While recently visiting wineries in the Dundee area, I had the opportunity to dine at The Dundee Bistro, which is located off highway 99W across from the Argyle Winery. The bistro shares a retail space with a wine bar and a store featuring local food and crafts. This "culinary center" as it is called, was created by the Ponzi Family, who maintain over 100 acres of vineyards in northern Willamette Valley producing a variety of estate wines.

On the evening I visited, the dinner crowd was just starting to build, therefore I opted for a seat at the chef's bar. From the moment I entered, it appeared that this is a place that enjoys celebrating wine, as commemorative bottles of all sizes are scattered throughout the restaurant. Throughout my stay, there was a good level of energy in the place with the service being enthusiastic and responsive.

As soon as I was seated, my server approached asking what I would like to drink. With so much variety on the wine list, it was a shame this place didn't serve more wines by the glass (only five reds and five whites). I guess they want to encourage folks to buy a bottle, but there is nothing I enjoy more than dining at a restaurant that offers an extensive wine by the glass list, especially in wine country.

Scanning the limited wine by the glass list, I chose the only pinot gris available, the '06 Ponzi. It proved to be a good choice, pairing well with the poached duck egg and blue cheese salad I ordered as my first course. When the salad arrived, I noticed a liberal application of balsamic vinegar in and around my bowl. Forking thru the radicchio, pickled onions, Fuji apples and hazelnuts, I could not find any blue cheese.

It appears the salad prep's Pollock-inspired frenzy with the balsamic vinegar made him forget to add any blue cheese. I got the sous chef's attention and asked if he would take a look and sure enough it was absent. Another customer a few seats down from me suddenly realized the same, but opted to keep eating sans blue cheese.

With a quick spoonful of crumbled blue, my salad was now complete. Unfortunately, the balsamic dressing overdose smothered the poached duck egg and drowned the delicate greens, otherwise this would have been a delightful salad.

In keeping with the waterfowl theme, I then ordered the Muscovy duck confit with butternut squash, parsnips, hazelnuts and creamed spinach as my main course. To go with this dish, I selected an '05 H Pinot Noir, as there were only two pinot noirs being served by the glass.

The menu mentions the bistro's focus on celebrating local seasonal fare, the duck confit being no exception. My plate arrived with the duck resting on a comfortable bed of butternut squash and parsnips with the leg covered in a generous application of a hazelnut, creamed spinach sauce.

Duck confit is one of my favorite dishes. And I prefer a preparation by a chef that understands leaving well enough alone. With this in mind, I should have known better in reading the description in the menu and discussing the dish with my server. But there's nothing I enjoy more than a glass of pinot noir with a well-prepared breast or leg of duck. I wanted duck, no matter how it came prepared!

Like the salad before it, the bistro's artful attempt at combining local fare with a leg of duck just seemed over the top. I ended up scraping much of the liberally applied hazelnut creamed spinach sauce aside to enjoy the confit in its pure state. The squash and parsnips offered a nice complement, but the entire dish just seemed like an example of trying too hard.

With some pinot noir left in my glass, I passed on dessert and sat there enjoying the remainder of my wine thinking maybe I should have ordered something simpler. I think The Dundee Bistro is worth a try, but if you're after simple food and/or more choices in wine by the glass, then this might not be the place for you. But then again, there are the pizzas to try along with a glass of Poggio Capponi chianti.