I have been interviewing Ontario winery principals for many years about their harvest and the growing season. Weather and growing conditions can vary widely from year to year. For my Ontario Chardonnay Review I tried to get wines that were from one or two growing seasons. Most of the wines I received came from 2023 and 2024, with a few wines coming from the 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2025 vintages. So to try to help understand the differences in the wines’ aromas and flavours by year, I have compiled the information I have gathered from the winery principals from my harvest interviews and condensed it into this table below.
| Vintage | Growing Season Description | Yield | Fruit Quality | Key Similarities / Differences |
| 2020 | Near-perfect growing season. Warm conditions allowed vines to catch up after a slightly delayed bud break. Dry, stable weather through harvest. | Average to above average. Some reported larger clusters and generous crops. | Exceptional. Clean fruit, excellent ripeness, little rot, extended hang time. | Benchmark vintage. It combined both high yields and outstanding quality, which is relatively rare. |
| 2021 | Good growing season initially, but conditions deteriorated during harvest with significant rainfall and warmer-than-normal late-season weather. | Large crops, often exceeding expectations. | Good to very good quality, especially whites, but more variable than 2020. | Similar crop size to 2020, but much more stressful and challenging. Quality depended heavily on harvest management. |
| 2022 | Warm, dry growing season with several timely rains preventing severe drought. Sunny harvest conditions. | Significantly reduced due to winter bud damage and cold events. | High quality with excellent ripeness and concentration. | Similar dry conditions to 2025, but crop losses were primarily due to winter damage rather than growing season weather. |
| 2023 | Cool, wet growing season with frequent rainfall and high disease pressure. September brought abundant sunshine and heat. | Average to slightly above average. | Very good to exceptional quality despite challenges. Wines are expected to show high acidity, concentration, and complexity. | It was the most challenging growing season of the period, but September weather rescued the vintage. |
| 2024 | Long, warm growing season with a dry harvest period. Excellent ripening conditions throughout fall. | Smaller than average in some vineyards due to previous disease pressure, while others reported increased yields compared to 2023. | Excellent quality with strong ripeness and clean fruit. | Most similar to 2020 in terms of fruit quality and favourable harvest conditions. |
| 2025 | Hot, dry growing season. Some regions experienced prolonged drought, while others received more balanced rainfall. Disease pressure was extremely low. | Lower than average, generally 20-30% below normal. Smaller berries and clusters. | Exceptional concentration, ripeness, flavour intensity, and tannin maturity. | Similar to 2022 for warmth and dryness, but with even lower disease pressure and greater flavour concentration. |
Vintage Character Summary
2020: Near-perfect, warm, generous, and exceptionally clean.
2021: A large crop, but harvest rain created significant pressure.
2022: Small crop, warm and dry, concentrated fruit.
2023: Cool, wet, and challenging, redeemed by a remarkable September.
2024: Long, warm, and balanced with excellent ripening conditions.
2025: Hot, dry, low-yielding vintage producing intensely flavoured fruit.
Now that I have this bit of compiled information, it is time to start analyzing these wines for similarities and differences based on soil and growing season weather. Wish me luck!
