The Secret to Life.

Slick and Stuart were very sneaky over the past few weeks…

Slick + Stuart

Somehow these amazing (but never plan-oriented) boys pulled together a very thoughtful + incredibly romantic, surprise V-Day getaway for Stacey + me @ Chateau Elan! 

Chateau Elan

Here’s the Q+DD on Chateau Elan:
Chateau Elan is the largest winery in Georgia and is located in Braselton, 40 miles north of Atlanta.  It was founded in 1982 by Dr. Don Panoz who came from the pharmaceutical industry.  Their wines have won many regional awards including 19 from the Atlanta International Wine Festival, two from The Dallas Morning News Wine Competition and numerous Florida State Fair awards.  The facility is 3,500 acres, but only 50 are dedicated to the vineyard.  Georgia wines are marked “Founder’s Reserve,” but other bottles with the Chateau Elan label can include grapes from a sister property in California.  (www.wikipedia.com)

itineraries in hand...

Once we found out where we were going, we expected to drink a lot of mostly locally grown wine and RELAX RELAX RELAX.  We did not, however, expect to learn “the secret to life” from an enthusiastic Chateau Elan employee.

Wine Tour

The Chateau Elan wine tour was just one of the many fun events the boys had planned for us during our “V-Day Extravaganza,” but it was the most memorable.  We learned all about CE’s grape harvesting, wine making and bottling process, and then got to taste a few of their signature wines. 

Wine Tasting

After the tasting – in hopes of scoring another heavy pour – the four of us stuck around to chew the fat with some of the CE wine experts + employees.  We spent the majority of our time talking to a particularly friendly, white-haired wine pourer.  Much to our surprise, he told us that he was 77 years old.  Shocked, we asked him how he looked so young and had so much energy.  (This gentleman was in remarkable shape.)  In a beautiful accent, he informed us that “the secret to life” is eating like a diabetic, or watching what you eat at each and every meal, and marrying your very best friend.  Just a little something to think about…

Chateau Elan

We enjoyed a really nice four-course dinner at Cafe Elan that evening, took advantage of the hot tub at the Spa and treated ourselves to a delicious brunch at Le Clos on Sunday morning (wearing our robes and all), but still, my favorite part of the trip was our brief + incredibly enlightening conversation with the Australian wine expert at the tasting.

Brunch @ Le Clos

What a memorable little trip!  Stacey and I were very impressed with the boys, and we can’t wait to see what may be up their sleeves in the future! 

Way to go, Slick + Stuart!

xx, L

Chateau Elan
100 Rue Charlemagne
Braselton, GA  30517
678.425.0900
www.chateauelan.com