IWSC Global Judging: Steiermark
Luke Flunder joins the IWSC's panel of UK buyers and consultants to judge Austria's cool climate wines, and writes the feature for The Buyer.
Judging the IWSC's global campaign in Austria
In May 2025, Luke joined the IWSC's global judging panel in Steiermark, held in partnership with the Austrian Wine Marketing Board and this year's host, Wein Steiermark. The trip brought together a panel of UK buyers, consultants, sommeliers and writers to taste, score and report back on one of Europe's most exciting cool climate regions.
Over 400 wines, six wineries and a week of tastings later, the panel awarded 302 medals and singled out Steiermark's Sauvignon Blanc as the region's standout expression, a wine world away from the household names of Marlborough and the Loire, but every bit their equal.
A week on Steiermark's steepest slopes
Tasting, judging and writing it up for The Buyer
The panel was led by head judge Dirceu Vianna Junior MW, alongside buyers and consultants from Waitrose, The Wine Society, Annabel's, Vagabond Wines, Raffles London and more, with Luke representing Flunder Wines and Flunder Wine World.
Across the week the group tasted Sauvignon Blanc, Reserve-level Grüner Veltliner, unoaked reds, oak-aged expressions and sweet wines, visited six wineries on slopes as steep as 70%, and took in the region's DAC classification system and its 460-plus producers.
Luke then wrote up the trip as a full feature for The Buyer, covering the judging process, the region's Sauvignon Blanc opportunity, and the next generation of Steiermark winemakers now taking the reins from their parents.
“I arrived knowing little about the region. I left convinced it deserves far more attention.”Luke Flunder · The Buyer, July 2025
What the judging turned up
IWSC National Drinks Retail Awards
Alongside the Steiermark trip, Luke also sits on the judging panel for the IWSC's National Drinks Retail Awards, the industry benchmark for large-scale drinks retailing in the UK. Scored against a six-part framework covering range, commercial performance, in-store and online experience, trade engagement and sustainability, the 2026 results named Waitrose, M&S, Aldi, Tesco, Sainsbury's, The Wine Society and Laithwaites among the year's standout retailers.
Luke's own tasting notes made the final report: praising Waitrose for giving customers the chance to discover seasonal and promotional highlights “at nearly every turn,” and Aldi for its clear category signposting and customer-friendly layout in a Discounter Supermarket win built on “highly commercial styles at eye-catching prices.”
Read the 2026 results →Read The Full Feature
Luke Flunder is a judge for the IWSC, bringing tasting notes, trade insight and on-the-ground reporting from the world's wine regions to buyers and drinkers alike.