Sovereign Estate

A great spot for a relaxing weekend afternoon retreat! The staff is friendly; interested in sharing their wine and their knowledge with you. The grounds are beautiful and inviting; they have a fire pit and a game of bags ready to go. The menu is limited but sufficient and very tasty! On Sundays they have a jazz trumpeter, who is talented and who’s music provides a soothing back drop to a lovely sit on the patio.

Sovereign Estate has beautiful grounds and it was great to visit on a sunny, autumn day. I purchased (and recommend) the $ 10.00 wine tasting which allows you to taste seven wines and keep the wine glass. If you are looking for more «bang for your buck» you may want to try the $ 15.00 wine tree which allows you to have a two-​ounce glass of five different wines (your choice), as well as keep the wine glass. The wine tree is nice because then you can have all of your wine and find a place to sit back and enjoy the view.
There are a few reasons I gave Sovereign Estate two stars. First, it would have been nice if there was seating near the tasting bar. When tasting seven wines and trying to visit with friends it would have been more comfortable to sit. Secondly, I wasn’t thrilled about the wines. To be honest, I didn’t really like any of them (and I’m an avid wine drinker). Finally, I was surprised by the pricing of food for what you receive. My friends and I inquired about the cheese plate (i.e. the price and how much you receive) to find out it was $ 19.95 for a take out box of cheese and crackers. I understand that cheese is expensive, but that seemed very overpriced.
With that being said, the staff members seemed very knowledgable and explained each wine wonderfully. If you are going to visit Sovereign Estates, focus on the beauty of the grounds and the company you are with and hopefully you’ll enjoy the wines more than I did.
From a Dietitian’s Perspective: When venturing on a day of drinking make sure you have a well-​rounded, protein-​packed meal beforehand. Sometimes when you drink the munchies arise and your decision-​making capabilities aren’t the best. By having a healthy, satisfying meal beforehand that alcohol may not go straight to your head!

Loved this place! Lovely grounds and warm, welcoming staff. Reminded me of my favorite winery in WA. Hands down, best wine I’ve tasted from a MN winery.

Sovereign has a nice tasting room — some fairly expensive bites for what you get, OK wines. The servers are a bit more engaging than the other wineries in the area. The parking lot is huge and it does make for a good stop when out in Waconia wine tasting.
Overall I am not a fan of the Minnesota attempt at making wine… the beers they make are OK but not worth the drive from the Twin Cities. That said — come for the experience, scenery, vs what you get for the price.

The food is completely over priced. We went there for lunch on a Sunday and got a small, over priced buffalo chicken pizza that was not very good. We also ordered a pulled pork sandwich that tasted like it was out of the can and the atmosphere is anything but spectacular for a winery.

Very nice place… Food was excellent! The French dip and the kale & sausage soup as well as the baked Brie bowl were all fantastic!
We visited as part of a 10-​person limo tour and they were a bit surprised to see us, but that may have been a problem on the side of the limo company vs. the winery.
I recommend the $ 8 tasting which allows you to taste 5 wines and you get to keep your wine glass.

Last year if I had reviewed Sovereign I would have given it 5 stars, but for some reason, the more I go there, the less I like it now. The wines were better from 2011, when they had a professional winemaker making them. Ummm the Talon Crest was the bomb. Their Rose was good as well.
The last couple times I’ve gone there for a glass of wine or sangria (the sangria recipe was terrible this year!!), I’ve been highly disappointed. The only new wine that is good is their sweet one: Patina Gris. It’s actually wonderful, which is one of the only reasons they got 3 stars. And actually the Frontenec Gris is a wonderful vine that speaks for itself in all the wines I’ve tasted, so maybe it was just the grape…
Additionally the woman owner is continually crabby and you can see them transitioning their prices to a more high-​end taste (read: expensive). The bottles are too expensive, and some of their events sound fun but a bit ridiculous ($ 50+ PER plate??).
It’s a shame, as the male owner is very friendly, the vineyard is in a wonderful location (right on Lake Waconia and right next to the bike trail), and some of their wines are decent and local. I wish I could go there every Sunday after a nice bike ride, but I just can’t continue to support a place I no longer feel welcome.

Very nice place. Solid selection of wines. Comfortable place to hang out with your spouse or whomever. Nice lunch menu. A must visit!!!

Wow, what a great find! Spent a Sunday afternoon at the winery and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves! The wine was fantastic, the food wonderful & the atmosphere was superb! They grounds that this winery is located on are absolutely beautiful, you can walk around the place for hours! Had a great gal band playing music, I believe they were the BZ Girls? Anyway, I would love to give this place 5 stars but I honestly believe that the prices of their wines are a bit steep. I’ve been wine tasting in California, and other states and had exceptional wines and the prices weren’t as steep as what they are at this place. With that being said, we did buy a few bottles, and will definitely be visiting again in the future.

Here’s the reason why I’ve only given Sovereign Estate Wines a two star rating. Last year 2012, my boyfriend and I ventured to this vineyard on a whim. We’ve been to at least a dozen vineyards in Minnesota. Most all vineyards that currently exist in Minnesota are less than 5 years old. The only vineyard in the state that’s been in the wine business the longest is St. Croix Vineyards. Located in the same place as Aamodt’s Apple Farm located in Stillwater, MN. Having tried a lot of different Minnesota wines over the past 5 years, not one vineyard has come close to comparing St. Croix’s wines. Last year, 2012, we tried Sovereign’s wines. At first I was extremely hesitant to leave with glowing reviews of their wines, knowing this vineyard was still in it’s infancy. I tasted 5 different wines they had produced. I was blown away. My boyfriend and I both looked at each other knowingly that this winery was going to give some great competition to St. Croix Vineyards. We both loved all of their wines and we each bought a bottle. Rarely do we ever purchase Minnesota wines because they are too bitter or acidic. These wines were smooth like velvet and tasted so delicious it was refreshing.
Present day July 2013. Sadly — I cannot say the same for this vineyard. We went back a year later trying all of their wines, excited because we were looking forward to the same experience of all the delicious wines to taste! Again sadly, the wines we tasted this year were not the same in the least. They were like the new born vineyard bottles we’ve been disappointed by in the past. Too acidic. To sour. Not pleasing to the palate. What happened to your wine? It was so alluring with it’s decadency and the voluptuous ribbons of flavor that cradled your tongue — were all gone :(
Someone either fired their previous wine maker or they decided to make the uneducated and arrogant decision to take it upon themselves to make the wine — without the educated wine maker. Unfortunately, we will not be making the trek back to this gorgeous vineyard. It’s sad because they had a great start that not many other vineyards have and could have sustained business to make a name for them and the state of Minnesota wineries.