Andrew Wigan
Chief Winemaker
My favourite variety and vintage?
Probably the 1982 Peter Lehmann Barossa Riesling which was actually 100% from the Eden Valley region of the Barossa. It was early in our history and Peter decided to buy as much Eden Valley Riesling as he could so he offered the best price in the district. We made a huge volume and it went on in its first year to win best Riesling in the Adelaide Wine Show. Later in its life it would go on to win Best International Riesling in the IWSC in London.
My proudest wine which I have been associated with?
The wine am most proud of being associated with is our 1993 Reserve Riesling which went on to win 32 trophies and 47 gold medals around the world and probably stands as the most successful show wine in Australian wine show history. It became so successful that it started to annoy the rest of the industry off so eventually we stopped showing it.
Queen of Clubs
According to renowned Barossan artist, Rod Schubert, the Queen of Clubs is "the gambler’s card". Indeed it was a great gamble that Peter Lehmann took when founding the company during the turbulent, uncertain times of the late 1970s and early 1980s as the Australian wine industry was faced with international competition and a grape surplus.
Peter Lehmann is a great fan of American author, Damon Runyon, who created memorable characters modelled on the colourful characters on New York’s fringes.
At this tumultuous time and inspired by one of Runyon’s more engaging characters, the gambler, Sky Masterson, Peter Lehmann said "If anything’s a gamble, this is, so we’ll call the company ‘Masterson’ – ‘Masterson Barossa Vignerons’".
Although trading as Masterson Barossa Vignerons until 1982, Peter Lehmann’s name was always on the label, with the Queen of Clubs proudly featuring as the logo.
In 1982 the company name was changed to Peter Lehmann Wines. In 1996 the Queen of Clubs took on a new, exciting personality for each of the wines, reflecting their individual style and character.
The Queen of Clubs
In 1995, Peter Lehmann Wines commissioned young Australian artists to re-interpret the Queen of Clubs in the context of the variety of tastes, flavours, bouquets and defining characters of each of Peter Lehmann’s wines. This wonderfully innovative concept, bridging the art of winemaking and the art of painting, has resulted in an exciting and striking collection of dynamic images. Aside from providing highly original labels for over 15 years, the artworks now adorn the walls of our Cellar Door.
Eight Songs
The inspiration for the naming of Eight Songs was drawn from a suite of eight paintings by Rod Schubert depicting the mental disintegration of England’s "Mad King" George III. These paintings were created after involvement in the 1993 Barossa Music Festival performance of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies' tormented musical drama "Eight Songs for a Mad King", with texts by the poet, Randolph Stow. The Eight Songs suite of paintings was later acquired by Peter and Margaret Lehmann.
For more information and to view Rod Schubert's latest works please click here.
