One of the truths of wine is that certain areas have what might be called a “vocation of place.” For a myriad of reasons, a certain grape variety performs exceptionally vintage after vintage. Indeed, such a vocation of place shows itself not just over vintages but entire generations, even centuries.

European vineyards, of course, have the advantage of time. It’s no surprise to anyone that Bordeaux has a vocation of place for cabernet sauvignon and merlot. They’ve proved that over centuries. Burgundy’s vocation for pinot noir and chardonnay has been demonstrated for no less than a millennium. Germany has centuries of success with riesling, as does Tuscany with sangiovese.

Seeing this, it’s easy to assume that New World winegrowing has no similar vocations of place. Yet it’s not so. Although there’s no disputing that 500 years’ worth of proof is more persuasive than just a couple of decades, the fact is that vocations of place are easy to spot.

For example, no one disputes that Napa Valley has a demonstrated vocation of place for cabernet sauvignon. In fact, it’s been proving it for more than a century. Ditto for Australia’s Barossa Valley for the syrah grape variety (which they call shiraz), which it’s grown to great effect for 150 years.

Much more recently, Oregon has convincingly demonstrated a vocation of place for pinot noir and pinot gris. This is a more recent discovery, slowly unveiled over three decades but now indisputable. Certain pockets of eastern Washington, notably around Walla Walla, have shown an affinity for merlot that’s even more recent than Oregon’s experience, but already the jury is in.

How can wine tasters be so sure after (compared to Europe) so little time? Actually it’s easy. Precisely because we have so many examples of benchmark bottlings from Europe’s vast tradition, we know what a good one tastes like. If your kid starts playing the piano at 6 and within a few years starts sounding remarkably like a little Van Cliburn you don’t need much more evidence that the kid has a musical vocation. Ditto for fine wine. The challenge then, in both cases, is how far it can be taken.

Will Walla Walla, over the long term, create merlots of the same longevity, complexity, and detail as Pomerol? It’s too soon to say. Only now can we say with any assurance that Napa Valley cabernets can indeed compare with Bordeaux’s best. And that’s based on a relative handful of older Napa cabs such as Inglenook Cask Selection and Beaulieu Vineyards Private Reserve, among others, which have shown age-worthiness along with profundity. From that small sample we can only extrapolate that the much larger array of today’s Napa Valley cabernets will perform similarly well, probably even better. (To put this in perspective, I once put together a tasting of all the vintage-dated Napa Valley cabernets made in the great 1966 vintage. There were fewer than a dozen. Today you’d easily come up with several hundred.)

The wines that follow all reflect particular vocations of place for their respective grape varieties. None is expensive, which in an odd way further proves the point. Money can’t buy happiness, nor a vocation of place. Either you’ve got it or you don’t – and when you do, it shows itself at all price levels.

HERE’S THE DEAL

COTES-DU-VENTOUX 2003, DELAS

I never cease to be awed by the capacity of certain French wine regions to issue vast amounts of wines that, when well made, are astonishingly good for the money. Cotes-du-Ventoux, a district in the southern Rhone Valley, is a choice example. Grenache is the grape variety in this district, buttressed by syrah. Cotes-du-Ventoux has some 17,000 acres of vines, which makes it roughly half the size of Napa Valley. Yet it’s only one of dozens of districts in the Rhone region.

Now, nobody says that Cotes-du-Ventoux is one of the greats. Such accolades are rightly reserved for such small districts as Cote-Rotie and Hermitage, which are really just single vineyards compared to Cote-du-Ventoux’s sizable swath.

Nevertheless, you can taste a vocation of place even in Cote-du-Ventoux and this exceptional bottling from the shipper Delas proves it. The problem with Cote-du-Ventoux is lack of ambition: 82% of its production is sluiced into local winegrowers’ cooperatives. Rarely, if ever, is that a prescription for rigor.

However, when Cotes-du-Ventoux is good it can be very good. And strikingly cheap for the pleasure delivered. This 2003 vintage bottling – a hot year that created unusually intense, rich wines – proves this deliciously. Delas, an old shipper, was bought by the French Champagne house Louis Roederer, which invigorated it not only with money but also real standards. A new winemaker, equipped with a new winery, has resulted in some noteworthy accomplishment.

Cotes-du-Ventoux 2003 from Delas is all about the berryish delights of grenache, which is roughly 80% of the blend. The remaining 20% is syrah, which gives the wine backbone and a bit more substance – Beethoven to grenache’s Mozart. This is a drink-now summer red that’s unbeatable for the (little) money. $8.95.

KING ESTATE PINOT GRIS 2003

Oregon pioneered pinot gris in America, with the first commercial planting installed back in 1966 by the Eyrie Vineyards. Only now, after watching the success of Italy’s pinot grigio, notably the Santa Margherita brand, as well as Oregon’s profits, has California jumped on the bandwagon. The latest statistics show that pinot gris plantings in California increased 20% in 2004 alone.

In the meantime, Oregon has the jump on California when it comes to issuing good pinot gris. Probably the largest single producer is King Estate in the southern end of Oregon’s Willamette Valley. The 2003 vintage was hot in Oregon as well (it was a northern hemisphere phenomenon, it seems). But pinot gris, generally considered a cool climate variety, can take some heat. It ripens willingly, the resulting wine gaining depth and a thicker texture from higher ripeness levels.

You can taste it in this 2003 pinot gris from King Estate. This is lovely dry white wine, filled with the characteristic citrus scent and taste of pinot gris intermixed with just the barest hint of honey. Experience reveals that pinot gris is ideal for salmon. So if that’s on the menu, this is a can’t-miss choice. The price is tasty as well: $13.95.