Page 23 - Robeson Living Spring 2022

ed Pony is a little-known secret in Robeson
County and Southeastern North Carolina,
but the more the word gets out, the busier
the place becomes.

“We stay booked with weddings about nine
months out of the year and are open year-
round,” said Cheryl, the creative mind be-
hind the business that she and her husband
started only a few short years ago in her
retirement. Cheryl worked as a teacher and
curriculum specialist for Robeson Coun-
ty Schools for 31 years. Lee is a licensed
general contractor who built and planted
everything at Painted Pony, from the barn
and chapel to the gorgeous grapevines that
grace the property.

Managing the weddings is now Cheryl’s
full-time job and labor of love. “The most
popular time of the year for weddings here
in the fall,” she said, “But we had a beauti-
ful wedding here on that Saturday in Feb-
ruary it snowed.” The property is popular
year-round, hosting couples from across the
country and next door.

Farm evolution
A native of Robeson County, Lee already
owned the property when the couple mar-
ried in 2012; they held their ceremony at
the farm. The horse-loving pair lived above
the barn and kept horses to ride, enjoying
the woodlands and pasturelands the acreage
provided. Lee’s first gift to Cheryl was a
black and white American Paint named Za-
vier that sadly is no longer with the Carters
Little girls dream of a long white dress and a walk down the but lives on in the estate’s name.
aisle to marry the man of their dreams one day. Boys grow up
and hope for Mrs. Right. Kids daydream about having a pony Adding to the adventure of farm ownership, their couple’s
to ride or a horse to trot, bareback and as free as the wind. first business venture on the property was in starting a 20-
These are not only the fanciful wishes of childhood but real acre vineyard of muscadine grapes. They sell their grapes to
dreams that come true thanks to a magical place in the Robe- numerous wineries throughout Southeastern North Carolina,
son County town of Shannon that delivers on both aspirations, including Lu Mil, Duplin, Cypress Bend, Rock of Ages, Tree
all in the same day. Top and others that use the grapes in making varieties of the
sweet Muscadine wine North Carolinians love. Ten rows are
Painted Pony Vineyards and Estate is a wedding venue, vine- reserved for visitors to enjoy the pick-your-own experience
yard and 64-acre working farm complete with horses and and net grapes to take home.
other animals, beautiful pasture and woodlands and devoted
owners and operators — Cheryl and Lee Carter — that all be- Cypress Bend Vineyard bottles a private label for Painted
come part of many couples’ picture-perfect day. Not just any Pony using the Carters’ grapes. The Painted Pony collection
day, mind you, but their wedding day. includes four wines: Tobiano, semi-sweet white; Sorrel-Ove-

ro, semi-sweet red; Tovero, a sweet red; and Sabino, a sweet
Taking pride in being “a hidden gem of a true beauty,” Paint-

Robeson Living ~ Spring 2022 Page 23