Top Shelf
2025 Is Turning Out to Be a Great Year for Wine
Although with a few exceptions, harvest yields reveal there won’t be as much of it from the world’s top wine regions
Vines ready for harvest at Ornellaia in Tuscany, Italy.
Photographer: Michael Boudot/OrnellaiaOn Aug. 28 in Saint-Emilion, France, pickers fanned out into the vineyard at Château Troplong Mondot. It was the earliest harvest start in the estate’s history.
Record-breaking early picking was a key feature of harvest 2025. In Alsace, the date was Aug. 19; in Champagne, Aug. 20; for the white grapes in the Rhône Valley, mid-August, two weeks earlier than last year. In Germany’s Rheingau region, some grapes were picked at the end of August, three weeks earlier than the long-term average.