diff --git a/packages/env/src/server.ts b/packages/env/src/server.ts
index d97bc1105..d0278b106 100644
--- a/packages/env/src/server.ts
+++ b/packages/env/src/server.ts
@@ -7,11 +7,11 @@ const workspaceRoot = findWorkspaceRoot();
 
 if (workspaceRoot) {
 	try {
-		// ponytail: native stand-in for dotenv. loadEnvFile throws when .env is absent
-		// (e.g. production with injected env), and existing process.env still wins — so just tolerate a miss.
+		// Native stand-in for dotenv: existing process.env still wins over file values.
 		process.loadEnvFile(join(workspaceRoot, ".env"));
-	} catch {
-		// no .env file — rely on the ambient process environment
+	} catch (error) {
+		// A missing .env is expected (e.g. production with injected env); anything else is a real problem.
+		if (!(error instanceof Error && "code" in error && error.code === "ENOENT")) throw error;
 	}
 }