For a hundred years…
Belle Fiore’s slopes thrived as a cattle and hay farm first settled in approximately 1880. Belle Fiore’s flourishing hay fields were homesteaded by the Murphy family. In the 1930’s, Ashland families, like many across America, became forlorn, losing their jobs, farms and homes. The Murphy’s land eventually was claimed by a bank. When the economy finally recovered around 1937, the Miller family, originally from Georgia, became owners and farmers of Belle Fiore Estate’s fields, ponds and mountain slopes.
The Kerwin family relocated from Denver to Oregon’s Rogue Valley in 1993. Edward Kerwin is an allergy & asthma specialist, physician and clinical research scientist. He had done his training in hospitals in Denver and Iowa City, Iowa.
Ed graduated in 1979 and was hired out of college by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Houston, Texas. After two years at NASA, he returned to studying history, and while working at Princeton University, obtained a MS in the history of science. Ed then embarked on a career in medicine and attended the University of Colorado Medical School in Denver. Ed’s wife, Karen, also has a diverse educational background, having studied languages in Tours, France, Viareggio, Italy, and Salzburg, Austria. She completed her B.S. degree in Biochemistry at the University of California, Davis, and later obtained her Master’s Degree in Genetic Counseling at the University of Colorado. After years of academic studies, the Kerwin family moved to Medford and Jackson County Oregon in 1993. They have four children.
The Kerwins always dreamed of developing a vineyard and winery. In 2000, they located a 55 acre property outside of Ashland for sale by Miller Ranch. They purchased the land and began to implement the development of Belle Fiore Winery, Estate and Vineyards. The Kerwins planted the vineyards in 2007, cultivating extraordinary wine grapes from many wine growing regions across Mediterranean Europe.
From France’s Bordeaux region, we grow varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Merlot. From the Rhone, we grow Syrah grapes. From Burgundy, our Pinot Noir grapes are celebrated and esteemed. Belle Fiore also grows Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Musque, two additional classic French white wine grapes. The winery fashions exemplary wines using each of these classic French grape varietals.
