As we wrap up another growing season on Seneca Lake, we’re reflecting on what made the 2025 vintage one to look back on with high regard. This year challenged and rewarded us in equal measure, reminding us how deeply our wines are rooted in the strength of our vineyards and the dedication of our team.
The 2025 growing season began with a mild winter and very wet spring. It was hard to envision that post-budbreak it would turn into one of the warmest and driest vintages in recent memory. The higher-than-average rainfall in May and June kept the vineyard team on high alert for signs of mildew. Their hard work helped mitigate major damage to delicate new buds during bloom and fruit set. Budbreak arrived right on time in the third week of April with the first buds popping in the HJW Vineyard Chardonnay, followed closely by Pinot Noir from Julia.
As summer moved into sun-filled days and scarce amounts of rain, vineyard management priorities shifted. Typically, the mature vine systems and deep glacial soils in the region make water access a low concern as fruit begins to ripen. However, this year, overall vine health became a priority as the weeks ticked by without any measurable precipitation. Strategic leaf pulling and under vine weed management helped the vines maintain balance.
Veraison came in the first week of August, which meant that the time to start preparing for harvest was coming! As we began to get the press pad in order and the picking boxes cleaned, we welcomed 3 interns to the team. They were a rockstar group who remained steady, reliable and positive throughout the 10 week harvest. A massive thank you to Lucas Krueger from Germany, Claire Hoffmann from New Jersey and Charlotte Alsaadi from Philadelphia. Your hard work makes it all possible!
Chardonnay from Standing Stone on September 3rd kicked off the 2025 harvest. From then on, we strategically checked the vineyards for ripeness, as well as assessed how each block was handling the lack of rain. As a result, some blocks were harvested earlier than in past vintages in order to preserve their health for next year. This allowed for some creative thinking from the winemaking team from where to source fruit for each specific wine.
Disease pressure was notably low (a welcome gift on the sorting table!) allowing the fruit to ripen slowly under ideal conditions. We methodically ticked off sparkling wines and still wines like Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer into the first couple weeks of September, before welcoming our first pick of Rieslings from the HJW Vineyard on the 11th of September, which was a fruit day on the Biodynamic Calendar.
October remained steady with continued sunshine and cool nights, keeping disease and botrytis pressure low. A few well-timed and light rain events helped push the vines across the finish line without sacrificing quality. This made selections for Single Vineyard and Reserve level Rieslings easy as there was high quality all around! Red varieties like Cabernet Franc and Blaufränkisch thrived with the growing conditions this year and provided some of the ripest brix readings of the vintage. Our last pick was Riesling from Standing Stone on the 28th of October and the official official last pick was on November 13th: Late Harvest Gewürztraminer from HJW Vineyard.
