1 minute read
family first
from July SouthPark 2023
by SouthParkMag
SOUTHPARK PARTNER
Veronét Vineyards & Winery
Monique Sullivan, Managing Partner
Dave Sullivan, VP of Operations
Tucked in the shadows of Crowders Mountain, you’ll find Veronét Vineyards & Winery, a 70-acre estate featuring miles of beautiful views, rows of towering pines and more than 4,500 hand-planted vines basking in the sunshine. But for founders Dave and Monique Sullivan, along with Monique’s mother, Monica Bew, the stunning vineyard is about so much more than wine.
It’s a labor of love, rooted in family, a passion for nature and North Carolina, and a desire to bring people together. Growing up on a farm, Dave always dreamt of building a family business that involved land. When a local pine tree farm became available, the couple felt a calling to create their own rustic escape. “As we looked out toward the mountains, we couldn’t shake the feeling that this land was meant to become a wonderful vineyard,” Monique says.
The family knew little about wineries, but they did have a wealth of entrepreneurial experience and an appreciation for wine. Embarking on a whirlwind of research and discussion with viticulturists, farm cooperatives and local soil experts, they spent two years ensuring the estate would be the ideal home for grapevines. They opened Veronét in fall 2019, and it’s been expanding ever since.
In addition to ample outdoor and indoor space to enjoy the wine and small bites, the sustainably farmed estate offers tastings, idyllic spots for weddings and a new winery production facility that includes a separate patio and lawn area for large events.
The family strives to make Veronét a place that visitors find inviting and engaging, with no detail overlooked. “Our approach to farming and wine is that it is an experience, one that should bring together our family and everyone else’s as well,” Monique says. “We hope our carefully tended vines and beautiful views take your breath away and remind you to slow down a bit, laugh a little more often and make memories with those you love — just the way it has for us.”
