The Dundee Hills are contained within the Willamette Valley AVA. The region is located 28 miles southwest of Portland and 40 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean. Rising above the low, flat floors of the surrounding Willamette and Chehalem Valleys, the Dundee Hills offer spectacular views, including Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson’s majestic snowy peaks.

Winemaker David Lett planted the first Pinot noir in the Dundee Hills in 1965, naming it The Eyrie Vineyard. Soon after, Dick Erath, the Sokol Blosser family, and other winemakers cleared south-facing slopes to plant many of Oregon’s first vineyards. They whole-heartedly believed this area would one day be an important cool-climate winegrowing region. It didn’t take long for the world to discover Dundee Hills and Oregon, after the relatively unknown Eyrie Pinot Noir placed among the top three wines in the 1979 Gault-Millau French Wine Olympiades, beating out more famous French labels. Today, the area remains home to many of Oregon’s modern pioneer winemakers who continue to successfully grow and make premium wine. The appellation was approved in November 2005.

The Dundee Hills area is effectively an island protected from great climatic variations by surrounding geographic features. The Coast Range to the west lessens the effects of the Pacific Ocean’s heavy rains and windstorms, causing a rain shadow over the Dundee Hills area. The region receives just 30 to 45 inches of annual precipitation, most of which falls in the winter months outside of the growing season. Because of their slope and elevation, Dundee Hills vineyards benefit from warmer nights and less frost and fog than the adjacent valley floors.

The region is known for its rich, red volcanic Jory soil, which was formed from ancient volcanic basalt and consists of silt, clay, and loam soils. They typically reach a depth of four to six feet and provide excellent drainage for superior quality wine grapes.

The viticultural region consists of a single, continuous landmass that rises above the surrounding Willamette Valley floor and is defined by the 200-foot contour line to the AVA’s highest peak of 1,067 feet. The area comprises a north-south spine with ridges, as well as small valleys on its east, south, and west sides. Dundee Hills is part of a North Willamette Valley hill chain that developed as a result of intense volcanic activity and the collision of the Pacific and North American plates. The soil is typically volcanic over sedimentary sandstone. (Wine/Appellations)