Submitted by Westport Winery
Westport Winery has announced it will donate a portion of the proceeds from their upcoming wine, Kraken, to the Grays Harbor Historical Seaport Authority. The Roberts family who own the winery have a long history with this organization and its mission of providing educational, vocational, recreation, and ambassadorial experiences on maritime history of the region.
The Seaport owns and operates two tall ships. The Lady Washington, constructed in Grays Harbor as a community project in the late 1980s, is known as Washington’s tall ship ambassador. She has played a role in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Star Trek: Generations and Once Upon a Time. Her bowsprit was carved by Bob McCausland, the artist who drew the winery’s iconic lighthouse logo.
Winemaker Dana Roberts said, “I’m looking forward to the day I can say we are ‘releasing the Kraken’”, his tongue-in-cheek reference to the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise. His sister, Carrie Roberts, prior to her involvement in the winery, was the education coordinator at the Seaport and later served on its board of directors.
The Hawaiian Chieftain was constructed in Lahaina, Hawaii, in 1988. Winery co-owners Blain and Kim Roberts remember her construction as they owned Lahaina Divers at the time. Kim Roberts sailed board the Chieftain when she was delivered to Grays Harbor in 2006.
The Kraken label, drawn by Kim Roberts, is the winery’s new reserve Cabernet Sauvignon crafted with grapes from Joe Hattrup’s Elephant Mountain Vineyard in the Rattlesnake Hills American Viticulture Area. They did a special single barrel release of this wine in their 2016 vintage labeled MV Endeavor (the name of Roberts last dive boat in Lahaina). This became such a popular wine with consumers, and acclaimed wine with judges, that they are creating a complete program based on this fruit. The first vintage of Kraken will be released in June of 2020.
Westport Winery, founded in 2008, donates a portion of the proceeds from each wine to different local charities, to date contributing over $500,000 to their community. This is just one reason they were honored as one of the top twenty most-admired wineries in North America by Winery & Vineyard Management Magazine.
At the recent opening of their latest venture, Ocean’s Daughter Distillery, the Roberts family announced that their spirits will benefit the first International Mermaid Museum, a project they are spearheading with construction slated for 2020.
Family-friendly Westport Winery Garden Resort, the Sea Glass Grill, and Ocean’s Daughter Distillery are located halfway between Aberdeen and Westport in coastal Washington state. In Oregon, the family operates Westport Winery Seaside, Seaside Kites and Westport Winery Seaside Retreat. Information on these ventures is online at www.westportwinery.com. For more on Gray Harbor Historical Seaport Authority, including the schedule of sailings, go to www.historicalseaport.org.
