▶Acacia Ridge Winery · 169 Gulf Rd, Yarra Glen VIC 3775 · Melbourne
▶A summer wedding at Acacia Ridge Winery in the Yarra Valley, a family vineyard outside Yarra Glen with the ranges on the horizon. The couple planned a late afternoon ceremony with the vines behind them, canapés while the bridal party had portraits among the rows, then a reception for 160 guests with a first dance, sunset photos, speeches and a sparkler exit to close the night.
Flasks and a baby on the bed · Vows in the glass room · Golden rows and a flying veil · Shot glasses at the entrance · Speeches, a dad dance and sparklers
Both halves of the couple got ready at home. The groom's side had engraved flasks lined up on the bench and bow ties fixed by his dad, while the bride's house was full of bridesmaids in black, a baby in white on the bed and a flower girl waiting her turn. A limousine brought the bridal party up the gravel drive, and the ceremony ran in the glass walled room at the winery, a circle of white flowers at the front and the vineyard filling every pane behind the celebrant. Her dad walked her in, the vows came with laughs, and the couple signed beside the arch before walking out under the trees to cheers.
After family groups by the barn and a bridal party session on the lawn, the couple came into the clear roof marquee past a neon sign and the big LOVE letters, every guest with a shot glass raised. The cake was cut with the baby in the groom's arms, then the first dance ran in the glass room while the sky outside still glowed. By the speeches it was dark: the maid of honour, the best man, her dad with her mum at his side, and the bride herself from the bridal table. A dance with her dad, a bouncing floor, and a tunnel of sparklers by the old brick chimney sent them off.
Ceremony spot · Moving between spaces · Light · How the day ran · Portrait spots · Our advice
The couple married indoors in the glass walled room at Acacia Ridge Winery, with a circle of white flowers at the front and the vines running away behind the celebrant. Guests sat on white chairs and watched the vows with the whole vineyard as the backdrop. It is a beautiful spot, with one thing to plan for: the view is bright and the faces are inside, so a mid afternoon ceremony in summer can leave the couple in shadow against the glow. Ours was late enough that the sun had moved off the glass, and the room stayed soft and even. Watch at 3:22 Watch at 4:08 Watch at 4:32
The limo drops you by the barn and everything is a few steps apart: the glass room for the ceremony, the brick fronted barn with its fireplace for family groups, the lawn and windmill beyond, the vineyard rows just past the hay bales, and the clear roof marquee with its brick bar for dinner. The glass room was reset after the ceremony and became the dance floor, which is where the first dance and the dad dance happened. Guests walked from canapés to tables to the floor without a single car, so the night never lost its pace. Watch at 3:32 Watch at 5:02 Watch at 7:22
Summer at Acacia Ridge Winery means a long, bright evening. The ceremony room was soft, but out on the lawn the sun was still high and hard for the bridal party, so we worked fast and used the barn's shade for family groups. Then came the hour that mattered: the sun dropped over the vines and poured down the rows, backlighting the veil and turning the green to gold. By the entrance the marquee was still full of daylight, the first dance had a pink sky behind the glass, and the speeches ran under fairy lights with the windows gone black. Watch at 5:18 Watch at 6:12 Watch at 7:24
A half past four ceremony, canapés while the bridal party shot the barn, the lawn and the vines, then a six o'clock entrance into the marquee with every guest holding a shot glass. The cake was cut straight away, mains followed, and the first dance went at half past seven before the speeches, with the glass room still catching the last light. Speeches came after dark, four of them, then a dance with her dad, the open floor and a sparkler exit. Dancing before speeches is a trick worth copying: the room is warmed up, and the speakers get a happy, settled crowd. Watch at 7:02 Watch at 7:18 Watch at 8:20
We used about forty five minutes straight after the ceremony and never left the property. Family groups went under the brick barn front, the full bridal party lined up by the old fireplace, then the lawn with the windmill behind for a veil throw and some jumping. The vineyard rows were the main event, with the couple walking the rows, a lift and a kiss, the veil flying across the vines in the low sun. Time this for the last hour before sunset in summer. On a hot day keep the lawn section short and bring water; the bridal party was in black. Watch at 5:02 Watch at 5:38 Watch at 6:22
What our team noticed at Acacia Ridge Winery was how much the shot glass entrance set the tone: a hundred and sixty people on their feet and laughing before the couple had sat down. Keep the baby and the kids close too; the cake cut with the baby in the groom's arms and the flower girl's dance were two of the warmest moments of the night. Give the vineyard rows the golden hour, not the middle of the afternoon. And bring everyone out by the old chimney for the sparklers; the brick and the dark sky made the exit glow. Watch at 7:12 Watch at 7:22 Watch at 10:52
Acacia Ridge Winery is a family vineyard on Gulf Road outside Yarra Glen, with views across the vines to the Great Dividing Range. Couples can marry outdoors at the end of a long brick aisle with the vineyard and mountains behind, or in the Vine Room, an indoor ceremony space with floor to ceiling glass. There is a rustic barn with an open fireplace where guests arrive, a clear roof marquee with chandeliers and fairy lights that seats up to 200, and a historic gold rush era Miners Hut kept for the bridal party. Everything sits within a short walk, so the day flows from one scene to the next without anyone getting into a car.
The Vine Room glass is gorgeous, but bright vines behind the arch can leave faces dark, so a ceremony timed away from the harshest afternoon sun helps, and the green view stays in frame without anyone squinting into the light. In summer the sun sits low over the rows late in the day, which gives long golden flare for couple portraits. In the cooler months the light goes much earlier, so plan couple portraits before the ceremony or straight after it. The clear roof marquee holds daylight into the evening, then the fairy lights and chandeliers carry the night, so speeches look warm without heavy lighting.
Glass walls and hard floors bounce sound around, so in the Vine Room a lapel microphone on the groom and a separate recording of the celebrant are worth asking for, with a backup recorder near the arch. Out on the brick aisle the breeze runs straight across the open vineyard, so wind covers on every microphone are a must. The venue includes a cordless roaming microphone, which suits speeches nicely, and a recorder beside the speaker means a laugh or a wobble in the voice is never lost. A quick word with the DJ to drop background music during speeches makes a big difference to how they are remembered.
The Vine Room becomes the dance floor later in the night, so after an indoor ceremony it is reset while guests enjoy cocktails, and that window is ideal for portraits. The vineyard rows, the lawn, the windmill and the shaded front of the barn are all a few minutes on foot, so you can fit family groups, a playful bridal party session and quiet couple time into about forty five minutes. The Miners Hut, climate controlled with couches, is the perfect place for the bridal party to cool off and touch up between scenes. At the end of the night the pergola outside makes a natural sparkler tunnel, and the old hut and chimney give the exit a lovely backdrop.
The Vine Room is the venue's answer to hot days and cold or rainy evenings, climate controlled and still looking straight out over the vineyard, so a weather change never costs you the view. If rain arrives for portraits, the open front of the barn and the marquee give you covered places with plenty of character. Summer brings lush green rows and long, bright evenings, while autumn turns the Yarra Valley vines gold and red, a beautiful palette for a winery wedding. Winter can bring low mist through the valley, which looks magical if you are happy to keep things short and cosy outdoors.