When you know, you just know...

Douglas and I visited venue #4- Silvan Ridge Winery on February 5th.  We were driving back from visiting Chateau Lorane (#3) and decided to stop by and check out the winery during their open tasting room hours.  When we pulled up into the parking lot, the first thing out of my mouth was, "Well, THIS is more like it!"  Douglas didn't say much of anything except, "Wow".

The views

More views

The outside of the winery

We were greeted at the door by the cat!

When we walked inside the building, I immediately felt very comfortable.  One of the bartenders named Cathy welcomed us to the winery, poured us a tasting of the Pinot Gris, and told us to look around.  The tasting room area was cozy and the exposed wood made it a very welcoming environment.

The tasting room

Also in the tasting room.  The venue fee doesn't include the cat. ;)

To the right was the fireside room that held two long banquet tables and a fireplace.  A very sweet old couple was sitting by the fire, holding hands, and sipping wine.  I could immediately envision Douglas and I sitting there, well into our golden years, in their very spots.

Fireside room

Comfy and cozy

To the left of the tasting room was the banquet room.  The room was filled with old charm with the exposed brick and wood, old European tapestries and art on the walls, with a classy touch of white chairs and tables.  Off of the banquet room was a patio facing westward that was drenched in light from the setting sun.

Doors leading into the reception room

The ceiling is navy blue, cream walls, with reddish trim

Sunshine coming in from the adjoining patio

The doors connecting the patio to the reception room

Exposed brick and wood details.  Cool lighting too!

Douglas really liked the European feel of the candle sconces!

So happy! :)

I'm not going to lie, I teared up.

We stayed chatting with Cathy and Marisa {the other wine-tender} until their tasting room hours were over; Douglas and I just didn't want to leave!  Cathy said to us confidently, "Oh don't worry, you two will be back!"  On the drive home we couldn't stop talking about how much we loved the place.  My vision of my wedding suddenly went from being generic and muddled to clear.  I could picture exactly where I would be walking down the aisle and where my groom would be.  I could picture what the photos will look like, and how the reception room would be decorated.  I could picture having my first dance with my husband, and the farewell at the end of the night.  Everything was falling into place.

We decided to sleep on it for awhile to see if how we were feeling was just a spur of the moment "nothing else came close" kind of feeling, or if we had truly found our wedding venue.  After a couple of days and faced with another weekend of wedding venue visiting {at some wineries in Yamhill county}, we decided that we are completely in love with Silvan Ridge and we didn't want to go anywhere else.  Not only is this winery the most beautiful that we've seen, but it is surprisingly the most affordable and the closest one to where we live.  What more could we really ask for?

So I got in contact with the event coordinator at Silvan Ridge and scheduled an appointment for Friday afternoon to meet with her.  We arrived at the winery on the chilly and rainy day, and I was so happy that I felt just as excited about it as I had the previous weekend.  With a kiss on the cheek, Douglas walked me into the winery and we took a more "official tour" of the facility and got all our questions answered.  Angela, the coordinator, said that if we wanted to we could draft up a contract and put down a deposit to secure a date, or that she would be happy to meet with us another day if we wanted some time to think about it.

I looked over to Douglas to ask what he wanted to do, but the huge smile on his face told it all.  So we put down our deposit and reserved our wedding date!  Saturday, September 7, 2013.

There is something to be said about shopping too little, or shopping too much.  I think when you know you want something, if you keep shopping around you get diminishing returns.  I know in my heart that there is no better place for us that really reflects us as a couple and makes the most logistic sense than Silvan Ridge.  I can't wait to share it with everyone. :)

Douglas and I returned to Silvan Ridge this past weekend for their Valentine's Day wine and cupcake tasting.  When we walked in the door, Cathy {our wine-tender from the previous week} saw us, put her arms in the air, and said, "You booked!"  After receiving congratulations from everyone in the tasting room, Cathy poured us a tasting of Pinot Noir {she remembered that it's our favorite!} and said, "Welcome home."

<3 J