Marnie & Adam at Jackalope
A Vineyard Wedding at Jackalope
Marnie and Adam married at Jackalope, the design-led luxury hotel at Merricks North on the Mornington Peninsula. They chose it for a reason most venues can't claim: Adam had proposed by the lake at Jackalope the year before. Returning to be married in the same place gave the day a quiet symmetry — the same vineyard, the same lake edge, a year of looking forward to it folded into a single afternoon.
Jackalope is one of the most architecturally distinctive vineyard wedding venues in Victoria — all dark angles, contemporary art and rooms that open onto the vines — and the couple let those elements carry the day. Styling, led by Alli Kelly, was deliberately spare, designed to sit alongside the architecture rather than compete with it. Where colour came in, it arrived through Pomp and Splendour's florals: lush, romantic arrangements in pinks and reds set against the cooler, considered backdrop the hotel provides. It is exactly the contrast the day was structured around.
A Lakeside Ceremony Among the Vines
The ceremony was held overlooking the vineyards and the lake, with Marnie walking down the aisle to Fleetwood Mac's Everywhere. Marnie wore an off-the-shoulder Italian silk gown by Mariana Hardwick, fitted long and clean against the lakeside setting; Adam and his groomsmen wore MJ Bale tuxedos. The couple's golden retriever, Goldie, walked down the aisle with them — a small, completely Marnie-and-Adam detail that nobody in the room missed. Nick Powell celebrated, in a register that read warmly without ever steering the day.
Photography across the day was by Tess Follett, working in a close, present register that complements the way we film. When the people behind both cameras are observing in similar ways, the day reads as itself in both mediums — and the small, quiet moments are the ones that survive.
Design-Led Styling and a Pool-Side Cocktail Hour
From the ceremony, the celebration moved to the hotel's infinity pool for cocktail hour, the vines stretching out beyond. The architecture comes into its own at that point in the day: dark lines against the gold of late-afternoon light, guests moving freely between the pool deck and the surrounding terraces. Dinner followed in Doot Doot Doot, Jackalope's hatted restaurant, where the same restraint the couple had brought to the styling was already part of the room.
"They got engaged by the lake at Jackalope, then came back a year later to be married in the same place. The day was, in a quiet way, the whole story closing itself."
Speeches were warm and specific. The first dance was a small, deliberate moment in itself — Marnie and Adam had taken classes in the months before, nervous about it and proud to commit to it properly, and danced it in a Michael Lo Sordo gown she had changed into for the first dance. From there the floor opened up; Aleks Mac of One More Song ran the DJ set, Justin Kenny Hall played saxophone alongside it, and the room moved with the kind of warmth a small, design-led venue can hold particularly well.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Jackalope
Where is Jackalope?
Jackalope is a luxury winery hotel at Merricks North on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, around ninety minutes from Melbourne. It sits among the vines with views across the estate and is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World.
What makes Jackalope a special wedding venue?
Jackalope pairs striking contemporary architecture and a renowned art collection with vineyard views, an infinity pool and the hatted Doot Doot Doot restaurant. The result is a design-led, luxury setting on the Mornington Peninsula where couples can hold the ceremony, celebration and overnight stay all in one place.
Can you stay at Jackalope for your wedding?
Yes. Jackalope is a hotel as well as a wedding venue, with vineyard-view rooms, a spa and infinity pool, so couples and their guests can stay on site and make a weekend of the celebration on the Mornington Peninsula.
How far is Jackalope from Melbourne?
Jackalope is roughly ninety minutes by car from Melbourne's CBD, which makes it an easy destination-wedding location while still feeling a world away among the vineyards of the Mornington Peninsula.
