Independent Wine Guide · 2026
Between two waters and the vines.
An independent voice for a region we love.
What we do
We don't sell wine. We tell its story.
We're not a retailer and we don't sell wine. We're an editorial guide — researching, visiting and writing about the producers of the Geelong wine region, so you can explore with confidence.
The Bellarine — Geelong's coastal arm
Maritime light, cool winds, vines by the water.
The Geelong wine region is one region in two parts: the Bellarine Peninsula is its maritime arm, reaching out between two bodies of water — Port Phillip Bay to the east and north (including its inlet, Corio Bay) and the open ocean of Bass Strait to the south. A thin strip of farmland, vineyard and coast where the sea moderates everything, the result is a genuinely cool, slow-ripening climate: bright acidity, elegant structure, and Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that taste of salt air and limestone.
This is wine country you can see from the water — cellar doors sit a short drive from the bay shore, and the light here has a quality photographers cross the country for.
Greater Geelong — the inland arm
Inland, the basalt hills and the gums.
Step inland from the coast and you're still in the Geelong wine region — but the country changes: ancient volcanic basalt soils, groves of eucalyptus and stringybark, and the deep, sheltered valleys of the Moorabool and the Barrabool Hills. Where the Bellarine is maritime, this is continental: the structured, age-worthy side of the same region — Shiraz with spice, Pinot with backbone.
Together, the Bellarine coast and the Greater Geelong bushland make one region defined by contrast: sea and stone, openness and shelter, bright and brooding.
The best of the best · 2026
Standout producers for 2026.
The region's top honours — 5-star Halliday ratings, Premier's Trophies and Best-in-Show awards. Not paid placement.
Provenance Wines
Oakdene
Scotchmans Hill
Austins & 6Ft6
Lethbridge Wines
Clyde Park Vineyard
Yes said the Seal
Spence Wines
Bannockburn Vineyards
Producer radar
Producers worth knowing.
Twenty-three producers across the Geelong region — maritime Bellarine to inland hills. Tap any to visit their site.
The wider shortlist — twenty-two wineries and one cider house, all with working cellar doors or public venues and official sites, grouped by sub-region. Tap any card to visit.
Bellarine Peninsula — maritime, elegant Pinot & Chardonnay
Bellarine Estate
Jack Rabbit Vineyard
Kilgour Wines
Leura Park Estate
McGlashans Wallington Estate
Oakdene
Oneday Estate
Scotchmans Hill
Terindah Estate
The Minya Vineyard
Yes said the Seal
Banks Road Vineyard
Flying Brick Cider Co
Mermerus Vineyard
Surf Coast — cool, wild, the only vineyard on the Great Ocean Road
Moorabool Valley & surrounds — inland, structured, age-worthy
Austins Wines
Clyde Park Vineyard & Bistro
del Rios Winery & Restaurant
Lethbridge Wines
Spence Wines
Barrabool Hills — boutique, views, award-winning value
Greater Geelong — river country, the city's near-vineyards
A shortlist of twenty-three — the region is home to around fifty producers. Our curated deals shortlist launches soon. Get notified →
Our approach
Discover, champion, connect.
Three things guide everything we do across the Geelong and Bellarine wine region.
We discover
From landmark estates to tiny garage wineries, we map the producers shaping the region's reputation for cool-climate Pinot, Chardonnay and Shiraz.
We champion
We spotlight the wines and cellar doors worth your time — chosen on quality and character, never on who pays the most. Our shortlist launches soon.
We connect
When we feature a producer, we point you to them directly — their cellar door, their story. It's referral done honestly, straight to the source.
Free when we launch
The Geelong & Bellarine Buyer's Guide.
Be first to receive our region guide, producer profiles and the curated shortlist when it launches. No spam — just considered wine writing from a region we know well.
How we work — plainly.
The Geelong Wine Man is an independent editorial and referral guide. We do not sell alcohol and we do not hold a liquor licence. Where we feature a producer, we may use referral or affiliate links that point you to that producer directly — at no extra cost to you, and never with a middleman mark-up on the wine.
Our editorial choices are made on quality and character. A producer featuring on this site is not a paid placement, and referral relationships do not determine which wines we recommend.
Editorial disclaimer. Reviews, rankings and recommendations on this site reflect the subjective opinion of The Geelong Wine Man at the time of writing, based on our own visits, tastings and research. They are the opinions of the site owner alone, are provided for general information only, and may change without notice as producers, vintages and circumstances evolve. Inclusion of a producer is not a paid endorsement or a guarantee of quality, availability, pricing or experience.
Get in touch
Are you a Geelong or Bellarine producer?
If you make wine in our region and would like to be considered for our producer directory or referral program — or you simply have a question — we'd love to hear from you.
Prefer email? All enquiries reach us securely through this form — no address to copy, no spam lists. 18+ only.