Parley Lake Winery
Parley Lake Winery
4
12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Friday
4:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Saturday
12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
About
Local winery crafting award-winning wines from cold-hardy grapes developed by the University of Minnesota. We are SEASONAL; OPEN MAY - DECEMBER.
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4.0
37 reviews
Excellent
11
Very good
18
Average
3
Poor
3
Terrible
2
Marie S
Minneapolis, MN18 contributions
Jul 2021
I appreciate that they have great music in a wonderful relaxing setting. I love coming here. Only wish I lived closer so I could enjoy it more often. Highly recommend but I don't want that many people there when I visit. LOL.
Written 20 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Inner C
Minneapolis, MN440 contributions
Jul 2014 • Couples
We were in search of a friend of ours, Harry. We knew he worked for a winery in Waconia in an old barn. Three strikes and you’re out. This was the last winery in the Waconia area that we stumbled across as we meandered through the country roads.
The internet mistakenly said it was closed on Sundays. It’s open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from noon until 6pm. We were surprised to see it was open. And so happy to see this one had a barn.
We bought the wine tasting, 4 choices for $5. We didn’t plan on wine tasting today so I didn’t have my ID. Even though I am well past the age of 21 with some gray highlights to prove it, I needed special permission from the owner. Bring your ID if you plan to taste or plan to be in Waconia and accidentally fall upon the vineyard.
It was such a bargain – the glass was a souvenir and we got the wine. Tasting was fun.
Look for Harry. He’s the one in the bow tie. He knows the wines up and down the vine. He knows about Lester soil that makes this area a special place to grow grapes. He’ll teach you how to smell, swirl and aerate the wine in your mouth so you can get the most out of the tasting experience. His descriptions made me want to try every wine. We had to narrow it down to 4.
There were vendors outside. The day we visited there was this cool fire truck that was converted into a pizza oven. They were selling fire roasted pizza. We saw someone getting a caricature drawn of themselves. There were arts, crafts and homemade food for sale. There were a few places to sit outside and enjoy the surroundings.
It was a fun experience. Harry is the best. They don't sell beer on Sundays, but they do sell rootbeer if you're not fond of wine or forgot your ID!
The internet mistakenly said it was closed on Sundays. It’s open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from noon until 6pm. We were surprised to see it was open. And so happy to see this one had a barn.
We bought the wine tasting, 4 choices for $5. We didn’t plan on wine tasting today so I didn’t have my ID. Even though I am well past the age of 21 with some gray highlights to prove it, I needed special permission from the owner. Bring your ID if you plan to taste or plan to be in Waconia and accidentally fall upon the vineyard.
It was such a bargain – the glass was a souvenir and we got the wine. Tasting was fun.
Look for Harry. He’s the one in the bow tie. He knows the wines up and down the vine. He knows about Lester soil that makes this area a special place to grow grapes. He’ll teach you how to smell, swirl and aerate the wine in your mouth so you can get the most out of the tasting experience. His descriptions made me want to try every wine. We had to narrow it down to 4.
There were vendors outside. The day we visited there was this cool fire truck that was converted into a pizza oven. They were selling fire roasted pizza. We saw someone getting a caricature drawn of themselves. There were arts, crafts and homemade food for sale. There were a few places to sit outside and enjoy the surroundings.
It was a fun experience. Harry is the best. They don't sell beer on Sundays, but they do sell rootbeer if you're not fond of wine or forgot your ID!
Written 3 August 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
StaceyinMN
Willmar, MN45 contributions
Jul 2014 • Couples
This fun off the beaten path winery offers lots of samples with knowledgeable staff to educate their patrons. The barn is rustic and charming and meeting the winemaker himself was a treat! We enjoyed our tasting and then a glass on the lawn while enjoying the sculptures. Great stop and can't wait yo come back for apple season.
Written 5 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sergeant56
Albertville, MN94 contributions
Sept 2015 • Couples
Visiting Parley Lake Winery was such a lovely surprise. We found there was something for everyone. The staff was very friendly and we were impressed with all the wines. The apple barn had lots to offer. With live music, food, and tasteful vendors (jewelry and art), lots of outdoor seating, animals and more, this was a great outing for the entire family.
Written 20 September 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
christineh78
Hopkins, Minnesota157 contributions
Sept 2014 • Couples
Six of us arrived shortly after noon on Saturday and the place was busy. Beautiful grounds, great places for photo ops, and an awesome barn where we did the tastings. It was a little disorganized to start, as there was a tent outside where we were suppose to get our wristbands, however, there was no sign and nobody there at the time. So, it took a little bit to get ID'd and go back up to the barn for the tasting. The pourers in the barn were nice and knowledgeable and graciously took a few photos for our group.
There is an apple orchard there too. They were cutting apples to try and you could buy all sorts of apple items, cheese/apple snacks, and they had a whole section of breads, pastas, jams, pickles, honey, etc. My friend purchased a fiery chipotle cheesy beer bread that was awesome, I will definetly need to get more of that for our next chili night.
There were animals, lots of places to sit, hayrides, and many people having picnics. We wish we would have known the firetruck with the pizza oven was going to be there. I did not see that on their website originally. It looked delicious, but we had snacks in the car.
I personally liked the reds they had. We visited 2 other Waconia wineries that day and we thought this one was the best. Not only for wines, but for being put together. We will definitely go back.
There is an apple orchard there too. They were cutting apples to try and you could buy all sorts of apple items, cheese/apple snacks, and they had a whole section of breads, pastas, jams, pickles, honey, etc. My friend purchased a fiery chipotle cheesy beer bread that was awesome, I will definetly need to get more of that for our next chili night.
There were animals, lots of places to sit, hayrides, and many people having picnics. We wish we would have known the firetruck with the pizza oven was going to be there. I did not see that on their website originally. It looked delicious, but we had snacks in the car.
I personally liked the reds they had. We visited 2 other Waconia wineries that day and we thought this one was the best. Not only for wines, but for being put together. We will definitely go back.
Written 16 September 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jodee M
Duluth, MN12 contributions
We had a coupon for this place which was very generous. There regular tasting prices are not much more and will go back. Have been to several wineries before and this is our new favorite. Tasted five wines, took an informative tour on a haywagon and listened to music while relaxing in a beautiful farmyard. Loved the atmosphere and the dedicated employees. Would like to go back for apple-picking season beginning the firat weekend in September!
Written 27 August 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mnguru1
Edina, MN557 contributions
Jul 2021
Good wine- Just minutes from Lake Waconia. Super nice people, fun time to have a flight and some cheese curds. Excellent weekend afternoon activity.
Written 4 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sunflowerdayzee
Minneapolis, MN147 contributions
Jun 2017 • Couples
Went to the winery with my husband, my brother and sister in law on Saturday. We had the Minnesota Wine Passports, and we decided to do a tour of the three wineries in Waconia. Of the three, this was our second favorite. The wines were pretty good, the winery is beautiful, but the person helping us with our tasting (Harry) came across as slightly off-putting. He gave decent information about the wines, but often seemed annoyed at questions we had and when he answered them talked like we didn't know anything. We did enjoy the music that was being played (it was a big band playing swing music), and the art around the grounds is pretty cool (especially the “Tool Shed” piece).
Written 28 June 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello!
Thank you for your review and thanks for visiting us! We appreciate your feedback and I am sorry you felt a little put off by one of our staff members.
We take pride in our Winery and the wines our winemaker produces. Our number one goal is to give you a great customer experience and educate our visitors about Minnesota Wines.
I hope you will visit us again and we can have another opportunity to give you the great experience we like to be known for.
Cheers!
Aubrey Hookom
Written 29 June 2017
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
MinnScooter
Lakeville, MN901 contributions
Sept 2015 • Friends
we have been to Parley lake many times but never seen it this full but it was quite organized and lines moved fast. we had to park about a half mile away along the narrow gravel road. they had hayrides, grape crushing, petting zoo, and pick your own apples so that took a lot of the crowd away ..they had set up a tasting station right next to the band outside so that was very nice on a warm day like today. we decided we liked the Barn Quilt red the best so got a bottle to take home and a glass to drink there.
Written 28 September 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beth P
Minneapolis, MN440 contributions
Aug 2015 • Friends
We had friends in town and hit up the wineries in Waconia. They let us bring in outside food for a picnic. Live music outside. Pizza for sale if you wanted it. Beautiful grounds. Good wine. Professional staff.
Written 12 August 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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