We spent the first four weeks of our time in Melbourne scouring the Mornington Peninsula and Yarra Valley wine regions (believe us when we say we left no stone unturned). Bi was chauffeur, venue critic and chief stresser while Ash was chief wine sampler and food critic! Both the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula regions are very beautiful with rolling vine-covered hills scattered with boutique wineries, excellent restaurants, boutique hotels, B&Bs and gourmet food shops. Trying to find the right venue was probably one of the most difficult decisions we have had to make regarding the wedding. We have been quite priviledged to see and do so many fantastic things together this year and so we had some pretty high standards!
We set our hearts on the beautiful Yarra Valley. It is on the doorstep of where Bi grew up and adds a nice touch of nostalgia to the whole occasion! It is also local to all our guests. We visited and revisited De Bortoli, Yering Station, Balgownie Estate, Fergussons Estate, Yarrawood, Helen's Hill, Stones of the Yarra Valley, Domaine Chandon, Badger's Brook, Roundstone, Rochfords Estate, Billanook Estate, Kellybrook Winery, Evelyn County Estate, Panton Hill, Tokar Estate, Tarrawarra Estate, Elmswood Estate and Inglewood Estate. It was on more than one occasion that Ash finished the day a bit tipsy from all the tastings!
After going round and round in circles we finally booked our reception at one of the first wineries we visited..... arrrgh.. after all that!! 
It is a small boutique winery called Evelyn County Estate on the edge of the Yarra Valley in a place called Kangaroo Ground. It is aptly named because there are so many wild kangaroos in the area. It is about a 15 minutes drive from Bi’s parents house and very local to all our guests. The restaurant serves local, organic, seasonal Yarra Valley produce and is in beautiful, rustic Australian bush setting with views out over the vineyards. Below the winery is a charming cottage called 
'The Retreat' set next to a spring fed dam complete with resident ducks, geese and plenty of kangaroos. We will be staying at the Retreat on our wedding night which means we don't have to travel far after the reception. We love the place; it is definitely very us! We were keen not to replicate anything ‘English' and wanted to celebrate in proper 'Aussie' style with gumtrees, vineyards, parakeets, cockatoos, kangaroos and sunshine (hopefully!!!!)........ all washed down with locally produced wine and the sounds of a four piece swing jazz band on a Sunday evening!
It is a small boutique winery called Evelyn County Estate on the edge of the Yarra Valley in a place called Kangaroo Ground. It is aptly named because there are so many wild kangaroos in the area. It is about a 15 minutes drive from Bi’s parents house and very local to all our guests. The restaurant serves local, organic, seasonal Yarra Valley produce and is in beautiful, rustic Australian bush setting with views out over the vineyards. Below the winery is a charming cottage called 
'The Retreat' set next to a spring fed dam complete with resident ducks, geese and plenty of kangaroos. We will be staying at the Retreat on our wedding night which means we don't have to travel far after the reception. We love the place; it is definitely very us! We were keen not to replicate anything ‘English' and wanted to celebrate in proper 'Aussie' style with gumtrees, vineyards, parakeets, cockatoos, kangaroos and sunshine (hopefully!!!!)........ all washed down with locally produced wine and the sounds of a four piece swing jazz band on a Sunday evening!With our 
venue booked we had to decide on where to actually get married..... just a minor detail!!! We decided upon having a celebrant marry us at a local National Trust listed building called Montsalvat. It is a five minute drive from Bi's family home and provides a beautiful, formal setting for our ceremony. The Gallery where we will be married has big stained glass windows and pews so that Bi can have her pew bows!
With
the venue and ceremony location secured our next task was to sort out the bridal party, the celebrant, the entertainment, the cake, the cars, the hairdresser, the flowers, the make-up artist..... the list goes on and on and on! Bi very quickly realised the advantage of being the last of her girlfriends to get married and she capitalised on it by using most of their contacts which saved hours and hours of research time. We are very lucky that we have been able to book so much at short notice and can only thank the time of year we have chosen for that!
We are having a bridal party of 6.... 3 groomsmen (Ash's best friend Jez as the Best Man and Bi's two brothers) and 3 bridesmaids (two of Bi's friends and Ash's sister). Bi's mum and her aunty are taking on the huge task of making all the dresses and her Aunty Shireen is a professional photographer (Victorian Wedding Photographer of the Year in fact!) and will be doing our photos so we are very lucky to have many talented people here in Bi's family to help us out.
With such short time scales and given our wedding is just after Xmas at the start of the Australian summer holidays, we had to be early with our invites. Bi selected the paper design and colours
(which included some vine patterned paper to tie in with our reception being at a winery), Bi's mum designed and assembled all the invititations and Ash did all the printing of the inserts. It was a real team effort!
venue booked we had to decide on where to actually get married..... just a minor detail!!! We decided upon having a celebrant marry us at a local National Trust listed building called Montsalvat. It is a five minute drive from Bi's family home and provides a beautiful, formal setting for our ceremony. The Gallery where we will be married has big stained glass windows and pews so that Bi can have her pew bows!With
the venue and ceremony location secured our next task was to sort out the bridal party, the celebrant, the entertainment, the cake, the cars, the hairdresser, the flowers, the make-up artist..... the list goes on and on and on! Bi very quickly realised the advantage of being the last of her girlfriends to get married and she capitalised on it by using most of their contacts which saved hours and hours of research time. We are very lucky that we have been able to book so much at short notice and can only thank the time of year we have chosen for that!We are having a bridal party of 6.... 3 groomsmen (Ash's best friend Jez as the Best Man and Bi's two brothers) and 3 bridesmaids (two of Bi's friends and Ash's sister). Bi's mum and her aunty are taking on the huge task of making all the dresses and her Aunty Shireen is a professional photographer (Victorian Wedding Photographer of the Year in fact!) and will be doing our photos so we are very lucky to have many talented people here in Bi's family to help us out.
With such short time scales and given our wedding is just after Xmas at the start of the Australian summer holidays, we had to be early with our invites. Bi selected the paper design and colours
(which included some vine patterned paper to tie in with our reception being at a winery), Bi's mum designed and assembled all the invititations and Ash did all the printing of the inserts. It was a real team effort!We will travel to Sydney in a few days to make our wedding rings with a professional jeweller as well as spend a few days in the Blue Mountains and Hunter Valley. We are nearly there!!!
