A Pre-Wedding Golf Tournament Set the Scene for This Winery Wedding

For their Renault Winery wedding, Rachel and Matt leaned into the venue’s classic charm by adding pops of green and gold. Other special moments included all guests singing along to Louis Prima’s “Che La Luna,” the “Prenup Cup” golf tournament before their nuptials and Rachel’s outfit change.

Their Story

Rachel Butts, 30, of Virginia Beach, and Matt Borriello, 29, of Doylestown, Pennsylvania, met when they were undergrads at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Both were eager to make friends at school and, fortunately, their social circles overlapped. “Matt claims it was love at first sight and I just had to catch up,” says Rachel. They dated about six months, then made it official. Rachel was taken completely by surprise when Matt popped the question during a vacation in Perdido Key, Florida. “It was the easiest yes of my life,” she says. 

The Wedding

The road to the altar tested the couple’s patience. Due to the pandemic, Rachel and Matt set a total of four wedding dates over the course of New Jersey’s shutdown and phased reopening. After the first two dates were set and subsequently cancelled, the couple decided to hold a private ceremony in NYC’s Central Park; it was there, in December 2020, that they first recited their own vows. Nearly two years later, on their “forever wedding date” of July 31, 2022, they reread those same words before friends and family. “There was something so deeply moving about waking up that morning, re-reading my vows and knowing, without a doubt, yes,” Rachel says. “I would do this again in a heartbeat. A thousand times over.”  

Why Renault Winery?

The couple wanted a venue with an on-site hotel and golf course for their out-of-town guests to enjoy during the wedding weekend. Renault Winery—with its 100-year-old vineyards, artisanal cuisine, boutique hotel and inviting greens—stood out among the rest. They even hosted a “Prenup Cup” golf tournament before their nuptials—an event guests still rave about.

Decor & Details

“Matt and I are not big color people,” says Rachel, who opted for a classic palette of black and white, with pops of gold and green. They kept personalized touches small, to complement the venue’s classic charm—and the stunning, greenery-adorned chandelier in the Champagne Ballroom. A mixture of all-white garden roses, hydrangea, stock, spray roses, and ranunculus adorned the space, framed by low, garland-style arrangements of baby’s breath and taper candles. An expanded black-and-white dance floor encouraged everyone to keep the party going.The couple’s first dance song was “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton.  Rachel paired her Theia gown with a floor-length veil by Alexandra Grecco. After the ceremony, she changed into a comfortable, yet stylish, satin jumpsuit.

The Menu

Artisanal selections at Renault Wintery included lamb chops, smoked salmon on cucumber rounds, goat-cheese-stuffed watermelon cubes, short ribs, sea bass and asparagus-and-mushroom polenta.

Favorite Moment

Nearly all 200 guests erupted in song and dance when the DJ played “Che La Luna” by Louis Prima during dinner hour.

Advice

Extend your hair and makeup team for touch ups. “My bridal party was so happy and I felt perfect before each big moment,” Rachel says. 

Honeymoon

After a week in Maine, eating copious lobster and luxuriating at Cape Neddick’s Cliff House Resort, the couple is home in Murray Hill, Manhattan.

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