Lincourt Winery’s old windmill creaks through a lonely existence in February, spinning sporadically above the brown, spindly winter vines that line up below it. In a couple of months, the vineyard’s front acreage of sauvignon blanc vines will green up, playing off the yellow of the cottage-like tasting room that sits on the hill overlooking its acreage, and it will be ready for the “hot dates” that bring destination weddings to Santa Barbara wine country.
In May through October of any given year, brides and grooms from Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Texas, and beyond travel to the northern edge of Southern California for that long walk down the aisle with a vineyard backdrop.
Between Foley Family Wine group’s three vineyards/wineries in the Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Rita Hills—Lincourt, Foley, and Firestone—Rachel Korrey, the special events manager, helps plan around 60 weddings a year. Most of those happen during the “hot” period when the vines are green, have fruit, or are changing color.
“What I love about this property,” Korrey said about Lincourt, “is you’ll see people wandering everywhere. There’s nowhere you can’t be.”
The hillside behind the tasting room switchbacks into oak trees and the lawn is lined with white rose bushes. The covered, white veranda overlooks the property’s grapevines and next to it is a concrete dance floor that leads to a big red barn with a small indoor space.
There are, of course, several wineries in Santa Barbara County wine country at which to tie the knot, but each one is unique and choosing a vineyard venue depends on what the couple is looking for.
As far as the Foley Family Wine group’s local trio of wineries go, if you want to have a farm-like feel at a boutique winery in an outdoor setting, Lincourt’s the way to go, Korrey said. If you want to have an indoor/outdoor wedding at an active winery with an estate-like feel, Firestone’s the ticket. Korrey’s personal favorite is Foley Vineyard and Estates in the Santa Rita Hills.
“It’s got one of my favorite views,” she said, adding that it’s plunked down in the middle of vineyard country with 365 degree-views of grape vines.
Prices also vary, with Firestone and Lincourt starting at around $6,000 and Foley starting at around $3,000. Korrey said one of the pluses of booking with a Foley Family winery is the portfolio of wines the bride and groom have to pick from—any one of the 16 wineries in the Foley portfolio, which also includes wines from Paso Robles, Oregon, and Sonoma.
Most wineries, or wine groups, have a set list of caterers and wedding planners they work with. Korrey said she gives that list to couples after they’ve signed on for a wedding. The bride and groom select off those lists and move forward with one of the vendors.
Rani Hoover, Inspired Weddings and Events, is one of the planners on Foley’s preferred vendor’s list. This upcoming season will be Hoover’s ninth as an event planner, and she works with at least 15 wineries in the Santa Ynez Valley, as well as a host of private estates, vacation rental properties, and ranches. She plans a little more than 20 weddings each season, and the wineries she works with range from $3,500 on the low end to $25,000 on the high end for event rental.
But before a future bride and groom choose the setting where they will exchange rings, Hoover said, first and foremost, the most important thing is to find the right planner.
“Reach out to and find the planner that you click well with, that you like. … And let them help you through the process,” she said. “It can make the whole process fun, versus tedious.”
When she sits down with a couple, she figures out what they’re looking for: design, style, experience, budget, dates, and a guest count, among other things. Then, she can come up with a place. If they want the feel of Tuscany, Italy, the Sunstone Villa at Sunstone Winery is the place to book. If the couple wants to be tucked into a small winery, then Lincourt is perfect. If they want to get married underneath an iconic old oak tree, Firestone’s got it.
And what makes a wedding special, according to Korrey with Foley, are the personal touches, the things a couple brings to a wedding to make it unique to them.
Both Korrey and Hoover mentioned the same wedding at Lincourt as one of their favorites from last year. It was the joining of Edgar and Eric, who had been together for 17 years and were finally, legally, able to get married. Hoover said there were 150 guests from California and Colorado in attendance: Two families that were already joined, that had known each other and celebrated big events and holidays together for 17 years.
“It was sweet,” Korrey said.
“It was just so incredibly beautiful being able to celebrate the two being able to marry,” Hoover said. “It was just really nice.”
Contact Managing Editor Camillia Lanham at clanham@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Feb 12-19, 2015.