Peter Lehmann Stonewell Shiraz

Peter Lehmann, with 33 vintages already under his belt, started his own winery in 1979, partly as a means of helping with the glut of grapes then afflicting the Barossa. “I’ll take your grapes and turn them into wine,” he told the desperate growers, many of them conservative farmers of Silesian descent who regarded their old vines as part of their patrimony. “But I’ll only be able to pay you when I sell the wine.” They gratefully accepted. Without this deal, it is widely thought that the Barossa would have lost a huge chunk of its old vines.

The Stonewell Shraz is the Peter Lehmann flagship wine, first produced in 1987 and made from a selection of the best Shiraz grapes from the most premium sites of the Barossa. The 2013 vintage is a blend of grapes from four vineyards: the Obbietivo Home Block, Bethany Unit Trust Keil Block, Wayne Falkenberg Home and Roesler Home. All of these vineyards are made up of exceptionally old vines, the oldest of which were planted in 1885. Yields are very low from such old vines and the grapes harvested have a remarkable intensity of flavour which shines through in the wine.

Still sensibly priced, this is one of the wine world’s best buys; drinking beautifully now but will continue to evolve and develop for decades to come.

A wine for big rich meaty dishes. BBQ ribs and massive steaks.