Our Wedding Blog

Keswick 8/4/16 Keswick 8/4/16

My Friend's Wedding | Susan & Steve

Keswick Vineyards hosted the marriage of Susan & Steve on Thursday, August 4th. This wedding was extra special for Al & I. We have been friends with Steve for many, many years sharing some wonderful memories together. Through those years we were able to see Steve enjoy his bachelor lifestyle. I guess we never thought Steve would ever get married again until he brought Susan over to meet us some 2 years ago. Right away both Al & I saw something different with Susan. Could she be the one? You could instantly see a connection with these two. Our gut was telling us that Susan was the one. And we were right!

During the past two years of us getting to know Susan we always had an on going conversation of Al’s fountain duty he has for all our weddings. It was always a topic of conversation because they usually came for a visit on Saturday’s and Al would always say how he had to get back to do fountain duty. With the “fountain” being such a focal point for all of us it was a natural choice for the location Steve would propose to Susan last year. With me hiding to capture the moment on film, Steve dropt to his knee to ask for her hand in marriage. When she said yes, Al triggered the fountain to go on and they finally got to experience what they had heard for a year themselves.

Al & I were flattered when they told us that they wanted to get married at Keswick Vineyards. Of course, they would choose the fountain as their location for their ceremony. Susan knew they wanted a really relaxed and casual style to their wedding day to match their personalities. She envisioned guests seated out in the lawn area for the cocktail/reception time versus under our Sperry tent. Steve envisioned a bourbon & cigar bar and they both agreed that having a food truck was the perfect choice to pull off their casual/partying theme. I was a little concerned about doing the entire wedding outside of the tent in August since it is normally hot and people would want to be under a tent for shade and fans but I kept an open mind. Who would have known that they had chosen the most perfect day you could have possibly had? Perhaps burying the bourbon bottle a month earlier had something to do with it?

Their day started with the guys relaxing in the “man’s cave” playing pool while the girls got their hair and make-up done at Moxie Hair Salon. The ceremony was to be intimate with only the immediate family attending. Susan was walked down the aisle by her two sons while her daughter was a junior bridesmaid. Steve had his son and father as his best men. Look closely at the photos and you will see our winemaker, Stephen, as their officiant. As Stephen made reference to remembering Steve’s Mother who died earlier this year from a courageous battle against cancer, a butterfly swooped down as to make her presence known. When Stephen announced that Steve could now kiss his wife, Al with his exact timing had the fountain come on.

After the ceremony the rest of the guests arrived. They enjoyed drinks & appetizers while mingling and headed over to the Bavarian Chef food truck to get more delicious food when needed. After a couple of hours everyone went under the tent for speeches and dancing! Finally, the moment most of the guests were waiting for happened. The bourbon & cigar bars opened! I’ve never seen so many happy faces. It was like children in a candy store. Ron Barker provided the cigars and was on hand to help the guests pick the perfect cigar for them. As you can see by my photo everyone really enjoyed hanging outside the tent enjoying themselves all night long.

Special thanks to everyone who helped Susan & Steve have the wedding of their dreams: Catering by Bavarian Chef Food Truck, Event Planner Cindy Schornberg, Photographer Cindy Schornberg, Officiant Stephen Barnard, Florist Verde Natural Florals, Cupcakes by Pearl’s Cupcake Shoppe, Cigars by Ron Barker with CigarVolante, DJ Kevin Graham, Buses by UVA Transit, Hair & Make-up by Moxie Hair Salon, Rentals from MS Events, and of course, fountain duty by Al Schornberg!

Keswick 7/30/16 Keswick 7/30/16

The Perfect Plan | Shannon & Nathan

We were lucky to end our stretch of July vineyard weddings with Shannon and Nathan on Saturday, the 30th. They chose Keswick Vineyards to be their wedding venue for its incredible views and they were so excited for their friends and families to see and fall in love with them just as they had.

The day was gorgeous! We had the perfect amount of sunlight and clouds to make for beautiful photo backdrops for Shannon and Nathan. While the girls were being pampered with hair and makeup in the bridal suite and the guys relaxing with good music and games of pool in the man’s cave, Keswick Vineyards team looked across the mountain to see a baby storm approaching. Our first thoughts? Check radar! When we did, we realized that it would be a short summer storm that would blow over quickly and drop the summer temperatures to a more comfortable degree. Great!

With quick thinking and swift planning on Keswick’s end we decided to switch things up for their wedding. Not knowing when the storm would come and go, and knowing we were approaching ceremony time, we decided to start things off in reverse order. We welcomed guests into cocktail hour first and kept them happy with music, great Keswick Vineyards virginia wine, and (of course) food!

The couple had HotCakes as their wedding caterer who had quite the spread for guests to enjoy. They loved the variety they were offered and it served as a great “distraction” while we waited for this summer storm to pass. Sure enough, it did just in the nick of time! Cocktail hour was wrapping up, catering and Keswick Vineyards quickly set up for ceremony out front of the main estate looking towards the fountain, vineyard, and mountains. We had an outdoor ceremony!

Shannon and Nathan were absolutely thrilled and even commented on how them and their guests loved being able to mingle and chat with drinks and appetizers before the ceremony. “Everyone was so happy,” said Nathan.

Ceremony completed and guests then gathered underneath of our beautiful, sailcloth Sperry Tent for reception where they enjoyed a delicious and intimate dinner followed by dancing the night away with DJ Frank Smith.

Thank you to our incredible vendors for making this day run so smoothly! Catering and Desserts, HotCakes. Photography, Moonrise Photography. Hair and Makeup, The Spot Beauty Shop. Flowers, Mother of the Bride. DJ, Frank Smith with Prime Time Sound. Officiant, Fred Adkins. Rentals, MS Events.

Keswick 7/24/16 Keswick 7/24/16

Helen and Ali's Wedding Day! | Helen & Ali

Congratulations to Helen and Ali who had their vineyard wedding here at Keswick Vineyards on Sunday, July 24th. The couple came a long way away (all the way from cold, cold Boston) to celebrate with their family and friends here on a hot, hot July afternoon!

Despite the rising temperatures, guests stayed cool underneath of the shade of Keswick's many trees. Before ceremony they enjoyed the scenic sweeping mountain and vineyard views in front of the historic estate and mingled until it was time for the ceremony to start. Helen was the bell of the ball! The dress she wore took everyone by surprise. A long sleeve dress in July? Yes! The dress held a great deal of sentiment to her and her family. It was designed and handmade by her great, great grandmother over 100 years ago. It fit her like a glove and was a great tribute to honor past generations of her family and the traditions she'd bring into her new life with Ali.

Helen and Ali snuck away for photos after their ceremony as their guests were sent to cocktail hour to listen to the music of a blue grass ensemble. They were quite the hit! After the magic hour of photo taking, the couple joined their guests underneath of Keswick Vineyard's Sperry tent, which kept them significantly cooler with the breeze from our eight fans!

DJ Ricky kept the party alive throughout the evening once guests filled their bellies with Charlottesville's local wedding cater, C&O's delicious eats. A quick outfit change by Helen and a few streamers and cans tied to the back of their "Just Married" getaway car, and this couple was ready for their much anticipated sparkler send off! Away in the night they went as they continued to celebrate their life as the new Mr. and Mrs. wrapping up their memorable evening at one of Charlottesville's most picturesque vineyard wedding venues!

Thank you to the following vendors for making this day so great! Catering and Event Planner, C&O Catering. Photography, Justin Kunimoto Photography. Rentals, MS Events. Lighting, Skyline Tent Company. DJ, DJ Ricky. Ceremony & Cocktail Hour Music, Bellevue Rhythmaires. Hair and Makeup, Judy Hayward. Bouquets, Colonial Florist. Floral arrangements, Elena Day. Trees, J.W. Townsend Landscapes. Officiant, Tracy Wispelwey.

Keswick 7/16/16 Keswick 7/16/16

A White Wedding | Katie & Carter

Who doesn’t love a good White Wedding?! Katie and Carter, the new Mr. and Mrs. White were married here at Keswick Vineyards on July 16th. They shared the perfect Saturday with friends and family as they celebrated their love story with us right here in Charlottesville, VA.

It had been a long time coming. Katie and Carter had been together for so long that when asked it simply seemed like forever. Tying the knot for them was a no brainer. In fact, tying the knot was such a no brainer that they incorporated the knot’s symbolism into their ceremony. There were three individual ropes, all of which were braided together to make for an even stronger strand. Together they can do anything and their bond will not break.

After their ceremony, the couple and their wedding party snuck away for some unforgettable picture perfect photos. We caught one of the groomsmen sporting their matching Virginia Tech socks! The fun continued with dinner and dancing and one of our favorite ways to utilize our gazebo…a photo booth! It always is a crowd favorite.

But what’s a White wedding without the views? Katie and Carter were blessed with a bit of rain once guests were well under the tent enjoying their dinner and after it passed it led to an absolutely incredible (and colorful) Charlottesville sunset. They really lucked out!

Congratulations to them as they continue on with their forever!

Thank you to our vendors! Wedding planner, Megan Morgan. Caterer, Hank’s Smokehouse. Photography, Dominique Attaway Photography. Florist, Rask Florist. Photo Booth, Star City Photo Booth. Transportation, UT’s and Camryn Limousine. DJ, Kendall New. Hair, Ulta Beauty Salon.Officiant, John McGowan.