Agronomic Vintage 2025

Brunello di Montalcino 2025: a composed vintage marked by brief surges

After the 2024 vintage, which was characterised by challenges and excesses, the 2025 vintage in Montalcino was relatively uncomplicated, notwithstanding - of course - the ever-present evidence of climate change.

Spring 2025 was regular, in spite of low temperatures and levels of rainfall significantly higher than the historical average. Budbreak, flowering and fruit set were all within the norm.
For the growers, managing vineyard health was less challenging than the difficult 2023 and 2024 seasons. In 2025 fewer interventions were necessary, resulting in less soil compaction which favoured better soil structure during the growing season.
In June there was a rapid increase in temperatures and more than 20 days without rain. This affected the bunch formation and kept berries size below average. The month ended with the first heatwave of the summer that lasted around 5 days.
June was warmer and drier than the historical average, followed by a relatively mild July and a sharp spike in temperatures during the middle of August. Total rainfall during the three summer months was 20% higher than the historical average and this guaranteed a stress-free growing season for the vines.
Rains at the end of August and in the first ten days of September meant that wineries, particularly those of medium and smaller dimensions, were able to delay the harvest until the last ten days of September.
In 2025 there were 24 days with temperatures over 35°C versus the historical average of 15 days. There were three heatwaves, one for each of the summer months. Due to a more regular seasonal development 2025 was a far more consistent year compared to the complex 2023 and 2024.
This vintage confirms the need for resilient vineyards and increasingly flexible agronomic management. The meteorological excesses of 2025 were more sudden but less severe and less prolonged than in previous vintages. This should translate into balanced wines and a consistent performance throughout the denomination, both in terms of aromatics and of structure.