Cameron Winery -- sustainably farmed, non-irrigated, Oregon pinot noir and chardonnay

It started out as a volcanic protuberance, a pimple on the face of adolescent earth. It endured inclement weather and floods, decomposed a bit on the surface, sprouted a layer of trees and then suffered the fate of many promising pieces of mother earth — it was overrun by a band of Scotsmen who, after sampling wild, hallucinogenic mushrooms from its flanks, decided that it reminded them of home. So it became the Hills of Dundee and, appropriately was found conducive to growing nuts.

However, in its very recent history an eccentric arrived with the unlikely combination of being from Utah and being possessed with visions of great wine. It is part of the human experience that one eccentric generally draws others of similar nature. Consequently the Dundee Hills now serves as a refuge for a variety of idiosyncratic individuals, all engaged in the search for the holy grail of Pinot noir.

They come from disparate places and backgrounds, a folk singer from Iowa, a car junky from Pasadena, a marine biologist from Arizona, a poet from Lansing, a Texan from Australia and an oil-geologist from Michigan. In most cases, their egos are small enough to allow them to name their operations after themselves. They argue and pontificate about the proper way to arrive at great Pinot noir and each truly believes that his results vindicate his approach (as well as his appropriate high price!). And just as the Burgundians have their “terroir” which cannot be duplicated, so the Dundee Hills has its eccentrics which no one would want to duplicate!