2025 HARVEST BEGINS AT NYETIMBER VINEYARDS

The 24^th of September marks the beginning of Nyetimber’s 2025 harvest. Analysis by the winemaking team has resulted in optimism about the prospect of a top-quality vintage, and now that the grape picking has begun it will soon become clear whether these predictions will come true.

2025’s growing conditions have been favourable for the region, with a very warm and sunny spring, then a hot and dry June. Nyetimber’s winemakers had already drawn potential comparisons with the record-breaking harvest of 2018, and now that harvest is here, the quality of the fruit is proving similar to that of seven years ago.

Although the date of harvest is always influenced by Mother Nature, the first day tends to take place around mid-October; making this year’s the earliest ever (24th September). This benefits Nyetimber’s winemakers, as it allows them to tailor and optimise picking timing to harvest the grapes when they are at their ripest.

Nyetimber CEO and Owner, Eric Heerema said, “Having spent almost two decades at the helm of Nyetimber, I have experienced a real variety of harvests! The South East of England can offer fantastic sparkling winemaking conditions, but it can also pose challenges. It is wonderful, therefore, to know that 2025 will produce some outstanding wines.

“We also expect this to be a vintage year, when we could make some of our vintage-dated wines such as Blanc de Blancs, Tillington Single Vineyard, and our 1086 by Nyetimber prestige cuvées. Our vintage wines are winning an increasing number of prestigious awards each year and our ambition is to continue crafting these to world-class levels.”

Harvest will be overseen by Nyetimber’s Head Winemaker, Cherie Spriggs and Senior Winemaker, Brad Greatrix; both of whom have led the winemaking at Nyetimber for almost two decades. Cherie Spriggs said, “When making wine in a cool climate you can never get ahead of yourself, as nature will always have the last say. However, we are entering this year’s harvest with an optimistic outlook and are looking forward to welcoming a dedicated team of pickers to our vineyards.

“The reputation of English sparkling wine is continuing to grow around the world, and in tandem there is increasing interest in participating in our harvest from professional pickers. There is a lot of work to be done over the next two weeks, but this is a very exciting time of year for our team and we can’t wait to see what our vines have produced.”

This year’s harvest coincides with multiple significant award wins for Nyetimber. At the International Wine Challenge earlier this month, Nyetimber’s Blanc de Blancs 2016 Magnum won Champion Sparkling Wine – the first time this trophy has ever been awarded to a sparkling wine from outside the Champagne region. Cherie Spriggs was also crowned Sparkling Winemaker of the Year for the second time. She first won this award in 2018, becoming the first person outside of Champagne to do so, and she remains the only woman to have ever gained the title.

Nyetimber’s prestige cuvées have also been highly recognised this year, with 1086 by Nyetimber 2010 being awarded top-scoring sparkling wine in the world at London Wine Fair’s Battle of the Bubbles in May – beating prestige cuvées from Dom Perignon and Krug – and 1086 by Nyetimber Rosé 2013 winning Sparkling Rosé of the Year at The Real Review’s Wines of the Year awards in September.