I've just opened the three 2005 Noon reds - and just like that, half the audience has turned off already. That is what the Noon wines do, they polarise - I'm a fan, so this is a time of the year that I always look forward to. These are wines of the utmost integrity, made gently, in an unabashed style. They are what all wine should be; the ultimate expression of themselves. Now to the 2005 editions ... how are they looking?

The wine that is almost always my favourite is the Eclipse - always predominently McLaren Vale grenache, off the Noon's home vineyard, with a proportion of shiraz blended in. The 2005 Noon Eclipse is, as almost always, warm to hot on the palate, but boy is it gorgeous too: it tastes of wheat and brandy-soaked plums, cream and cedar, port-filled chocolates and the headiest of blackberries and raspberries. It is a style, it is itself, and this vintage is a high quality example of it. If I was on the mailing list I'd be buying this and drinking it in the first 18 months, even though it will cellar, easily, for a dozen years - I just love em young. 93 points. Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front