Peter Lehmann was one of the Barossa's most beloved figures — a big, warm man who saved the valley's independent growers from financial ruin in the late 1970s by continuing to buy their fruit when the major merchants had stopped. His winery, established in 1979, became a champion of the old-vine growers and helped establish the Barossa's identity as a region defined by long-term relationships between growers and winemakers.
The cellar door at Stonewell Road, Tanunda, is one of the most welcoming in the valley — a broad verandah, good food, and a range of wines that start at very accessible prices. The Stonewell Shiraz is the flagship, made from dry-grown old vines, and is worth seeking out. Lehmann himself died in 2013 but the winery continues under family direction.