Maria and Jason had a extended group of family and friends in Tuscany for a week, with events such as top restaurants, wine tours and city visits, culminating in a stunning castle wedding event. The couple had a chapel wedding at walking distance from the castello where the reception was held. Even though the event was in July, the weather was not kind to the couple, but that is one of the small risks in Southern Europe...! The couple write:

Hey Ben,

We had a wonderful time at our wedding and are completely grateful of all the tremendous work you and all of the staff did on our wedding day. I told Marisa that evening what a lovely job she did on the flowers. My guests were astounded by the wedding and that was one of our main concerns.

All the best
Maria and Jason

The couple were married with a Protestant blessing ceremony at the little chapel 200 yards from the main villa villa 4 from our web site. The quiet and charming little chapel is an ideal backdrop, and the couple chose to celebrate their wedding in the courtyard area in front of the chapel, using the arched facade as a backdrop.

The guests then returned to the pool area for relaxing cocktails and aperitifs, and later, a formal seated meal in front of the imposing villa facade. This villa is ideal for a relaxing wedding, offering the informality of a weekly rental with exclusive use, with the formality of the location for the wedding day itself. Leila and Steve also arranged music for the evening in the villa halls, and Italyweddings florists made the essential transformations to make the location where guests had been staying for the week, into something special for the wedding day itself.

Shan and John were married with a civil wedding in the town hall of San Gimignano, and then returned to our popular villa #20 for their reception and evenings entertainment.

But the wedding was much more than that for their guests, with in week meals arranged, wine tasting, and city outings for the entire party, the guests not only had a wonderful time with old and new friends, but got to know Tuscany in a deeper and more genuine way

More images of the villa here

More about San Gimignano here

The couple write:

Dear Ben,

We wanted to thank you for the wonderful Tuscan experience! Your team created a week that provided amazing life-long memories for our guests and ourselves. The wedding and reception were more beautiful than we could have ever imagined. The villa provided the perfect setting for the week for our family and friends and the excursions you helped plan gave us the chance to experience Tuscany at its finest!

We are still amazed when we look at the pictures and are already looking forward to our next visit. Ben, please thank your wife again for the beautiful flowers.

Thank you again for the perfect wedding!

Shan & John

Saffron Harvest and Celebration - during this month, small farmers in the small hill town of San Gimignano, which is more famous for it's mysterious towers and Chianti wine than it's saffron, begin to harvest the purple Crocus sativus flowers whose stems contain the precious red powder that turns a brilliant yellow when cooked. Il Croco, an organization founded by Brunello Bertelli, is fighting to perserve many of the region's vanished gastronomic traditions including it's once glorious past with saffron. Today, this city near Siena, has become the Tuscan leader in saffron production. A recent study by the University of Turin found the overall quality of San Gimignano saffron to be greater than that of other varieties, based on the Tuscan saffron's exceptional aroma.

"Chi non ha moglie non ha padrone.
Who has no wife has no master.

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