Washington wine will be served at USS Washington christening

Organizers of Saturday’s christening of the USS Washington chose cheap California sparkling wine to ensure the bottle breaks when it hits the hull of the $1.2 billion nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine under construction in Newport News, Va..

But it’s Washington beer, wine and water that will be served at the christening dinner and related events, according to Navy Rear Admiral (Ret.) Mike Sharp, chairman of the USS Washington Commissioning Committee.

The committee is organizing events around the boat’s formal launch into service, which likely will be held in January in northern Virginia. In the interim, the Washington-based committee took steps to ensure Washington products are incorporated into the christening.

The ship’s builder prefers an undisclosed California sparkling wine because it breaks reliably. But Sharp said Washington wine and beer will be part of the event. The group also shipped Puget Sound water samples for use in the christening. The ship’s patron, Elisabeth Mabus, daughter of Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, will dip the bottle into the Puget Sound water before swinging it against the hull.

The USS Washington is the 14th Virginia-class submarine to come off the line. It is the third Navy vessel named for the state and not the Founding Father, Sharp said. It carries a crew of 135 and is under the command of CDR Jason Schneider.

Christening ceremonies will be streamed live at 8 a.m. Saturday at washingtonchristening.com.

The commissioning group consists of almost every state-level elected leader in Washington and an impressive list of retired Navy officers representing all parts of the state. It is raising money to support the commissioning program and is working to raise public awareness in Washington of its new namesake. Learn more about its work at bit.ly/USSWashington.

This story was originally published March 3, 2016 at 7:23 PM with the headline "Washington wine will be served at USS Washington christening."