The Winery at Sovereign Estate — Attraction in Waconia Township

I would like to start by saying how BEAUTIFUL this vineyard is, and how kind and accommodating most staff members are. I had my bridal shower there this Saturday! Every staff member, excluding the manager, was incredibly friendly and helpful. Three staff members come to mind in particular, and I wish I knew their names so I could give them a proper thank you, because they were amazing! The bartender was a 20 something male who was friendly and went out of his way to make us feel taken care of and important. He said he was not a regular employee, and was just filling in for the day. Our main staff person was a beautiful (also 20 something) blonde woman with a charming accent. She was very attentive and helped us immensely. Finally, there was a wonderful older gentleman who looked like he was the chef. He was vivacious, friendly, and had a wonderful sense of humor. He made our event special and fun, and his warm personality was the highlight of our day at the winery.

That being said, the manager, Terri, was close to impossible to work with. She was our main contact leading up to the event, and honestly.... if we hadn't already paid the deposit and sent out the invitations, we would have chosen one of the many other vineyards in the area for our party. She was cold, condescending, and incompetent. She was rude... often going back on her word and making us feel like we were the ones in the wrong. It was a very uncomfortable environment when we knew she was in the proximity. Some specific issues we had included misinformation regarding the drink minimum, as well as not providing a cash bartender last minute and then changing expectations the day of the event. We paid $500 (JUST for the use of the room) and she refused to give us the wi-fi password so we could play our music playlist. She did not do anything particularly horrible, but her customer service was horrendous, and left a lot to be desired (especially from someone in the service industry.)

All in all, our event turned out to be wonderful, but I would not recommend this venue to anyone, due to the hassle (and tremendous expense!) with poor follow through and the uncomfortable environment created by the manager. This was my very favorite winery before planning my event (which is why I wanted my event here) and was unfortunately incredibly disappointed and embarrassed for requesting the venue of my bridesmaids. I would caution anyone to hesitate before booking...

First time, last time…The food is was ok the wine was ok, the location is spectacular, and the staff were so polite and responsive. Especially, Julie. She was amazing! Our friends who are locals thought they had found their spot. As a party of 10 with kids the venue is great for the vast green space. However, the owner is either an entitled elitist or at least presents herself that way, with no manners. The staff said they were closing soon, but never came back to say it was time to go when the owner arrived in a golf cart to tell us they are closed, and implied we were rude for staying 15 mins over because the last staff member must stay until we leave. Then went on to remind us this was private property and it’s also private time because we were disrupting her dogs birthday that was tonight. You can’t make this up! Needless to say there is a reason the sons run the business because this lack of customer service by ownership could have been handled many different ways. We have been blessed to have the opportunity live around the world and visit many places along the way, yet have never received such an unwelcoming departure.

Update: This is the kind of terse response from management I would expect. Again to be clear the staff were great, however you have no idea what was communicated when we arrived or during our visit. And policies are just words in a document somewhere or on a board posted obscurely inside. It’s about communication. Talking to customers with respect and politeness would be a good start. We didn’t argue, we were not unruly, and we simply left at the request, but the terse encounter showed no appreciation for our patronage. Again, your sarcastic emphasis on “manners” highlights the childish nature of your response. But hey, you win! We’ll never be...

I noticed that a lot of one star reviews are popping up recently for this disaster in the making and here is another. We were in a party of six but I will only speak to my disappointment. The “estate” wine we ordered (a bottle) was mediocre at best, a white something with dregs found only in the finest bathtub brew. The wait staff was almost brain dead to our needs. Not enough flatware, not enough opening appetizer to share among our group which made it very awkward, and when serving our plates they had to ask which was whose as though we were at Denny’s. The brochette appetizer was toast just shy of “burned” and had no appeal to the palette. I ordered the eggplant entree as did the individual across from me. As I looked at it I couldn’t find the eggplant. I asked the person across from me if she had eggplant and she forked it and showed a paper thin slice of eggplant that appeared strangled. Mine had none. Later the server arrived and I told her that I had no eggplant in my serving. Her response was, “Maybe they ran out.” Interesting. I almost replied with, “If they ran out of salmon would they just serve the veggies alone?” She left and upon her return stated that the “chef” was preparing the eggplant. By that time I had completed the veggies and told her to just let the chef eat it. I believe there are much better venues in which to have a great meal with atmosphere. I suggest you try them first. Denny’s doesn’t serve eggplant but the food and service is...