Portarlington Mussel Tours: Great Wine, Food & Sunsets

I was kindly invited by the wonderful team at Portarlington Mussel Tours out for a Sunset Soirée Mussel Tour in the beautiful Port Philip Bay. I had such a wonderful time, I just wanted to share this experience with you.
If you’re not aware, Portarlington is in the beautiful Bellarine Peninsula Wine Region. It is a 30-minute drive from Geelong, or just over an hour on the ferry from Melbourne City.
Portarlington is known as the mussel capital of Victoria and 60% of Australia’s mussels are harvested from this area!
If you’re looking for a small (12 people max), luxury tour which involves good wine and food + a whole new experience, then you need to sign up for one of these asap!
The key details
Here’s a quick overview on what you need to know:
The Tours:
The Sunset Soirée tours are running for a limited time, until approximately the end of April. They run from 5:30-8:30 pm and the price is $250 per person.
Alongside the above, they have their Classic Mussel Tour which leaves around midday and is 3 hours as well. The cost per person is $250.
The tours leave from Portarlington Pier.
The people
Lance and Lizzie Wiffen are the husband and wife team behind Portarlington Mussel Tours. They have a 30-year history of sustainably harvesting mussels in the area.
In 2021, they refurbished a 40-year-old mussel trawler which they picked up in Tassie. And Valerie is an absolute beaut! Super comfortable for a 3-hour cruise with indoor and outdoor setting + a decent bathroom. It was then in 2023 the tours officially launched.
Alongside Lance the captain and Lizzie the expert mussel chef, there is Connie their wonderful deckhand and marketer who was a fabulous host.
It was fantastic to meet all three of them and they really made it a wonderful trip.
The food
We were definitely treated to a delicious spread of food! To begin with, there was an array of delicious platters to nibble on with yummy local produce, including fish dips from the Bellarine Smokehouse.
This was followed up by some local Portarlington oysters! These are their own native local oysters and by goodness they were delicious. Gorgeous minerality. I loved them a la natural but they were also pretty delicious with the Piknik chilli jam on.
The mussels
And then it was mussel time! It was so interesting to see a line of mussels pulled up from the water and the absolute hive of activity on these lines.
After learning all about them and how they are farmed we were treated to some freshly shucked raw mussels – something I have never had before. And I loved them, very delicious and after learning about all the health benefits (mussels are super high in vitamin B12 and omega-3 fatty acids), I felt pretty good about eating so many on the tour!
The lovely Lizzie then took us through a few cooking demos in the cabin. I really loved how they had cameras in the kitchen and a big flat-screen TV, so you can enjoy the cooking demo from anywhere in the cabin and get a great birds eye view of the cooking.
First up was Mussels Kilpatrick – which is another new one for me. I have had Oysters Kilpatrick a number of times but not mussels. And oh la la, I could have quite easily eaten a dozen or two. Bloody delicious!
Our second cooking demo and plateful of mussels were Cider Chilli Mussels. The cider was from our local Flying Brick Cider and my oh my the aromatics on this dish were to die for. They were served up with a slice of Alchemy Sourdough.
And to finish off, fresh raspberries and Bellarine Brownie Co’s Cashew Butter and Sea Salt Brownie.
It was a delicious local culinary journey – that is for sure!
The wine
Alongside the food and amazing cruise, you’ll also enjoy sipping your way through some amazing local wines and beers. Alongside non-alcoholic choices of course.
Here is what we sipped on during our sunset mussel tour:
- Leura Park Grand Vintage 2023 Sparkling Blanc de Blanc
- Baie 2023 Rose
- Terindah Estate 2023 Pinot Gris
- One Day Estate 2021 Riesling
Naturally I tried them all, and they all went down a treat. For me it was the bubbles and the rose which went exceptionally well with both the oysters and mussels.
In fact trying the wines alongside the mussels got my palate really excited and I am now planning on working on a mussels and wine pairing post – so stay tuned!
To wrap it up
I had an absolutely brilliant time out with the lovely folks from Portarlington Mussel Tours – a big thank you again for such a brilliant experience.
If you’re thinking about jumping onboard one of the Portarlington Mussel Tours – do it! It is a fabulous idea for a romantic date, for a catch-up with a friend or even doing it with a parent or sibling.
Thanks for the comment Ama. I absolutely loved this experience, it truly is an amazing asset to the Portarlington area.
You definitely need to add it to your Bellarine bucket list for the next trip, you won’t regret it I promise!
Hi there!
What a great read—thanks for sharing your experience with the Portarlington Mussel Tours! We’re big fans of this hidden gem too. There’s nothing quite like enjoying fresh mussels straight from the source, especially when paired with a crisp local wine.
We love how you captured the essence of Portarlington’s charm. The combination of the scenic views, delicious seafood, and the friendly, laid-back atmosphere really makes it a must-visit. Your post has us all eager to plan our next trip down to the Bellarine Peninsula!
Cheers for the great tips and the enjoyable read. We’ll definitely be recommending this to our guests who want to add a little something extra to their wine tours. Keep up the great work!
Warm regards,
The Happy Sips Wine Tours Team