When Peter Lehmann’s Masters Wigan Riesling was named Wine of the Year Australia at the 2025 London Wine Competition, it marked a major international milestone for both the winery and Australian Riesling. Sourced from select vineyards in the Eden Valley, Wigan is a wine that speaks to place—crystalline in structure, driven by citrus and mineral tension, and built to evolve. But its success is also the result of strategic clarity: clear market positioning, strong grower relationships, and a steady focus on export and consumer engagement.

We spoke with Brett Schutz, Senior Winemaker at Peter Lehmann Wines, about how this award-winning wine is being positioned globally, what drives its appeal in key markets like the UK, and how the team is using this moment to reinforce the brand’s legacy while sharpening its international edge.

Image: Brett Schutz, Senior Winemaker at Peter Lehmann Wines.

Congratulations on the Masters Wigan Riesling being awarded "Wine of the Year Australia" at the 2025 London Wine Competition — a remarkable recognition. Could you tell us what makes this wine such a standout, both in terms of winemaking approach and its expression of the Barossa terroir?

Due to its delicate character and relatively small window of peak maturation, much of the art of producing high-quality Riesling comes from the decisions made in the vineyard. Through the vintage period, our winemakers and viticulturist taste these top-quality vineyards daily in order to be able to pinpoint the precise optimum date to harvest the fruit. From there, a swift time frame between harvest and juice-skin separation is critical to the production of quality Riesling.

Protection from oxidation at every step of the way, a gentle and cool fermentation with neutral yeast, and bottling as early as possible are notable ways to maximise varietal expression and achieve our overall goal- translating what we taste and see in the vineyard into the finished wine in the bottle.

The Eden Valley sees Riesling planted in shallow soils with sub-surfaces of ironstone and quartz gravel. Often, cool climate Riesling, or Riesling planted on deep alluvial clay and loam, will lack mid-palate concentration and the minerality which is reflected strongly in the wines from the different stony soil profiles in Eden Valley. It is the vine's roots entwined with the ancient rocks of this region, which help to provide a piercing mineral acid line through the middle of the palate. This really defines our style for Wigan, creating a zingy, mouthwatering and lively wine with purity and immense potential for ageing.

From here, Wigan's most significant point of difference is the bottle ageing time allowed. A minimum of five years in our temperature-controlled cellar ensures the flavours develop steadily, essentially doing the hard work for our consumers. The result is a wine that demonstrates both delicate, mature characteristics and bright, crisp, youthful citrus freshness, a feat that Andrew Wigan championed over twenty years ago, and the winemaking team has continued with great success ever since.

Image:  Peter Lehmann’s Masters Wigan Riesling was named Wine of the Year Australia at the 2025 London Wine Competition.

Peter Lehmann Wines has long been regarded as a custodian of Barossa’s vinous heritage. How does the Wigan Riesling reflect your broader winemaking philosophy and commitment to site-specific expression?

One of our greatest strengths as a business has always been our excellent grower network, curated by Peter Lehmann over forty years ago and nurtured ever since, giving us access to exceptional vineyards across Barossa’s sub-regions. Our Eden Valley growers compete fiercely each year to grow low-yielding Riesling crops, and maintain vine balance and health with a very low water availability, one of the lowest in the world. Their hope is for their parcels of fruit- some only two to three tonnes in volume- to be considered for our flagship Riesling, the Wigan.

Eden Valley Riesling parcels are tightly held and currently not expanding, so grape growers and winemakers are careful to make the very best decisions when it comes to producing quality from this important finite resource.

We continue the work of our founder, Peter Lehmann, today, fostering the grower-winemaker relationship to ensure it is mutually beneficial and sustainable. Many of our growers have been providing quality fruit since the very first vintage, and it is this partnership that allows us to produce this world-famous Riesling consistently, reflecting the Eden Valley terroir and best suiting our chosen style.

Image: Eden Valley Riesling Vineyard - Peter Lehmann Wines.

With this recent accolade, how are you leveraging the momentum in key export markets such as the UK? Could you share where the Wigan Riesling is currently available — in terms of major retail outlets, wine merchants, and on-trade listings — and what your plans are for expanding visibility and distribution?

Wigan Riesling can be found on many restaurant fine wine lists across the country. Wigan Riesling has been available in the UK for many years now, and it is always exciting to visit and gain an appreciation of how well it is regarded by wine lovers in the market. We are proud to have had a long relationship with Majestic wine stores as well as many independent retailers, who stock Wigan Riesling as one of Australia's benchmark leading examples.

Our UK-based team works hard to ensure the distribution partnership is based on the same moral grounding instilled in our brand philosophy. It is a true collaboration for building brand loyalty and long-term relationships.

Annual visits to UK trade, media, and customer events keep our wines front of mind and allow ever-important feedback.

Who is the core consumer for this wine, and how do you connect with them across different markets? Has your target audience evolved over the years, particularly with the resurgence of interest in premium dry Riesling?

I firmly believe that as the consumer market matures and palates are looking for more interest and finesse, Riesling should become the staple white wine in everyone's fridge. Our consumer base for Wigan Riesling has moved toward a younger demographic over the years, as we see a food and wine culture strengthen across many regions of the world. Our chosen style makes Wigan Riesling a very flexible wine that is both an enjoyable drink on its own and an excellent accompaniment to an extensive range of cuisines.

Image: Peter Lehmann Wines.

Marketing a heritage wine like Wigan Riesling must involve a careful balance of tradition and innovation. What kind of campaigns or activities — be it trade tastings, media collaborations, or digital storytelling — are you undertaking to build awareness and drive pull-through, especially in competitive markets like the UK?

With all of our super-premium wines, our audience actively seeks out the stories behind them, so much of our efforts are focused on telling those stories effectively. Digital media, both our own social channels and those of our customer partners, are critical here. While nothing beats having the people behind the wine physically in the market to bring the vinification to life, we rely on digital channels to provide the immediacy that our customers and consumers need. We also hold regular virtual tastings and webinars to reach our trade audience as broadly as possible to tell those stories.

For importers and distributors handling your wines abroad, what kind of support or activations do you provide to help them tell your story and move stock effectively?

As touched on in the previous question, the first and most important activity is to ensure that they receive the news! This is not just the award per se, but also the context of the award as being bestowed by one of the most prestigious wine competitions in the world. It is also important to ensure that the wine itself proudly displays the award on the bottle, so we’re constantly reminding customers and consumers of the win. Finally, getting our winemakers into the market to talk in person to our valued distributors and customers is crucial. It is something we do every year to make sure that the personal touch is not forgotten.

Image: Peter Lehmann Wines - Cellars.

Sustainability is increasingly central to the global wine conversation. Could you speak to your environmental commitments — from vineyard practices to packaging — and how these values resonate through wines like Wigan Riesling?

This year, we officially earned the Sustainable Winegrowing Australia certification for our winery, vineyards, and grape supply, which means Peter Lehmann wines from the 2025 vintage will be certified.

The program helps Australian wine producers reduce their environmental impact. Based on the well-known ISO-14001 environmental standard, it encourages producers to be more eco-friendly and responsible. 

This initiative assists businesses in managing the environmental aspects of their operations, including minimising risks throughout the entire supply chain. Environmental aspects included in the standard are biosecurity, land and soil management, chemical and nutrient management, water, biodiversity, waste, air quality, energy, and fuel efficiency.

We are committed to ensuring that throughout the grape-growing and production of Wigan Riesling, we continue to explore new opportunities to improve our practices, benefiting both the environment and the communities we are a part of.

Image: Winemaking Team (L-R); Brett Schutz - Senior Winemaker, Lauren Hutton - Winemaker, Nigel Westblade - Chief Winemaker, and Andrew Cockram - Winemaker.

Finally, how do you plan to use this win at the London Wine Competition as part of your global brand narrative? Are there particular campaigns, trade events, or consumer-facing initiatives in the pipeline that will help amplify the recognition and reinforce Peter Lehmann’s standing as one of Australia’s great wine houses?

Show success and critical accolades are a vital part of the Peter Lehmann narrative that is already in place. We have an amazing and rich story behind the brand that people connect with emotionally; the awards and strong ratings provide an objective proof point to back up that emotive brand narrative. We have already got social media, on-pack communication, and an en primeur release ready to go to take advantage of this prestigious recognition.

Conclusion

Wigan Riesling’s recognition in London affirms more than just winemaking precision—it underscores the strength of regional identity and long-term market vision. For Peter Lehmann Wines, the future lies in connecting site-specific wines like Wigan with consumers who seek authenticity, quality, and character. With sustainability practices now fully certified, a growing global footprint, and renewed attention from both trade and media, Schutz and the team are focused on expanding reach while remaining grounded in what made the wine a standout in the first place: a clear expression of Eden Valley and a commitment to excellence from vineyard to shelf.

In conversation with Malvika Patel, Editor and VP, Beverage Trade Network 

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