At a glance
Each King's Birthday long weekend in June, the Mornington Peninsula's wineries open through the cold and turn the region into one connected three-day program. Cellar doors run masterclasses, long lunches, and fire-pit tastings, with a central festival at the Red Hill Showgrounds pouring from dozens of producers in one room. It is the Peninsula's other peak season — and the one cellar-door regulars wait for.
What it is
A three-day, region-wide event run by Mornington Peninsula Wine over the King's Birthday long weekend in June. Two strands run in parallel: the central Winter Wine Festival at the Red Hill Showgrounds (a single-room ticketed tasting featuring dozens of Peninsula producers, with a take-home Riedel glass), and an open-cellar-doors program across the wine country — Red Hill, Main Ridge, Merricks, Balnarring and surrounds — with each winery setting its own program of masterclasses, sparkling brunches, slow-cooked winter lunches, fireside tastings, truffle-led menus and private cellar selections.
The weekend has run during the King's Birthday window since the 1980s and is one of Mornington Peninsula Wine's central annual moments.
Who it's for
Serious wine visitors, weekend-escape couples, and return-trip locals who already have a few cellar doors they like and want a structured weekend around them. Pairs naturally with stays in Red Hill, Flinders, Sorrento or Mornington and with Peninsula Hot Springs to bookend the cold days. Not a beach-weather event; not aimed at first-time Peninsula visitors looking for a sampler. Designated drivers, private wine-tour drivers, and accommodation that lets you abandon the car are all standard for this weekend.
Where it sits in the Peninsula calendar
Anchors the Peninsula's winter. The cool-climate, fog-and-fire identity that the Peninsula wine industry leans into all year is at its most legible in June — vines pruned and bare, the Red Hill plateau and Main Ridge often sitting under low cloud, hatted restaurants leaning hard into truffle and slow-cooked programs. The weekend usually pairs with Peninsula Hot Springs sessions, cellar-door walks through Red Hill, and long lunches at Montalto or Ten Minutes by Tractor. It is genuinely the Peninsula's second peak season.
Getting there
Cellar doors are spread across the hinterland — Red Hill, Main Ridge, Merricks, Balnarring — so the weekend works best by car, with one driver agreed in advance, or by booking a private wine-tour driver for at least one of the days. The Red Hill Showgrounds, where the central Winter Wine Festival is held, is on Mechanics Road in Red Hill — about 90 minutes from Melbourne via the Mornington Peninsula Freeway and the back roads through Arthurs Seat. Stay in the wine country itself rather than driving out from the bay each day if you can — the days are short and the cellar doors close earlier in winter.
Visit the official site → Confirm current-year dates, tickets and program at the official source.