Every New Year’s Eve one of our favorite local wineries, Veritas Vineyard and Winery, puts on a Masked Ball in their expansive Saddleback Hall. Guests from all over come to the event, decked out in their formal attire and donning unique and extravagant masks. At the ball, attendees were served a 5-course meal with perfectly paired wines by Veritas.
This year’s meal had everything from seared scallops, to lemon-parsley gremolata, to artichoke bisque, to grilled pork tenderloin, to caramel cake, and much more. The Veritas wines paired with the meal were a Saddleback Chardonnay 2015, Rose 2015, Sauvignon Blanc 2015, Claret 2015, and Petit Manseng 2013.
The luxurious winemaker’s meal was followed by an evening of dancing and music until the midnight, New Year’s Countdown. Midnight is rung in with a toast and followed by more dancing! At midnight, a breakfast buffet was set up to celebrate the New Year, and the champagne flows.
The following photographs were provided by guests who attending the Masked Ball this and previous years. Although black-tie is optional, it’s a yearly tradition to dress to the nines; people waltz, sachet, and generally get down in their finest get-ups.
The masks are a spectacle in themselves. Some people handcraft exquisitely detailed masks while others purchase theirs from craftsmen. For instance, the masks below were made by a New Orleans mask maker.
We love sharing this holiday with our guests and hearing about their midnight escapades at the Veritas Masked Ball the next morning over a late breakfast.