Oregon150

By Susan Sokol Blosser
Founder, Sokol Blosser Winery
Dundee, OR

When Bill Blosser and I settled in the Dundee Hills to start a vineyard, Dundee was a one street farm town, with the hills on its north side dotted with prune, filbert, walnut, and cherry orchards. A big nut dryer and retail sales room full of local fruit specialties, like nuts and prunes, lined the main street, along with the post office, fire department, elementary school, the Dundee Women’s Club, two gas stations, a small grocery, a truck stop café and a tavern.

We were among a small group of young couples who thought the Dundee Hills would be the perfect place to plant Pinot Noir grapes and start wineries. David and Diana Lett came first, followed by the Eraths, then us, the Fuquas and the Maresh’s. The idea spread and in the 1990’s an Associated Press writer labeled Dundee “the epicenter of Oregon Pinot Noir.” By 2009, the Dundee Hills had become a monoculture of vineyards, with few of the old orchards in sight, and the town had evolved to accommodate its new status.

The same busy state highway, 99W, still ran through the center of town, so the main street was bisected by a steady stream of vehicles from semis to limos. Talk of a bypass which would route through traffic around the town had flourished for years, but every step forward met with enough opposition to thwart any progress. The stop light installed at the school corner only exacerbated things as the mix of wine tours, casino goers, and coast traffic clogged the road.
Remnants of the old farm life disappeared. The nut dryer, which had been the dominant feature in town, was converted into Argyle Winery, with the adjacent Victorian home refurbished as a tasting room and offices. The buildings along the railroad track, belonging to Westnut Filbert Company became Twelfth and Maple, a custom crush wine facility. The two little gas stations gave way to one very large one with a mini market, at the east entrance to town. The old fashioned post office and city hall both moved to new, larger quarters off the main street. But the volunteer fire department was still in the middle of town, with the fire trucks visible to passers-by; The Rite-Way Meat Company, still advertised its mobile slaughtering services and its five foot pepperoni; and the Dundee Women’s Club building and old church remained.

While farming is no longer as evident, vineyards constitute a vital part of the Dundee Hills. It is the tourist side of wineries that has affected the town, which has slowly started to cater to the wine touring public. Dining has been the biggest change. How many one-street towns can boast three white tablecloth restaurants? The old Nite Hawk Café reinvented itself as an expensive restaurant called Tina’s and the leap from truck stop to gourmet restaurant symbolizes how Dundee changed to meet the needs of the times. Tina’s, Red Hills Provincial, and the Dundee Bistro, all on the main street within a few blocks of each other, arose to meet the culinary demands of the wine lovers.

As Oregon celebrates its 150 years of statehood, Dundee stands in between its past and its future. Still a main street of less than a mile with one stop light and three gourmet restaurants. We’re stuck in traffic and eating well.

Photo Credit: Founder Susan Sokol Blosser with Co-Presidents (and siblings) Alex and Alison Sokol Blosser