Grays Harbor News Group
There will be activities for all ages when the Westport Winery celebrates its thousands of blooming irises at the annual Fleur de Lis Festival on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m.
“We have 10,000 irises blooming on the property,” said winery co-owner Kim Roberts.
The Master Gardeners of Grays Harbor and Pacific Counties will host a free plant clinic, teaching guests how to dig, divide and transplant irises, using starts from the winery’s 15-acre display garden.
“Irises have very special needs,” said Roberts. “There is an art to transplanting them, and the Master Gardeners will be on hand to show you how with the winery’s own crop.”
Local artists and food purveyors will also be on the winery grounds, said Roberts. And in the sculpture garden, a new installment will be unveiled by Tokeland artists Yoseph Adams and Jeffro Uitto during the event.
The piece commemorates the winery’s new reserve wines. Known as MV, for motor vessel, they are named after a few of the boats that were operated by winery co-founder Blain Roberts when he owned Lahaina Divers on the island of Maui.
The unveiling will take place at noon in the Patriot Garden. Both artists will be on hand for the unveiling. Uitto works predominantly in driftwood; Adams uses found objects in his designs. Together they created the bow and bowsprit of a wrecked boat on the rocks. The female figurehead was created using materials from shipping containers to clutch gears. The ship’s bow was planed and hand-hewn.
“We have over 70 amazing pieces of art in our gardens created by local artists, but this one is my favorite,” said Blain Roberts. “It is world-class.”
The three new reserve wines were created by Kim and Blain Roberts’ son, Dana Roberts. The Cabernet Sauvignons, made with grapes harvested from three separate vineyards, will be available for their first public tasting at the festival.
Vendors include the Jerky Gal, the Fancy Accent Tea Co., Sassy Seafood, Those Blasted Pentts (wine bottle creations), Bill Bolton with Honeylove Chocolates, Kay Connor Jewelry and Green Valley (wooden cutting boards).
The Citizens for Children Fund will host a succulent plant booth, with all sales benefiting foster children in Grays Harbor County. Succulents are drought-resistant plants that are easy to grow in many environments. Arrangement demonstrations will be held every hour., and visitors who bring planters to the event can get some help arranging their own succulent garden for a fee. In addition, the group will raffle off a stylish arrangement.
The Westport Winery is located at the corner of State Route 105 and South Arbor Road, about midway between Aberdeen and Westport. For more information, visit www.westportwinery.com.
Kat Bryant | Grays Harbor News Group Artist Lora Malakoff created her tall “Fleurs de Lis” sculpture for the 2012 festival. It now stands at the edge of the seating area outside the restaurant.
Kat Bryant | Grays Harbor News Group The winery’s irises represent hundreds of colors and varieties.
Kat Bryant | Grays Harbor News Group Just a few of the 10,000 irises planted at the Westport Winery.
COURTESY WESTPORT WINERY A new installation by Tokeland artists Jeffro Uitto and Yoseph Adams will be unveiled at the Westport Winery Saturday at the Fleur de Lis festival.
