World Class Portarlington Mussel Tours
We enjoyed a perfect day with Portarlington Mussel Tours for a memorable world class luxe mussel tour experience. For us this was one of the highlights of the year.
The Portarlinton Mussel Tour on the beautiful boat "Valerie" is possibly the best activity an overseas tourist could experience, let alone Bellarine and Melbourne locals. I can imagine foodies all over the world would love this unique and exceptional tour.
We (David and Hugh) were invited to enjoy a 3 hour premium tour in Port Phillip Bay taking in the luxury of the beautiful Valerie (named after Lance Wiffen's mother) tour boat while savouring top notch mussels and Angasi oysters, as well as delicious scallops (we were the first public tour to do so). Not only that but we were satiated with local produce platters and premium local wines.
Unlike some other tours the wines were decent (no quaffers), including @leuraparkestate @oakdenewines and @curlewiswinery.
Lance Wiffen gave us an incredible insight into the Bay, the beautiful huon pine boat and the process of mussel farming. I first heard of Lance during a visit to Attica where Ben Shewry celebrated him and his produce on the degustation menu. It was a thrill to meet Lance, already a Victorian and Australian culinary icon.
There were so many outstanding aspects to this tour. We pulled up a mussel line, got to collect and eat fresh mussels, as well as watched two excellent cooking demos. Plus we ate cooked mussels done 2 ways (I need to get the recipes). Mussels Kilpatrick was a highlight, as were the mussels cooked in a cider broth.
The fresh shucking of oysters was a feature. Each morsel of seafood was of the highest quality. The scallops have been historically sought after by the French, who recognized them as being world class, if not the best.
Connie was amazing as a host along with Jackie. Together with Lance, they are an exceptional team. This is an intimate tour of 12 people and it was great to connect with the other people on the boat.
Congratulations also to Portarlington Mussel Tours for recently winning Best Seafood Experience at the Victorian Seafood Awards. A worthy winner indeed.
It's a comfortable, affordable and easy trip across on @portphilipferries. Another alternative is to drive with parking in a large car park at the Pier. Thank you Lance, Connie and Jackie. Grateful for the invite and experience!