Mulline Vintners was founded in 2019 in Geelong by winemaker Ben Mullen and Ben Hine, and has since been named Halliday's Best Value Winery of the Year. This bottling comes from a single vineyard sitting right on the water at Portarlington, on the Bellarine Peninsula, where a strong maritime influence moderates the growing season. The block was planted to the MV6 clone in the late 1990s on sandy loam over darker clay and limestone. Farming is meticulous and hands-on, with fruit hand-picked in small parcels. The cool, breezy coastal site delivers the natural acidity and even, unhurried ripening that shapes the fragrant, energetic style Mullen seeks from this maritime corner of Geelong.

Fruit was hand-picked and fermented in separate parcels with roughly 30% whole bunches included. Wild-yeast fermentations proceeded in open vats with twice-daily punch-downs and around eight to ten days on skins, before the wine was pressed to barrel for a natural malolactic fermentation. Elevage was in French oak, of which about 25% was new, with the balance in seasoned puncheons and barriques to keep oak in a supporting role. The aim is transparency and drive rather than extraction: the result is bright crimson-purple, compact and concentrated yet light on its feet, with tannins in careful harmony with the fruit. Halliday rated it 97+ points.