Frank teamed with his friend, Ben Glaetzer (who makes wines under the well regarded Glaetzer Wines label), with the implicit goal of creating the very best interpretation of McLaren Vale and Barossa Valley Shiraz. Together, they agreed on an approach that relies on using the very best fruit, non-interventionist wine making and super fine oak.

This collaboration resulted in Mitolo's first wine, 2000 GAM McLaren Vale Shiraz. This wine received 91 points in the Wine Spectator in its first year of release.

In 2001 the Mitolo portfolio was expanded to three McLaren Vale wines, Jester, GAM and Savitar and one Barossa Valley wine, Reiver. In 2002, Frank and Ben decided to push the boundaries by producing an amarone style Cabernet called Serpico.