It might be a winner...

So Hamilton's 12 has kind of an interesting set up. It’s a house that has been converted into an event space by Georgia Coleman, the previous owner of Mars in Austin.



There are two separate areas for pre-wedding festivities: a bride’s room and then the groom’s guest house for the guys. The space is surrounded by tons of live oak trees and you really feel that you are in the hill country, which even in hot August with a drought is still a pretty sight. What I like it how easy the staff, more particularly Annie, can make the whole process. They have all the chairs and tables, including linens, china and glassware, set up and break down included. The kitchen on staff can prepare the meal, with servers and also a bartender, which allows us to bring our own alcohol.



Because we will be the only wedding of the day, it gives us the flexibility to choose when we want to get married. The bridal party can get there early to get ready and take picutes. It also I think creates more intimacy as the only people at Hamilton’s 12 will be our guests and family.

Ahhh.. the wine country...

Mandola’s is a great little Italian restaurant in Austin that J and I both love. It opened in the Triangle when we lived in our first house in the Rosedale neighborhood. I was eager to see the vineyard and facilities when it opened last year and what better time than a vine tour for a friend’s birthday. The grounds are lovely, spacious and well cared for with of course very Tuscan architecture.



I was even more thrilled when I found out they host weddings. We went to check out the vineyard this weekend as Jason had not yet seen it. Since we were early for our appointment, we grabbed lunch at the restaurant, which has fantastic food and great wine, just like the restaurant in Austin. There are two options for a wedding, the more traditional kind, in which the event center can be rented out for dinner, dancing and the whole reception. A different approach, and more budget friendly, is to have the ceremony here with guests sitting under the live oak trees:



Followed by a wine tasting and then lunch on the front veranda. I really like the set up, staff, food and price. The only drawback is we would have no band, dancing or any of the other more traditional aspects of a wedding. It would be a ceremony with lunch. Also, the front veranda is not totally private and the ceremony wouldn't be either since the winery is operating all weekend. At first, I didn’t think it mattered much, but I think we are both starting to realize that we do want to have the first dance, as well as a more intimate gathering. So while this option is on the list, I am not sure how it will work out.