Feeling wild? Fight a wild west marriage

Hoping to establish their brand in a lasting relationship, more and more brides are buying farms in cow country.

“Everyone was talking about destination weddings in Italy and France. But what really happened, what was a really big hit this year, was the rodeo or ranch wedding,” said wedding planner Alyssa Pettinato, owner of NYC-based Alinato Events. “That was the vibe — getting married in cowboy hats against these stunning backdrops with almost no decor.”

The buzz, she said, was twofold: the hit western drama “Yellowstone,” which is now five seasons deep; and model Taylor Hill’s belt-and-bolo-tie wedding at Devil’s Thumb Ranch in Colorado last year — and the social media frenzy that followed.

“Vogue went crazy with her wedding and the vibe just came out,” said Pettinato “It was blowing up everywhere.”

But for Melissa, 37, and Shane Ross, 41, who married at Montana’s Alpine Falls Ranch in September after a whirlwind romance and a February engagement, the motivation for a ranch wedding venue had less to do with being in trend and more with the decline. – the lightness and authenticity of the house.

“Our love language is quality time”, said Mrs. Ross, who works for a fintech company in Dallas where Shane is a general contractor. “We wanted a place where we could make really beautiful memories and spend quality time with our friends and family.”

The couple wanted an autumn wedding and with less than a year to plan, the pressure to choose a venue was mounting. “I’ve been to Montana a few times before and I thought it was breathtaking and wonderful. “So between my visits to Montana and seeing ‘Yellowstone,’ it quickly narrowed down to, ‘Okay, let’s see if we can find a ranch in Montana that can accommodate what we wanted to do,'” Ms. Ross.

Alpine Ranch is a Michelin-approved luxury resort on 850 private acres – surrounded by nearly two million acres of national forest. It has accommodations for 65 guests, who come to shed their best city life to shoot clays, ride the endless trails, raft, fly fish and enjoy the company of a collection cute livestock that includes mountain cows, miniature donkeys, horses and a llama named Doc.

“I had a couple last June who had never ridden a horse before, and the bride came up to me 30 minutes before the ceremony and asked, ‘Is there any chance we can show up and say goodbye on horseback?’ And I was like , “Absolutely,” said Jason Pittman, the property’s ranch manager, who brings in artisans to create custom cowboy hats for his guests. “Everybody leans into that Western Montana and the farm has to offer. We have people getting married in a cowboy field in cowboy boots, jeans, their steamy hat and a nice pearl cowboy shirt. People want to create a lasting memory.”

Prices for a wedding start at just $2,500, but purchases can run into the tens of thousands.
For the Rosses, that meant a Saturday morning wedding for just under 40 guests, allowing for a day filled with intimate moments and an evening reception.

“I wore a traditional wedding dress and Shane wore jeans and a leather vest,” said Ms. Ross. “But I wore a hat at the reception and changed into blue knee-high cowboy boots for the day. We told our guests, ‘No suits, no tuxes. Wear jeans and boots.’ We had a group of guests who went in full denim or slacks. They really embraced it.”

To include loved ones who couldn’t attend, they asked the chef to prepare family recipes as part of their menu. “Shane’s mum passed away a few years ago, and I didn’t get to meet her, so it was something that felt very subtle but special.”

It’s that ability to customize events to maximize memories that make farm weddings an easy alternative to the complications and chaos endemic to far-flung “I dos” destinations.

It’s easy to see why. This year, Europe saw another record summer heat wave. At the same time, resort and hotel rates rose to approximately $2,000 per night at 5-star resorts in the Med. As a result, shopping for luxury farm weddings became a relatively affordable (and cooler) affair.

“It’s much cheaper to get married in the United States and more people can attend your wedding,” Pettinato said. “Honestly, you should only have a top destination wedding overseas if you really hate people and don’t want them to come – because 90% of people can’t afford it.”

“A mountain cow was born on the morning of our ceremony. Some of the guests had finished breakfast and got into the back of Jason’s truck to come down and have a look, or help if they could.”

Shane Ross

And instead of competing with the throngs of other tourists for restaurant reservations and activities, booking a row house means downtime, natural splendor, fun and games, farm-to-table cooking, hearty meals, local beers and too many hard drinks. Think whiskey or tequila cocktails over wine and steaks over melon salads.

“You can enjoy the local cuisine,” Pettinato said. “You can help herd the cattle and eat them that night. Not that I support that because I don’t eat meat.”

But vegan leather cows can get in on the fun, too. A good farm can fix what you like and get away from the rest. “We work with local purveyors to serve whatever is fresh and in season, whether it’s mushrooms or elk,” said Kim Taylor, director of sales for the Ranch at Rock Creek, a five-star Montana resort with 29 accommodations that wedding awaits. against a rugged landscape of Great America. “We have couples who drink a lot of wine, but our bartenders in the lounge also have fun making cocktails with huckleberry and other local ingredients.”

For the Rosses, being able to hand over the reins and relax in a natural setting with their loved ones was an experience they wouldn’t change for a moment.

“A mountain cow was born on the morning of our ceremony,” said Mrs. Ross. “Some of the guests had finished breakfast and got into the back of Jason’s truck to come down and have a look, or help if they could. By the time Shane and I were done with the photos, we got to watch the little guy take his first steps. It was such a cool experience for all of us. Each of our guests spoke about how this farm experience would be an essential memory for the rest of their lives. It’s not a cookie-cutter kind of place.”