Our small group aboard the restored timber trawler Valerie isn’t going to let some charmless weather off the coast of Portarlington, on Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, spoil this momentous day.

For 18 years, the Valerie’s owners, local mussel farmers Lance and Lizzie Wiffen, have dreamt of hosting gourmet tours of their Sea Bounty farms. During that time Lance has taken customers, media and chefs out on his mussel workboats, and they encouraged him to run regular tours. “It’s something we’ve always wanted to do,” he says.