The 2025 Vintage

The 2025 Vintage: A Truly Exceptional Year for Hunter Valley Wine

As we reflect on the 2025 vintage, it’s clear that the Hunter Valley is set to deliver some extraordinary wines. Early reports have been overwhelmingly positive, with the weather conditions playing a key role in shaping this exceptional harvest. Although a few extremely hot days impacted growers who didn’t use sunscreen on their fruit, the overall conditions were ideal, and the quality of the grapes is outstanding. After a 50% yield decrease in our own vineyards, crops have returned to normal, and the wines are proving to be well worth the wait.

Favourable Weather and a Strong Growing Season

The growing season leading up to the 2025 harvest was marked by timely rainfall, moderate temperatures, and minimal significant weather events. The Mount View region, where our Hunter holdings are located, was fortunate enough to avoid the damaging hailstorms that affected neighbouring areas like Pokolbin and Lovedale. Despite challenging weather elsewhere, our vineyards benefited from well-timed, limited rainfall, which created the perfect conditions for healthy vine growth.

Our Vineyard Manager, Jeremy O’Brien, has been instrumental in ensuring that our vineyards were in prime condition, implementing an intensive nutrition program and careful management practices that kept the vine canopies healthy and the crop robust. The result is a harvest that is set to produce wines of exceptional quality, especially the reds.

A Harvest to Remember

The harvest began in early January, with our first picks being the Dam Verdelho and Briar Hill Chardonnay, followed closely by Semillon and the alternates of Fiano and Albariño. With excellent fruit sets, great crops, and ideal ripeness, it became clear early on that this would be a standout vintage for the Hunter Valley.

And now, as the red harvest has been completed, we’re excited about the quality of the reds this year. The combination of favourable weather conditions and meticulous vineyard management has resulted in a crop that is both abundant and full of character. The reds from 2025 are expected to have lower alcohols—true to the traditional Hunter style—while offering rich, balanced flavours that will age beautifully in the cellar.

Looking Beyond the Hunter: Orange and Wrattonbully Delivering Exceptional Reds

While the Hunter Valley is the focal point of the 2025 vintage, we also see great promise in other regions such as Orange and Wrattonbully. Orange’s lower crop levels and higher sugar degrees are translating into excellent colour and intensity, with Pinot and young Shiraz expected to be particularly impressive. In Wrattonbully, lower crop yields are resulting in wines with exceptional depth and structure, especially for fans of Big Bully and Bordeaux-style reds.

A Vintage for the Cellar

The 2025 vintage is shaping up to be a classic year, with balanced weather, careful vineyard practices, and exceptional fruit quality. The reds are looking to be truly remarkable, with lower alcohols, rich flavours, and excellent structure. If you’re a collector or wine lover, this is a vintage to watch, and one you’ll want to cellar in abundance for years to come.

As the final stages of harvest wrap up and we process the fruit, we're increasingly confident that the 2025 vintage will be one for the ages. So, stay tuned, this is a vintage you won’t want to miss!

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