Основатель винного бизнеса Elk Cove и врач Джозеф Кэмпбелл скончался в возрасте 87 лет

Joe Campbell, a doctor, humanitarian and the pioneering founder of Elk Cove Vineyards in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, died of pneumonia June 28 at his home in Sherwood, Oregon. He was 87. An energetic man, Campbell was still skiing Oregon’s Mount Hood when he was 80, but he had been in declining health recently. “He really seemed to pick his moment. His 87th birthday was just a few days before,” said his daughter, Anna Campbell. “We celebrated with chocolate cake—his favorite.” Campbell was born June 25, 1939, in Altadena, California, and grew up at his family’s Lone Pine Motel in Hood River, Oregon. He was an industrious young man who had 11 jobs before he was 18, from driving spikes for a railroad to setting pins at a bowling alley. After receiving a full scholarship to Harvard University, where he graduated with a history of science degree, he attended Stanford University School of Medicine. Campbell was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, and spent two years in civilian service with the Indian Health Service as an emergency room doctor in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. It inspired a lifetime dedication to humanitarian work. Campbell and Pat traveled the world extensively and fell in love with the wine and food lifestyles of France and Italy. Returning to Oregon in the early 1970s, the Campbells founded Elk Cove in Gaston in 1974, becoming pioneers of the modern Willamette Valley wine industry. At the time, there were fewer than 10 wineries in Oregon. Elk Cove was the first winery in what is now the Yamhill-Carlton appellation. A self-taught winemaker, Campbell focused on the cellar while Pat handled management and the vineyards. “They truly worked together and shared the business as equal partners,” said Anna. He continued to work in medicine at a Portland hospital while building the business during the first 20 years. Campbell retired from Elk Cove in 1999, handing over winemaking duties to his son, Adam Campbell, and turned his focus to humanitarian work. "My dad was an amazing and pioneering Oregon winemaker but I believe he was happy to leave that behind in 1999 to get back to a focus on helping people,” said Adam. “His medical missions to Sri Lanka, South Sudan, Peru, Guatemala, and New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina brought him back to the heart of where his medical career began, on the Sioux Indian Reservation in Pine Ridge.” Campbell is survived by his wife, Pat; their children Dani, Adam and Anna; two sons from his first marriage, Fredrik and Klas; as well as 14 grandchildren. Stay on top of important wine stories with Wine Spectator’s free Breaking News Alerts.