Prosecco delightfully bubbly!

A true Prosecco hails from the Veneto region of Italy, and is produced from the Prosecco grape. Its a young wine, often fruity and light as well as lower in alcohol content than many wines. The relaxed friendly bubbly has exploded in popularity so much that bottling has increased dramatically over the past five years in Italy and 'copy cats' are now found all over the world.

We love Prosecco and think this is a perfect wine to bring to a picnic, not only for its light airy quality but also because its relatively inexpensive. Since picnic season is officially upon us we wanted to share the Dow Jones Prosecco Index of inexpensive Prosecco:

Minonetto Brut. $9.99
Best tasting and best value. Some Champagne-like finesse. Minerals, toast and real fruit tastes, especially apples and pears.

Bartenura Extra Dry. $15.99
Good fruit, with ripe, white grapes, a touch of brown sugar and complicity that many lack.

Astoria 'Cuvee Tenuta Val de Brun. $19.99
Nutty, mineral nose, with some tasted almonds. Very pleasant.

Bisol 'Crede'. $22.99
Easy drinking. Clean, with hints of mango and lime.

Col del Sole Extra Dry. $11.99
Clean, fresh nose with some minerals. Vibrant bubbles. Lychee and mangoes - a bit tutti-frutti but relaxed and happy.

Di Fliore 'Passionne'. $9.99
Lively, with ripe tastes, nice balancing acidity and a very easy, light finish.

Foss Marai Extra Dry. $15.99
Fun, with tart, green-apple tastes and a little hint of minerals.

Desiderio Jeio Brut. $14.99
Ripe lemons with a touch of sweet fruit. Clean, soft and nice, with particularly charming little bubbles.

Catering with... integrity, personal respect, and honest bang for the buck

Your guests interact again and again with your catering team during your event, no matter the event format or length, so choosing the right catering team is essential. Food that meets your guests tastes. Courses with impeccable style and surprising presentation. Service by a team that understands and appreciates good service themselves.

Meet Indiana Market & Catering. They state quite simply, we love what we do and we do it well.

Wondering what a corn-belt state like Indiana has to do with sophisticated parties, masterly cuisine, and meticulous service? It all begins with values they hold dear and instinctively associate with the American heartland: integrity, personal respect, and honest bang for the buck.

And for that we send our kudos (and our love) to Indiana!

City Winery - Bringing the vineyard to SoHo

In January, a former printing house in SoHo was transformed into a two floor winery, complete with its own custom grape crushing facility - straight out of I Love Lucy. From the same group that created the Knitting Factory, City Winery is more than just a winery. The winery hosts live music, wine classes, private dinners and 21,000 square feet of space are ideal to host your next private party.

Custom Wedding Cake Stands

If you are fascinated with your wedding cake, its worth while to look into creating a beautiful cake stand to go along with your cake design. NJ based Robert Edwards is just the man for the job! His intricate details in cake and cupcake stands large and small, square and round, high gloss or matte finish is gaining the markets attention, the options are really endless. The top of your wedding cake my survive to your first anniversary, but your wedding cake stand can be passed down for generations.

TOP 10 Cost Cutting Wedding Tips

Managing your wedding budget is the first big hurdle you are going to encounter on your road to marriage. Take time to make a budget as a couple and work together to make a list of what is important deciding where you should spend money and where you can skimp! We have listed a few helpful cost cutting tips below to stretch those dollars…

1. Avoid Sugar Flowers on your Wedding Cake – as beautiful as these elaborate cakes look with cascading sugar flowers. Request an all white cake from your baker, and have your florist decorate the cake with fresh blooms. Your cake need not be overly extravagant to still be beautiful.

2. Set Up a Wedding Website – all your wedding information including local hotels, directions, and registry can add up when you try to include these details in your printed invitations. Both theknot.com and weddingchannel.com offer simple tools to help establish a personalized wedding website for free. Its saves you on printing extra cards to include within your wedding invitation and is better for the environment.

3. Choose a Full Service Wedding Location. Its about 30% less to host your wedding at a full service location that already has tables, chairs, linens, plenty of bathrooms and a kitchen. Hosting events in non-traditional locations such as galleries, raw loft spaces or private homes are often much more costly.

4. Avoid a Champagne Toast – So much champagne often goes to waste when you do the traditional toast for the bride and the groom. Guests will take a sip of champagne and never pickup the glass again. Save the good champagne for those that request it at the bar, and let your guests toast you with their own drink or with the wine you are serving at dinner.

5. Save on Save The Dates – Save-The-Dates are usually sent 6 to 9 months prior to the weddings, and even further out if it’s a destination event. If timing works out, Kill two birds with one stone, and mail out your save the date information within your holiday cards.

6. Enlist Music Students for the Cocktail Hour – you will pay half the price for the background music and still have the elegance of live musicians.

7. Play with Color – Hotels and Rental companies can get white linens for the same cost as they can get colored linens. The same is true for the standard reception chairs, they come in all sorts of colors! All you have to do is ask. Play with the colors and make the most of your budget by using color in a smart way!

8. Non-Floral Centerpieces – Candles will stretch your budget and add a romantic glow to your reception. Or use organic items such as branches, seasonal fruits or nuts in unique ceramic containers to create your own centerpieces.

9. Ornate Fabrics – you can find great deals in the garment districts for fabrics. Use these fabrics to jazz up traditional cotton linens. Create your own runners or table toppers, its very minimal sewing and is an easy way to involve or enlist your female relatives for help.

10. Family Style Food Service – you don’t need to have a traditional four or five course meal. Large plates of food, saves not only costs but also encourages good interaction between your guests and creates and at home ambiance.