On Saturday morning, I drove down to Santa Ynez to see 4 vineyards in the area. We had such a fantastic time and I found 2 places that I LOVED! Unfortunately Jacob had rehearsal for a concert (it was Open House weekend) so I met Mom, Dad and Lisa at 10 at the first vineyard- Larner Vineyards.
1. Larner Vineyards
Larner is a family owned and operated vineyard located just off Ballard Canyon Road in the Solvang/Buellton area. It's strictly a vineyard, not a winery- they only sell the grapes, and don't produce wine. That was handy for a few reasons- you can have whatever wine you want at dinner (usually the wineries restrict you to their wines, because of their alcohol licenses); they only have a few weddings a year (4-5!), and the prices are really reasonable! I fell in LOVE with this vineyard- it's totally unspoiled, no traffic, completely private, and is gorgeous gorgeous GORGEOUS!! It's a completely unique venue, and I know our guests wouldn't forget it or the experience. You have a choice of 4 different places to have the ceremony and reception, and even comes with 2 awesome dogs!! :)
Ballard General Store-- a replica.
Inside the Barn, where the Band/DJ and dance floor would be set up
Ceremony site option #1- the grass would be mowed, etc. We would get married under the Oak tree, and would be able to line the site with candles and lanterns... I can see it now!!
Another view of option #1
Ceremony/Reception option #2
Isn't it BEAUTIFUL!! The pictures don't do it justice... The grape vines would be fully grown, and would be just beautiful! You are literally surrounded by hills and green and grape vines.
I snagged some photos off Larner's website so you can see the beauty and color:
We had a great time at Larner and thoroughly enjoyed our visit!! It's definitely at the top of the list!! We did have a few concerns: we'd have to bring in extra bathrooms, use a tent/carpeting for the reception (I don't think our guests would want rocks and burrs in their shoes and pants!!), and I spotted some red ants... I have a phobia of red ants, since I got bitten by one when I was 10 and ended up with a year-long infection! Not fun!! But the carpeting would solve that. It is pretty rustic (in Jacob's terms!) but I think it could be easily decorated and turned into a classy, elegant, beautiful site!
2. Gainey Vineyards
We then went over to Gainey Vineyards, located in Solvang. It's a beautiful, slightly more commercialized winery and vineyards (and apparently suppliers of hay- my grandpa used to buy feed for the horses from them! Ha!) It's gorgeous, but it kinda reminded me of La Cumbre Country Club.
The Reception Area
Another view of the reception area- the tasting room (also available for cocktail hour) is through the double doors.
The Ceremony Area
Another view of the ceremony area.We all liked it, although I was a little bummed out about the reception location- boring! I would love to have the reception in the ceremony location, but apparently that's not possible. It was the most expensive also... so it's on the maybe list.
3. Lincourt Vineyards and Winery
Lincourt... what to say about Lincourt? I have no idea how the events people who own Lincourt thought that they could fit 200-225 people at their winery!! What the heck! We got there about 15 minutes before our meeting and wandered around, wondering if we were just totally missing the big events space at the winery... no such luck!
3. Lincourt Vineyards and Winery
Lincourt... what to say about Lincourt? I have no idea how the events people who own Lincourt thought that they could fit 200-225 people at their winery!! What the heck! We got there about 15 minutes before our meeting and wandered around, wondering if we were just totally missing the big events space at the winery... no such luck!
The cocktail hour space
Looking out over the fields
Big cons at this place- limited parking, the reception would be held in the parking lot (ohh, we couldn't find it because we were parked in it!!), the ceremony space was a hill with a 45 degree angle, pointing downwards, and the traffic noise was horrible. Also, because it was a winery, you could only use their wines, and no hard alcohol! While pretty, it seemed like the powers that be at Lincourt just wanted to make some extra cash by pretending that you could have a wedding there... I can see it if your wedding was about 20 people, but not 200!
4. Foley Vineyards and Winery
We then drove over to Foley Vineyards and Winery, a gorgeous space located about 10 minutes outside of Buellton. Foley is definitely at the top of my list now! Rolling hills, a huge ceremony and reception site, green grass (no gravel in heels at Foley!), lots of parking and bathrooms, and the price is very reasonable.
The Ceremony/Reception site
Looking out over the vineyards
The gorgeous Santa Ynez rolling hills!
Another view of the reception and ceremony area
The middle building is the tasting room- and you can see it set up for an event
Inside the tasting room- also open for cocktail hour
Inside the barrel room- open for cocktail hour, music, cake
We really loved Foley as well- a little less character, but beautiful nonetheless! The only issues are that it's a full 10 minute drive outside the city, no hard alcohol, and the noise from Hwy 246 is noticeable. But, it's still on the top of the list!
So, all in all we had a great time looking at Santa Ynez sites. Mom still wants the wedding to be in Santa Barbara (because we both grew up there), but we still haven't found a place that we're in love with! But we're visiting the Zoo and the Historical Museum on Saturday, so we'll see how that goes.
I've also found a few photographers that I'm in LOVE with- Josh Newton and Andrew Van Gundy. We have scheduled a meeting with Andrew Van Gundy on Saturday, so I'll let you know how that goes!
In other news, the paper for our Save The Dates from The White Aisle arrived on Saturday- yay! Woo for sales- I was able to get everything we need for super cheap! I also have a surprise I'm working on, but that will remain a secret for a few more weeks :)
4. Foley Vineyards and Winery
We then drove over to Foley Vineyards and Winery, a gorgeous space located about 10 minutes outside of Buellton. Foley is definitely at the top of my list now! Rolling hills, a huge ceremony and reception site, green grass (no gravel in heels at Foley!), lots of parking and bathrooms, and the price is very reasonable.
A view of the entrance
The Ceremony/Reception site
Looking out over the vineyards
The gorgeous Santa Ynez rolling hills!
Another view of the reception and ceremony area
The middle building is the tasting room- and you can see it set up for an event
Inside the tasting room- also open for cocktail hour
Inside the barrel room- open for cocktail hour, music, cake
We really loved Foley as well- a little less character, but beautiful nonetheless! The only issues are that it's a full 10 minute drive outside the city, no hard alcohol, and the noise from Hwy 246 is noticeable. But, it's still on the top of the list!So, all in all we had a great time looking at Santa Ynez sites. Mom still wants the wedding to be in Santa Barbara (because we both grew up there), but we still haven't found a place that we're in love with! But we're visiting the Zoo and the Historical Museum on Saturday, so we'll see how that goes.
I've also found a few photographers that I'm in LOVE with- Josh Newton and Andrew Van Gundy. We have scheduled a meeting with Andrew Van Gundy on Saturday, so I'll let you know how that goes!
In other news, the paper for our Save The Dates from The White Aisle arrived on Saturday- yay! Woo for sales- I was able to get everything we need for super cheap! I also have a surprise I'm working on, but that will remain a secret for a few more weeks :)
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