Some couples plan a wedding. Annie and Jake planned a feeling.
From the first golden-hour portrait to the last song of the night, their August 21, 2026 celebration at Zorvino Vineyards was elegant and unmistakably dreamy — the kind of day that seems to move a half-step slower than real life, soft at the edges, lit from within. And at the very center of it was a choice that told you everything about them: before they ever stood in front of their guests, Annie and Jake found a private corner of the vineyard and exchanged vows meant for no one but each other. Later, at the gazebo, they would say them again for all 131 people who love them.
A promise made twice. That was the whole day, really — generous, intentional, and deeply their own.
The Setting: One Estate, a Dozen Worlds
There is a reason a Zorvino wedding never looks like anyone else’s. Family owned and operated since 2004, the estate spreads across 80 acres of New England hardwood forest in Sandown, New Hampshire — not a manicured half-acre, but a genuine landscape you can wander into. On a single property, Annie and Jake had the vineyard rows, an orchard heavy with late-summer fruit, a light-filled greenhouse, stone walls tucked into the woods, and a handcrafted post-and-beam venue whose soaring timber frame is, honestly, one of a kind. They never had to leave the grounds for a single photograph, and every backdrop looked like it belonged to a different, more beautiful day.
Their celebration used the full canvas: the bridal suite in the morning, the gazebo overlooking the vines for the ceremony, the outdoor patio for cocktail hour, and the barn for a reception that glowed. It is the range that makes this place feel less like a venue and more like a small, private country — and it is exactly the kind of variety that photographs, and remembers, beautifully.
The Morning: Getting Ready
The day began, as the best ones do, with the people who know you best. Annie gathered in the bridal suite with her bridesmaids over a mimosa bar and a slow, unhurried morning. The private getting-ready space doing its quiet work of turning nerves into anticipation. There is a particular kind of joy that lives in that room before a wedding: the laughter, the reaching hands, the collective inhale right before everything begins.
The First Look & Private Vows
Before the guests, before the gazebo, there were two moments that belonged only to a few people.
First, Annie shared a first look with her father — one of those wordless, catch-in-your-throat moments that a whole life leads up to. And then came the one Annie and Jake had been quietly building toward: their first look as a couple, where they exchanged private vows out among the vines. No audience, no timeline pressing on them, no reason to hold anything back. Just the two of them and the promises they most wanted to make.
It is a choice more couples are making, and it is easy to see why. A private first look gives you a moment that is entirely yours — and it frees you to be fully present for everything that follows, because the hardest, most tender words have already been spoken.
Golden Hour Among the Vines
With the vows said and the pressure lifted, the afternoon turned into pure play. Annie’s veil caught the breeze beneath the fruit trees, the light went honey-gold, and Melissa Lewis Photography’s two shooters chased the couple across the estate — the orchard, the greenhouse, the rows. These are the frames that define the word dreamy: airy, romantic, a little cinematic, and entirely unforced.
The Ceremony: At the Gazebo
As evening settled in, Annie and Jake’s guests took their seats at the gazebo overlooking the vineyard, where an arch of blush and ivory blooms framed the couple against the open New Hampshire sky. Officiant Steven Dembro led the ceremony with warmth and ease, guiding them through the vows they had, in a sense, already practiced in private that afternoon.
It was a celebration that spanned generations. Five bridesmaids and five groomsmen stood alongside them, and their flower girl, six-year-old Amelia, carried petals down the aisle. A heartfelt bouquet dedication folded the people who couldn’t be there into the moment. A small, generous gesture that said as much about this couple as any grand one could.
The Cocktail Hour: Aperol Spritz on the Patio
Newly married, Annie and Jake sent their guests straight into one of Zorvino’s signature experiences: cocktail hour out on the patio beside the vines, available only May through October. Their signature pour was an Aperol Spritz — bright, bubbly, and made for a warm summer evening — passed alongside a generous Tuscan grazing table of Italian cured meats, imported and domestic cheeses, marinated mushrooms, and seasonal fruit. Guests drifted between the bocce court and the fire pits with a spritz in hand and the sun going down over the rows. There is simply nothing like it.
The Details: Greenery, Blush & Wildflowers
Nicole Britton Designs brought the couple’s vision to life in a palette of greenery, soft pinks, and white — lush garlands framing the venue’s posts, florals arching over the gazebo, and petals scattered for the flower girl’s walk. Candlelight did the rest, pooling warm across every table as the barn’s timber frame rose overhead into the dark.
In lieu of traditional favors, Annie and Jake sent their guests home with packets of wildflower seeds — a small, living thank-you, and a fitting one for a couple who married in the middle of 80 growing acres. It is the kind of detail that keeps blooming long after the last dance.
The Feast
Annie and Jake chose Zorvino’s Reserva Wedding Package, and the kitchen delivered it with real care. After the grazing table came a round of passed bites — a parmesan-garlic profiterole, tempura cauliflower, coconut chicken, and a soy-and-honey beef skewer — followed by a harvest salad bright with candied pecans, apples, and goat cheese. For the main course, guests chose between Zorvino Chicken with mustard butter and tarragon and a garlic-parsley Haddock. A small, telling detail: the bride and groom both went for the haddock. Some couples just match.
Then, late in the evening, the kitchen sent out the encore no one saw coming: slider burgers and garlic fries, delivered straight to a dance floor that had been going for hours. It is, reliably, the most talked-about course of the night.
The Cake
The dessert centerpiece came from Chickadee Hill Cakes (@chickadeehillcakes) — a graceful three-tier cake in soft ivory, its piped detailing catching the candlelight from the wine barrel it sat atop, served with a coffee and tea station.
The Reception: Dancing Till Midnight
Inside the barn, the party found its full voice. DJ Mike Benoit and his assistant read the room perfectly, carrying the evening from the couple’s introductions and first dance — which ended with Jake sweeping Annie clean off the floor — through toasts from the best man and maid of honor, parent dances, and an anniversary dance that honored the marriages that came before theirs.
From there it was simply a room that would not sit down. Polaroid cameras made the rounds, the dance floor lit up in every color, and because this was a Friday celebration with an extra hour added on, Annie and Jake got to do the thing every couple wishes for: dance until midnight, with nowhere else to be.
The Photography & Film
Melissa Lewis Photography spent the day capturing every register of it — the private vows, the golden-hour portraits, the greenhouse, the barn at full tilt — with a second shooter and a videographer working alongside. The Zorvino grounds gave them everything a lens could want: the vineyard rows, the orchard in fruit, the light through the conservatory glass, and one backdrop after another that looked like it had been waiting all summer for exactly this couple.
The Dream Vendor Team
| Role | Vendor |
|---|---|
| Photography & Film | @melissa.lewis.photography — Melissa Lewis Photography |
| Florals | @brittondesignsflowers — Nicole Britton Designs |
| Wedding Cake & Desserts | @chickadeehillcakes — Chickadee Hill Cakes |
| DJ | @djmikebenoit — DJ Mike Benoit |
| Venue | Zorvino Vineyards, Sandown, NH |
| Accommodations | Marriott Haverhill, MA & TownePlace Suites Haverhill, MA |
| Transportation | Manchester Transit |
Congratulations, Annie & Jake!
To the couple who said their vows twice – once in a quiet corner of the vineyard and once for everyone they love — who matched on the haddock, sent their guests home with wildflowers, and danced clean through to midnight:
You did it exactly right. It was our honor to be part of your dreamy summer day. Thank you for choosing Zorvino Vineyards!
Learn About Weddings at Zorvino Vineyards
Dreaming of your own vineyard wedding? Explore weddings at Zorvino Vineyards, take a look at pricing and packages, or browse more real weddings on our blog. When you’re ready to see it in person, schedule a venue tour — the patio, the gazebo, and those 80 acres are even better in real life.
Zorvino Vineyards | 226 Main Street, Sandown, NH 03873 | (603) 887-8463 | zorvino.com/weddings | Instagram: @zorvinovineyards
