Get married surrounded by fields of lavender, take portraits in the orangerie, dine in the orchards, and dance under a canopy of stars at this gorgeous Northern California farm. Located about half an hour north of Napa, this Winters property is the perfect spot for a spring, summer or fall wedding if you’re on the hunt for a venue that’s got a real French garden party feel to it.
We recently sat down with owner Tina of Bear Flag Farm and talked all things labor of love about the property. If you like the idea of hosting your wedding in a small town in Northern California that’s just off-the-grid enough to feel totally charming, this could be your wedding spot.
Photography by Emily Blake
Tell us a little about what the farm grows and sells :)
We’ve been running as a working farm for fifteen years now and we produce olive oil, 300 cases of syrah each year and essential oils such as sage, lavender and rosemary. Our membership club has been sold out for five years straight! We ship out wine, hot sauces, olive oil, etc. to members twice a year.
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How was Bear Flag Farm started? What went into creating the farm we see today?
The land was just dirt. Every plant, tree and shrub we planted. Thousands and thousands of plants, lavender fields and everything. Everything has grown in so beautifully. Winters is a microcosm, everyone is growing one thing. We planted things we had an interest in and multiple things. Everyone thought I was nuts for doing something different.
What influenced the design, landscaping and architecture of the property?
Each year I travel to France and always come back inspired. The walled gardens of Versailles inspired our orangerie, although the shrubs in Versailles are 20 feet tall! Ours are 10 feet tall so we can manage them.
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What makes Bear Flag Farm ideal for events?
I think every property has their own unique offering. In our case, I love to have a 'reveal,' to segway from one area to another and the way the property is laid out lends itself to a nice flow – we have multiple outdoor rooms. Also, we are very private, there is nothing around. There’s not a main road although our location is very convenient to the highway just six miles away (Napa is only 30 minutes away too).
Who is the team behind the farm?
You may not know this, but all event and floral design has been in-house although we are starting to promote the property to outside event and floral designers.
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Can you tell us about your events at the farm?
Our events are typically held April-October due to the seasons (our trees are deciduous) and we have four event spaces.
- The Orchard: The beautiful orchard is the perfect way to get to the lavender fields and is flanked by trees.
- Walled Garden: Surrounded by 10 foot high hedges inspired by the garden of Versailles, the “orangerie” (our citrus garden) has multiple pathways leading to it. It’s the perfect place for ceremonies.
- Sunken Garden: There are 3 sets of stairs leading down to it surrounded by 25 year old sycamore trees with views of the winery. It’s inspired by France and adjacent to the Guest House which also serves as the bridal suite.
- NEW! The Winery Building: Opening in 2018 for events such as small dinners and corporate events during the off season. It will be inside with doors opening to the lavender fields which will be beautiful. Stay tuned…
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We can't forget about the famous lavendar fields! What is their story?
We grow 8 different types of lavender for distillation in our two fields – the front field was planted in 2005. We use a steam distillation unit which can handle up to 100 lbs of plant material at a time (which is a lot!).
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