Lodi native Lauren Poirier didn’t have too many rules in her mind about her future husband, but she didn’t want him to be from “the valley” and she wasn’t so sure about getting married in her hometown.
But that all changed when she found Sean Poirier, who she met the “usual, modern” way: an online dating site.
She had a feeling he might be someone special, and the feeling was certainly reciprocated. The couple dated for nearly four years before Sean got down on one knee on a street corner in Walnut Creek – “it was supposed to be on a hike, but it had rained, ” Lauren said – and popped the question.
“You just know when it’s right,” she said. Even though Sean was from “the valley,” Stockton.
And that’s the same way the couple felt when they decided to check out the burgeoning wedding scene in Lauren’s hometown.
Anything is possible in Lodi, as more and more wedding venues are springing up at wineries and other locations. It’s not hard to see why. It’s affordable, it’s convenient to both the Bay Area and Sacramento, and it’s beautiful, with its olive trees, Italian cypress, acres upon acres of vineyards and hundred-year-old oak trees.
Lauren and Sean Poirier
Venue: Durst Winery and Estates
When the newly engaged couple saw Durst Winery and Estates, with its huge expanse of lawns, colorful gardens and a 100-year-old Pasadena-inspired farmhouse, it spoke to both Lauren and Sean.
“We just knew in our hearts this was the place we wanted to get married,” Lauren said. So they were, on May 25.
They were aided by Cassandra Durst herself, an owner of the winery and the one who coordinates weddings. For her, it’s an easy sell.
“We make it very easy for the couple,” she said….