City Winery Hudson Valley Winter Wedding - Jess & Gage

I am so so so excited to be sharing Jessica + Gage’s wedding at City Winery, planning and florals by Wild Blooms Bridal!!!! Jess and Gage were SIXTH GRADE sweethearts, who went their separate ways for years, until reconnecting on HINGE!! They are the perfect example that maybe the universe has a plan for you, but just not on your expected timeline. These two are so clearly meant for each other, and they radiate joy when they are together. Gage absolutely SOBBED when Jess walked down the aisle, and I’m going to be honest, this is a lot more rare than people realize. Social media captures grooms crying constantly, but understand…this should not be the expectation, and it is not super common! It’s a lot of pressure to fall into your emotions with so many eyes on you, but Gage let it OUT. His vulnerability opened a faucet for so many of their family and friends and there were tears all around.

When I first met Jessica during our zoom consultation, I instantly liked her. She was funny and super chill, and all the things I can appreciate in a human, especially a bride! I was so excited to photograph their winter wedding, and had a feeling it was going to be a blast. (I was correct about this, and the reception photos below can attest to just how much fun it was.)

Jess and Gage hired me for my 6 hour package, and opted out of getting ready photos (which is always an option that I don’t think people realize, and I don’t think they regret this decision AT ALL). They decided to get married at St. Patrick’s church in Newburgh, with a bubble exit. After their bubble exit we went back into the church to take some formal family photos before heading off to City Winery Hudson Valley for their wedding party and wedding couple portraits!

Jess’s dress was out of my winter wedding dreams. It had long sleeves, it was sparkly, it was like snow. Gage looked like classic perfection in his classic black suit. Their wardrobe choices were absolutely lovely, and I LOVE when a bride chooses a season appropriate dress.

When we arrived at City Winery, we began taking some of their portraits outside, but kept it brief because it was very very very cold. We only needed a few minutes to create some beautiful classic wedding photos, and then headed inside to finish up their solo portraits. During their cocktail hour we photographed the wedding party in the reception space where there was enough room, and it was such a fun time.

Their wedding reception will go down in my photography career history, as one of the funnest and funniest that I have EVER photographed. Their guests really knew how to celebrate their love in a big way. I have never laughed so hard and so often while photographing a reception. Everyone felt safe to be themselves and have a grand old time. Seeing people dressed so elegantly and acting wild is one of my favorite things. These days I so rarely see a bouquet toss, and Jess’s was one for the books. (You have to scroll down to see the photos - They lifted the gal who caught the bouquet in celebration, and one of the girls got kicked in the face accidentally. There is a photo below of her holding a plastic glove full of ice to her face because of the growing swelling and bruise. She was laughing about it, therefore we could all laugh about it too.)

Read on for Jessica + Gage’s super adorable love story and their favorite wedding memories, in their own words.

How you met :

“So Gage and I met in sixth grade when I first started Newburgh schools after being in Catholic school for six years. When I first saw him I just thought he was the cutest thing on earth and told my best friend at the time he was going to be my husband one day. I was so obsessed with him lol! We became little “boyfriend and girlfriend” in sixth grade but then went out separate ways for junior high and met back up in highschool, but never dated, and then we met back up on hinge!! From there we hung out and fell so so in love!!! I always knew he was gonna be my husband one day even through all the loser boyfriends I’ve had.”

How you got engaged :

“Gage and I got engaged December 8th 2023! We were at my aunt and uncles house for a gingerbread house competition with all my cousins aunt and uncles. I went to the bathroom and came out and everyone was standing there recording me and gage was in front of my aunts Christmas tree on one knee with beyond beautiful ring in his hand asking me to be his wife. :) We also were given that same Christmas tree from my aunt when she moved to florida and could no longer use that tree anymore! So special.” - Jess

Why you chose City Winery Hudson Valley as your wedding venue :

“Gage and I didn’t take long to pick our venue at all! We first went to one venue which we didn’t like all that much but then my sister scheduled a wine tasting at City Winery with my mom, Gage, and I. As soon as Gage and I walked into the winery we instantly fell IN LOVE!! I’m a super indecisive person and can never ever make a decision as quickly as I did when picking City Winery. We never second guessed it, ever. We immediately emailed the wedding coordinator and she said  they had December 21st 2024 available and right then and there we knew it was meant to be!! We also loved how there was a little spooky background to their venue as well!

Why you decided to get married in a church :

We picked Saint Patrick’s church in Newburgh because as I grew up catholic it was very important and special to me to get married in the Catholic church. I’ve always heavily depended on God for everything in my life. Every obstacle I’ve ever encountered I always depended on God… it was important to me to have our marriage be blessed.”

How you chose your wedding dress, his wardrobe, etc :

“I chose my dress with the help from the amazing Jessica at Wild Blooms Bridal! She was so wonderful. I picked that dress because it screamed winter wonderland which is exactly what I was going for... it was so unbelievably hard to not let Gage see my dress for so many months.. it was killing me lol. But walking down the aisle seeing him cry made it all worth it. We picked black tuxedos because we just wanted the all old fashion look. Black tux black tie. I also picked the light pink dresses for my bridesmaids because I’ve always been a light colored girly. Including my flowers. Which a cute little back story when I was like 15 till about 21 I always bought this little fake bouquet of flowers from Michael’s or Home Goods and put them in my bedroom lol. When I saw all my bouquets my first reaction was “OMG those look exactly like all the little bouquets I always bought for my bedroom as a teen!” Lol like all my dreams came true with the flowers.”

How you decided on your wedding party size, etc :

“I chose my sister, for an obvious reason… she’s my sister who I love immensely, who I would do anything for, who is always there for me no matter what. My one and only sister.. my maid of honor. My cousin Nicole who is a special close cousin to me and my cousin in law, Alexis, who is also such a close cousin to me. I was in her wedding back in 2015. My last bridesmaid was gages sister, Jessica. Gage picked his two brothers Robbie and Gunnar and his cousin Wesley to be his groomsmen and his best man was his best friend since second grade, Zack. Gage and Zack have been so unbelievably close since they were little kids. Always up to no good but still always having a great time together as best friends. How can you not have a life long best friend be your best man?” 

How you chose your vendors and/or your experience with them :

“I couldn’t talk more about YOU Caitlinn the best photographer ever. I couldn’t hype you up more!

Also I couldn’t say better things about Wild Blooms Bridal. Jessica, Sofia, and Ashley. Jessica being the special girl who helped me pick my beautiful dress. She was so patient and sweet with everything. With me being as indecisive as I am she helped me make my final decision! She also helped me with my beautiful flowers. When I first saw everything on my wedding day it brought tears to my eyes seeing that Sofia, Ashley, and Jess brought all my dreams to reality. Also our DJ Austin Hunt was incredible as he let me jump on stage to take over and DJ on my special night. What a blast, he was so fun!”

Why you chose your first dance song :

“We chose our first dance song, “from this moment on” by Celine Dion specially because of this one line in the song… “you’re the reason I believe in love, and you’re the answer to my prayers from up above”. That being so special to me because I never thought I could ever love a man as much as I love Gage…Gage and I went on a couple of dates and I was already picking out our wedding song lol... I knew it was going to be that one!”

Jess and Gage were living their absolute best lives during their wedding reception. It felt SO good to document and witness the genuine fun and joy radiating off of them and their guests.

Jess’s bouquet toss was one of the most aggressive and chaotic things imaginable. It was absolutely hilarious, I am pretty sure I was crying I was laughing so hard. The girls hoisted the catcher up like she had just won the Super Bowl, and it was so so funny.

I loved their vintage 3 tier wedding cake from the Pastry Garden, and they made their cake cutting so fun. Some people say champagne towers are a waste… I DON’T CARE I DON’T CARE I DON’T CARE. I love them, I love photographing them, I think they are so so so fun and such an iconic moment.

“Our special day was everything we could’ve ever asked for and more. I also couldn’t thank City Winery enough for being a beyond amazing wedding venue. The staff was so incredibly helpful, hardworking, and so with it! All our guests couldn’t believe how amazing they were with everything.” - Jess

Jess and Gage’s Hudson Valley Wedding Vendors

Venue : City Winery Hudson Valley

Wedding Planner : Sofia Tropeano of Wild Blooms Bridal

Ceremony Officiant : Father Fernando, St Patrick’s Church

Wedding Make Up Artist : Emma Graef of Bridal by Alexandria

Wedding Hair Artist : Kate Post of Bridal by Alexandria

Dress Designer : Maggie Sottero

Hudson Valley Wedding Dress Shop : Wild Blooms Bridal in Wappingers Falls, NY

Bride's Shoe Designer : Dolce Vita

Groom’s Suit : Men’s Warehouse

Florist : Wild Blooms Bridal

Vintage Style Wedding Cake : Pastry Garden

DJ : Austin Hunt of Sound of Life Entertainment

Photographer : Caitlinn Mahar-Daniels (me)

Second Shooter : Laurel Jollie