'Life is too short not to be drinking the wines of Drew & Rae Noon' - Robert Parker, The World's Greatest Wine Estates
One of the most enjoyable aspects of visiting Australian vineyards is the cellar door; the direct retail part of the commercial arm. The daily operation of this shop cum tasting room will provide insights into the winery, as well as the ability to buy the odd bargain. Not at Noon, I'm afraid. They are open three weekends a year, in November, and only on the first of those, if you're early enough, will you be able to buy wine. The other two weekends are for mailing list members to pick up their wines. By the way, there's a waiting list to get on the mailing list. This intense demand should give you an idea of how popular the wines are. Critical acclaim will give you an idea of how good they are. Drinking them will demonstrate how enjoyable they are.
2012 was an excellent vintage across the board for Noon. In fact it's the first vintage since 2007 when it has been possible to produce all three of the wines on the offer. After a curious winter which saw less rain than normal the season began early and the weather was warm and dry. However, nearly all of February was very cool, which slowed down crop ripening and allowed the fruit to develop much more interesting aromatics and retain freshness naturally. Further hang-time was gained after harvest had to be postponed for a fortnight because of rain. Drew Noon is delighted with the wines, he loves the freshness and purity. Their balance means they'll drink beautifully now but will age for a long time. Drew's patience with cork suppliers is finally exhausted and these and future Noon releases are under screwcap. /CW