ia Sebastiani may not have imagined her wedding as a teenager, but she knew she wanted to be with Kendrick Coakley. At JustinSiena High School in Napa, she asked him to a school dance, and during a summer home from college, she reached out to him on MySpace. “I know, not the most romantic,” she says, but it did the trick. After the couple graduated, they travelled the world—a two-month road trip around the U.S. and then a move to South Africa to work at Glen Carlou Wine Estate. Upon returning to Sonoma, Mia started the specialty foods business Mia’s Kitchen while Kendrick continued his career as a vintner (he’s now with Highway 12). They were home from brunch and playing tag with the dogs when Kendrick made a simple, unexpected—yet much wanted—proposal. Six months later, they exchanged vows in front of immediate family in a traditional Catholic ceremony at St. Francis Solano chapel in Sonoma, an edifice her grandfather helped build in 1945. The couple jetted to and from the ceremony on Kendrick’s wedding gift to Mia: a bright red Vespa. That weekend, 300 guests joined them at Mia’s parents’ villa overlooking Sebastiani Winery for a weekend of Italian hospitality. Guests could play bocce, take a cooking class at Ramekins or drive race cars at Sears Point. For the reception on the patio, “The most important thing was the food,” says Mia, who called on Tyler Florence and Paula LeDuc to pair burrata and caviar with Farmer’s Market 2010 Sauvignon Blanc (a Sebastiani wine company), beet carpaccio with Mia’s Playground 2006 Pinot Noir, Italian lamb pie with 2010 Treefort Cabernet (made by Kendrick) and Glen Carlou Chenin Blanc for dessert. After dinner and dancing, the couple cut a towering six-tier cake inside the marble foyer. The party continued in the wine cave. “The next day was the saddest day. I cried so many tears because I tried to keep it together for everyone on the wedding day, and was just overwhelmed with love.” A brunch at Sonoma Golf Club preceded swimming back at the house, an afternoon that rolled right into the family’s weekly Sunday dinner of—what else— pasta cotechino and wine. • VENUE Private estate CAKE Perfect Endings MENU Paula LeDuc Fine Catering, Tyler Florence DRESS Amsale FLORIST Kathleen Deery Design ENTERTAINMENT Golden Gate Strings, DJ David Rokeach PLANNER Laurie Arons Special Events RENTALS Classic Party Rentals STATIONERY A Day in May HONEYMOON Fiji
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