Now that the first of our 2025 wines (our still rosé) has been bottled, our winemaker Patrick reflects back on the vintage, which will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the great vintages for the UK.
“Many are already calling it a generational harvest, and after the challenges of 2024 it came as a very welcome relief. From the first days of winter through to the final press cycle in the winery, 2025 delivered both exceptional conditions and memorable moments.
The season began with a significant cold snap in December and January, ensuring that the vines entered full dormancy before winter work began. Pruning started in January – we follow the gentle pruning method practice here at Carvers Hill Estate. In my view, pruning is the most important moment of the year in the vineyard. It sets the structure of the vine and shapes the entire growing season to come. By March, pruning and tying down were complete and our focus shifted toward preparing for the season ahead.
Frost watch began earlier than usual in 2025, and late frosts lingered well into May, keeping us on our toes. Despite this, the vineyard responded beautifully. Budburst began on the 10th of April, with around 95% of buds bursting — an excellent and very encouraging start.
The early half of the growing season provided near-perfect conditions. We experienced long daylight hours, abundant sunshine, and very little rain, which helped keep disease pressure remarkably low. Flowering followed under similarly ideal weather, resulting in close to a 90% success rate of inflorescence development, setting the stage for a promising crop.
One defining feature of the 2025 season was the dryness of the summer — something rarely experienced to this degree in the UK. While this brought benefits in terms of vineyard health, it also presented challenges. Vines had to work harder to access sufficient water and nutrients. Interestingly, this mild stress encouraged the vines to focus their energy on their reproductive cycle, accelerating ripening and leading to one of the earliest recorded harvests in the U.K.
Harvest began on 19 September with our Pinot Précoce destined for our still rosé. For comparison, in 2024 we did not begin harvesting Pinot Précoce until 17 October, nearly a month later.
As this was only the second harvest in our new winery, the vintage truly tested the capacity and rhythm of the facility. At times it felt like we were standing under a wave of grapes, but I am delighted to say the winery performed magnificently and allowed us to move through the vintage smoothly.
All fruit at Carvers Hill Estate is hand-picked and sorted in the vineyard, then whole-bunch pressed in the winery. This remains a key part of our philosophy. We whole-bunch press fruit destined for our still rosé, our sparkling base wines, and this year, for the first time, our much-anticipated still Chardonnay.
As the fruit arrived at the winery we were struck by the remarkable ripeness and sugar levels. For most wines we did not need to chaptalise at all, which is always a welcome situation in the U.K. Acidity in the fruit for sparkling wines also landed beautifully, with levels around 10 g/L, providing the balance and freshness we seek.
Harvest was a small but determined operation this year, with Sam joining for his first vintage alongside me. There were many long nights pressing fruit well into the early hours of the morning, powered largely by Sam’s excellent yacht rock playlist, which became the unofficial soundtrack of the 2025 harvest.
Emerging from the other side of the vintage, we were left with a profound sense of excitement and gratitude. The quality of the base wines and still wines has exceeded expectations, showing purity, balance, and expression of site.
The 2025 vintage at Carvers Hill Estate stands as a testament to what is possible in England when vineyard work, weather, and timing align. The wines from this year promise to showcase the remarkable potential of the English wine industry, and we look forward to sharing them in the years ahead – firstly our still rosé, which we will release in late April.
“We hope to see you at Carvers Hill Estate this summer – and look forward to showing you the 2025 Rosé. We hope you enjoy it!”