Timber was still king and pear trees covered much of the agricultural land in the Rogue Valley when a few people thought they'd try growing grapes for wine.
Foris Winery was one of the pioneers, planting grapevines in 1974. Now, nearly 50 years later, wine is big business in many parts of Oregon.
Ted Gerber founded Foris all those years ago and helped other wineries get started. His efforts are the focus of this month's Stories of Southern Oregon, curated by Maureen Flanagan Battistella.
Ted and Maureen stop by for a chat, along with Stephanie Pao, the current winemaker at Foris.