Foris Vineyards Winery is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 vineyard located in the Cave Junction

Cave Junction, Oregon

Cave Junction, incorporated in 1948, is a city in Josephine County, Oregon, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 1,883. Its motto is the "Gateway to the Oregon Caves," and the city got its name by virtue of its location at the junction of Redwood Highway and Caves Highway...

, Oregon

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

 area. Established in 1986, Foris is known for their Gewürztraminer

Gewürztraminer

Gewürztraminer is an aromatic wine grape variety that performs best in cooler climates. It is sometimes referred to colloquially as Gewürz, and in French it is written '...

, Chardonnay

Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...

, Pinot noir

Pinot Noir

Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...

 and Merlot

Merlot

Merlot is a darkly blue-coloured wine grape, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name Merlot is thought to derive from the Old French word for young blackbird, merlot, a diminutive of merle, the blackbird , probably from the color of the grape. Merlot-based wines...

 and had its 2006 Pinot Blanc voted "Best of Show" at the World of Wine Festival near Gold Hill, Oregon

Gold Hill, Oregon

Gold Hill is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of July 1, 2009, the population was 1,080 people.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...

. They also produce Foris Cave Bear Red, the sale of which is used to support the Oregon Caves Chateau

Oregon Caves Chateau

The Oregon Caves Chateau is a historic American hotel that opened in 1934. It is located in Oregon Caves National Monument in southern Oregon, near Cave Junction. The Chateau was designed and built by Gust Lium, a local contractor...

 renovation.

Foris was founded by Ted Gerber, who fell in love with the Illinois Valley

Illinois River (Oregon)

The Illinois River is a tributary, about long, of the Rogue River in the U.S. state of Oregon. It drains part of the Klamath Mountains in northern California and southwestern Oregon. The river's main stem begins at the confluence of its east and west forks near Cave Junction in southern Josephine...

 when visiting friends there in 1969. In 1971, he began studying Oregon's climate over the past 30 years and decided that the weather and soil in Oregon could grow quality grapes. He purchased 15 acres (60,702.9 m²) near the former gold mining town of Holland

Holland, Oregon

Holland is an unincorporated community in Josephine County, Oregon, United States. It is about eight miles southeast of Cave Junction, in the Illinois Valley south of Oregon Route 46....

and added 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) more in 1975 in what is now the site of Gerber Ranch and Foris Winery. The early years saw failed crops and the wrong grapes planted in the wrong areas. Changes in the wine market also forced various adjustments over the years. By 2006, Foris' crops had proved that the Illinois Valley is a viable place to grow grapes.

As of 2007, Foris Winery produced 48,000 cases of wine, making it the 14th-largest bonded winery in Oregon.