Del Valle Winery 4948 Tesla Road • Livermore • California 94550

The Livermore Valley, one of the country's oldest winemaking regions, is less than an hour from San Francisco and so picturesque that at some point you start fantasizing about owning a vineyard … or having a friend who does. Fortunately, within minutes of entering Del Valle Winery, you feel you are among friends because their passion, commitment and joie de vivre are contagious.

This boutique winery has produced a dazzling array of varietals from century-old grapevines. At the same time, they've created a charming setting where you can celebrate your wedding in style—and have the entire property to yourselves.

As your guests arrive, they're ushered down a treelined pathway to a pair of tall redwood gates. Inside those gates is a self-contained event site with three separate areas. To the left is the Barrel Room, with its stone-pillared façade and latticework arbor at the entry. To the right is the spacious Garden Courtyard, a shaded, stone-floored reception patio. And directly ahead is the manicured Ceremony Lawn, where friends and family await your walk down the aisle to a raised, Craftsman-style gazebo bordered by fragrant lavender and silvery shrubs.

Once vows have been sealed with a kiss, it's time to raise a toast with a flute of the venue's signature sparkling wine. Cocktails and appetizers can be served al fresco, but most couples opt for the climate-controlled Barrel Room. High ceilings, concrete floors and rows of stacked barrels bedecked with romantic tea lights set the scene.

If you can slip away, you will also want to take advantage of some other cool photo ops. Take a walk through neat rows of sangiovese vines in front of the tasting room, then rejoin everyone for dinner in the Garden Courtyard beneath the twinkling lights strung overhead. Your menu will be expertly paired with wine selections from their much-lauded reds and whites.

As night falls, take the party back inside where the great acoustics of the Barrel Room will get everybody dancing. And for those out-of-towners who want to explore the Livermore/Dublin area the next day (but not too early), the folks at Del Valle Winery will be happy to help them choose from among the region's many points of interest.