what ’ s working
From Vineyard to Sea
Family-run winery is a major draw in rural Grays Harbor County .
Jacqueline Allison
The Westport Winery Garden Resort , led by Blain , Carrie and Kim Roberts , started as a small family-run venture . It now brings in 100,000 guests a year .
At A Glance
Blain and Kim Roberts came out of retirement in 2008 to open a winery that has grown to include a restaurant , distillery and the International Mermaid Museum . The couple runs the business with daughter Carrie , each bringing unique skills to the multifaceted operation . They produce wines with grapes harvested in Eastern Washington and have earned more than 700 international wine medals .
In 2023 , they were awarded AWB ’ s Excellence in
Family-Owned Business Award .
The Roberts family , from left , Carrie , Kim and Blain , run Westport Winery Garden Resort , halfway between Aberdeen and Westport .
Westport Winery Garden Resort began in 2008 when Blain and Kim Roberts planted a vineyard on a rural stretch of highway between Aberdeen and Westport . Kim hoped the winery would receive one-tenth as many visitors as the 1 million who visit the Butchart Gardens in Victoria , B . C . each year .
“ If we get 100,000 visitors and 10 % of them buy a bottle of wine , we got this ,” she remembered thinking .
In 2023 , Westport Winery hit that mark , welcoming its 100,000 annual visitor .
“ The ocean brought us everything to start with ,” Roberts said , of the customers who stopped at the winery on the
“ For being in the middle of nowhere and being a little family operation , we have had a pretty exciting journey .”
— Kim Roberts
22 association of washington business