inventory sold out, and scores reached up to 98-points, which is among the highest the region has received to date.

The duo keeps moving, popping up across the US and internationally as they introduce a brand that has brought a fresh new energy to Finger Lakes wine.

Finding Apollo

'Thus, then combining, hands and hearts joining, sing we in harmony Apollo’s praise. Here ev’ry gen’rous sentiment awaking, music inspiring unity and joy. Each social pleasure giving and partaking, glee and good humour our hours employ.'

These are the lyrics of ‘Glorious Apollo’, the 18th-century glee written by composer Samuel Webbe. They end every quarterly zine designed by Hoyle for Apollo’s Praise.

Russell first encountered Glorious Apollo at Harvard College, where he studied Orchestra Management and sang in the Glee Club.

His admission to the Ivy League school felt like a one-way ticket from his small Finger Lakes hometown that he’d eagerly been awaiting.

While there, he won a fellowship to study food in Italy.

‘I went for the mortadella,’ he laughs. To stretch the funding, Russell found lodging in exchange for work at a ‘quirky castle’ surrounded by vineyards.

‘It was a romantic spot. I fell in love with the lifestyle, got the wine bug, and decided – to my shock – to move back home and get into wine.’

A few hundred miles away, Hoyle traded northern Pennsylvania for Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York.

She picked up seasonal work in the tasting room at Fox Run Vineyards, but found herself fascinated by winemaking: ‘I wanted to learn more about this product that there’s no firm answer on – I wanted to know more all the time.’

Russell arrived at Fox Run two weeks after Hoyle, dressed for an interview, only to be handed a shovel on what would become his first day of harvest.

He and Hoyle quickly fell for the industry, the region, and eventually for each other.

As their careers progressed, each traveled across hemispheres, gaining experience by chasing harvests while staying connected through handwritten notes.

While in Paris in 2012, they eloped.

Building Lahoma

Through all their travels, the Finger Lakes kept pulling them home.

‘There was a lot of interesting energy and evolution happening. It was still a real underdog of a region, and to be here was a choice,’ explains Russell, who settled as lead winemaker for Red Newt Cellars on Seneca Lake.

Hoyle took the reins of winemaking at Hosmer Winery on Cayuga.

‘There’s an excitement you can’t replicate going to a region that already has the accolades,’ he continues.

‘Getting to demonstrate and earn those accolades for an underdog region is really enriching.’

Hoyle shares the ambition: ‘I want to make the best wines of the region. That is the end goal.’

Their work is heavily influenced by Austria and Germany, especially the idea of Grosses Gewächs, given they both work with distinguished vineyards.

Russell’s work at Red Newt introduced him to Ken and Harlan Fulkerson, the original farmers behind Lahoma Vineyards.

Once planted with apples, pears, peaches, and cherries, the celebrated vineyard is now 22.2ha of vinifera and hybrid grapes, including Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Grüner Veltliner, Chardonnay, and the first commercial planting of Scheurebe in New York.

High on a knoll

Within the parcel sits a notable 0.8ha plot of land named The Knoll, known for its rare sandstone soils and unique expression in the glass.

Russell has sourced fruit from this block for over a decade, crafting structured, muscular, and textural Rieslings that earned him a devoted following.

As the wines gained traction, so did the property, with Russell proudly touring the vines with journalists and buyers.

The Fulkersons quietly took note and secretly designated Russell and Hoyle as a potential succession plan.

The offer came in 2022 when Russell called the Fulkersons in search of Chardonnay. There was none, but they had a counteroffer: the farm itself.

Hoyle, who calls herself Russell’s co-conspirator, could see his vision: ‘At the end of the day, the deep trust we have for one another is what’s guided a lot of our decisions.’

They closed on the property in April 2023.

A frosty beginning

Within a month of closing, an unprecedented frost decimated half their crop. It was a once-in-50-year event.

Russell couldn’t sleep as temperatures dipped overnight. He got to the farm at sunrise to find the Fulkersons already there.

‘The plan was to sell 95% of the crop, and keep a few tons to tinker with. But, we knew we had to start a winery and make a new business plan to save the farm.’

They were more than ready. They already had the name. They had the label artist, Christi Lopez, whom Hoyle found on Instagram and bookmarked for this moment.

And, they quickly learned the region had their backs: neighbors offered unclaimed fruit, and Harlan Fulkerson even personally advocated for them at the bank, noting that you can’t predict the weather.

‘You can’t do it alone,’ Hoyle smiles. That winter, Apollo’s Praise launched their Wine & Glee Club and Skurnik Wines added the brand to their portfolio – the first and only brand contracted without a tasting.

The wines posted some of the highest scores in the region. Within three months, their inventory was completely sold out.

A warmer future ahead

Three years in, and the Apollo’s Praise team remains busy. They’ve since purchased the 1850s farmhouse next door, which houses their offices, a hosting space, and a seasonal Airbnb.

In the cellar, Russell and Hoyle operate on a 60/40 split, respectively – each producing their own wines that work in concert across the full portfolio.

‘We did not want to work together–especially in production,’ laughs Russell, though they have one exception: a single wine called Lovejoy: a blend of Chardonnay, Grüner Veltliner, and Riesling grown on The Knoll.

They’ve also built a company culture that reflects everything ‘Glorious Apollo’ promises. Alongside Hoyle’s joyful zines are Russell’s inspired music pairings on the back of every label.

General Manager Sarah Tuttle leads a small team that they call smart and quirky. Staff are given room to be fully themselves.

‘Sometimes it seems very crazy that the universe just lets us do this,’ says Tuttle.

That permission is not accidental, but deliberate. ‘I have an open door to anyone who wants to work hard. I’ll give people a shot because a lot of people wouldn’t do that for me,’ says Hoyle.

‘It’s important to get new voices at the table every time.’

Russell sees the same opportunity through the wine itself: ‘How do you get more people to love wine? It’s a really simple answer. Make exciting wine at a price point people can afford.’

Three tiers of wines are currently offered, ranging from approachable offerings under £20 to small-production single-vineyard bottlings that can command £100 and above.

From the outside looking in, Apollo’s Praise is more than a winery. It is the culmination of Hoyle and Russell’s hard work and preparation for this particular moment.

From chasing harvests and trading handwritten letters, to starting a brand authentic in its representation of the duo, it all folds into something that feels less like a business plan and more like a calling.

As the lyrics of Glorious Apollo go, they are giving and partaking in equal measure – and it seems the Finger Lakes are singing back.

Apollo's Praise wines

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