by Phil Anderson
This is the second part of a three part series about our trip to Temecula wine country.

The big day had finally arrived.  All the girls spent the day doing make up and getting their hair and nails done.  The guys swung the sticks on the course.  I tried to find somewhere to lie out in the sun and soak up a few rays since this is something I love but can’t seem to find the time to do it.

As the hours ticked off and the time drew nearer and nearer to the ceremony starting, we got all dressed up and prepared ourselves for a limo ride from our hotel to Leonesse Cellars, where the wedding was to take place.  Having been to the rehearsal the day before I knew that it was going to be beautiful but not THIS beautiful!  They did a phenomenal job decorating, although, it’s not too hard with the vineyards as the backdrop for the ceremony.

The Rock Star couple after the ceremoney during pictures in the vineyards at Leonesse Cellars.

Everything went off without a hitch (and the happy couple WAS hitched!) and then we were shuttled from the ceremony location to where the reception was to be held, Leonesse’s barrel room.  Two barrel rooms in two nights!  There was a bit of a wait while they shuttled 150 people to the reception (it was a rather long walk…).  During this wait I met somebody whose career I found quite interesting.  Click HERE to read all about THAT story!

This barrel room was much larger than the one at Ponte Winery the night before.  It was fabulously decorated and had a wonderfully festive ambiance.  This might surprise you but, the moment we got settled at our table, I sashayed to the bar to find out what they were pouring.  I was VERY much looking forward to trying their wine!  (If you are a fan of Drinking Wine on Facebook you will know we have a wine neighbor that is always bringing wine over to our place.  She brought a bottle of Leonesse Port that we had with chocolate one night that was WONDERFUL!)

We started out with a  Leonesse Melange de Blanc which consisted of 44% Roussane, 41% Viognier and 15% Marsanne.  With all the celebrating activities going on it was difficult to really savor the experience of the wine but the Viognier really stood out as their were notes of peaches a hint of honey.

Dinner was uttlerly spectacular.  It was a buffet that featured (in my case, anyway, because I didn’t try the grilled chicken with brushetta) top sirloin with bacon, shallot and Gorgonzola compound butter.  I paired a  2007 Leonesse Melange de Reves with the sirloin and it was perfect!  It was a red blend of 54% Syrah, 25% Cinsaut, 16% Grenache and 5% Mourvedre and it was a bit smokey with flavors of peppory raspberries.

A bonus was a sparkling wine for the toast of the bride and groom.  This wine wasn’t produced by Leonesse but from Wilson Creek Winery and Vineyards, also in Temecula.  Wow!  It was an almond flavored sparkling wine that was absolutely delicious!  I didn’t expect the almond taste but it was certainly there.

After writing her own personal note of good luck on the Leonesse cork to her son and his new wife, Shelley places the cork into the cork catcher at the reception.

This night was, obviously, a very special occasion as Shelley’s second child was the first to be married off.  There was dancing, laughter and high spirits, great food and wonderful wine at a magnificent venue, Leonesse Cellars.  It was seamlessly orchestrated by Meghan and Katie of Intertwined Weddings and Special Events. I would typically not even mention them but the night was so flawless they deserve special mention.  People even wrote little notes of luck to the bride and groom on corks and pitched them (ok, more PUT them) in the cork catcher I had made for them as a wedding present.  We met new family and friends and sampled the best that Temecula has to offer.

The only downside was Shelley’s Nikon digital SLR turned up missing and I ended up making two trips back to the winery looking for it without success.

I would suggest a trip to Leonesse Cellars for sure to sample their extraordinary wines if you have the chance.  It is certainly a winery that takes great pride in producing high end juice!  Or better YET, if you’re planning an event and you’re near Temecula, why not consider Leonesse Cellars?  Laura Mitchell, the Weddings and Events Manager at Leonesse who handled this wedding would be more than happy to hear from you!

Thank you so much for reading and remember, bottoms up!