Winegrowers, understandably, do not want you to be overly concerned about vintages. After all, as with dairy farmers, their output is regular. And it’s got to be sold. Furthermore, today’s winegrowers like to point out – with some justification – that vintage variations are nowhere near as extreme today as they were before, say, the 1970s.

There’s some truth to this. Prior to the 1970s – and really, much later than that in many European districts – winemakers lacked the necessary equipment and advanced technical education to cope with a less than ideal vintage.

Take the 2003 vintage, for example. Global warming or no, there was some kind of powerful mojo going on in the Northern Hemisphere that year. It was the hottest vintage on record almost everywhere in Europe. Burgundy, for example, experienced its hottest vintage since 1893, with August temperatures repeatedly spiking past 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Indeed, all of Europe was practically prostrate from the heat.

Six thousand miles away, Oregon – another supposedly cool-climate bastion of pinot noir – sweltered in almost identical heat, the thermometer popping past 100 degrees with dispiriting frequency in August. California saw a major heat wave in September, with temperatures reaching as high as 107 degrees in Napa and Sonoma.

A few decades ago, winemakers would have struggled, mostly unsuccessfully, with such intense heat. They lacked the temperature-controlled fermenting vats and high-tech heat exchangers that are commonplace today. (It wasn’t so long ago that winemakers, in desperation, used to throw blocks of ice into their fermenting vats as a crude form of temperature control.)

Today, the results are different. Vintage variations are indeed both fewer and less extreme. But they still do matter. In 2003, for example, the best wines from various European precincts, as well as in Oregon and California, can be superb – even extraordinary. Want proof? Try the following wines, which are standouts.

HERE’S THE DEAL

TORII MOR “OREGON” PINOT NOIR 2003 Oregon’s 2003 vintage pinot noirs, not unlike the similarly heat-challenged 2003 red Burgundies, are a mixed bag. Some are overripe, tannic, and baked. Yet others deliver gloriously rich, detailed fruit with a flavor density (in the mid-palate) and richness never before seen in Oregon pinot noir. The smart pinot noir lover has to tiptoe through the offerings.

Torii Mor, a small Oregon winery, managed to snatch more than just victory from the hot breath of 2003’s summer heat. In this pinot noir designated “Oregon” (the winery also issues named-vineyard bottlings), Torii Mor has created an exceptional pinot noir.

Pinot Noir is famous for creating wines that display “black fruit” flavors (black cherry, black raspberry) and “red fruit” flavors (strawberry, red raspberry, wild cherry). This 2003 pinot noir from Torii Mor is a pure “black fruit” play. It’s unusually dense, rich Oregon pinot noir redolent of black cherries, black raspberries, and even a touch of black currant. Tannins are evident, but not intrusive. That said, this is a pinot noir that will do nothing but improve for at least several years if stored in a cool spot.

If you’ve steered clear of Oregon pinot noirs because of prior disappointments (Oregon pinot noir is dogged by a reputation for variable quality), I can only say that this is one to chase down. You’ll be surprised – and very likely delighted – by its intensity, density, and sheer pinot noir goodness. $22.95.

ALBARES “MENCIA” 2003, DOMINIO DE TARES There can’t be too many wine lovers who can say that they’ve heard of the mencia grape variety. I certainly hadn’t until recently. Even in 1986, when Jancis Robinson’s book, “Vines, Grapes and Wines,” first appeared, Ms. Robinson gave the mencia grape – a specialty of the Galicia region of northwestern Spain – just two paragraphs in a discussion that made it sound more like a unicorn than a grape.

“Because winemaking is so unsophisticated in this northwestern corner of Spain,” Ms. Robinson wrote, “and stretching with other varieties is so commonplace, it is difficult for the outsider to knowingly taste varietal mencia, but the grapes are said to be delicate, sweet, and aromatic, the wine correspondingly delicate, alcoholic, and aromatic with fairly light color.”

How times do change. Based on the various bottlings of pure mencia from Domino de Tares, a new winery created in 2000 that has caused a sensation among fanciers of Spanish wines, it’s now possible to say that a) the winemaking is stunningly sophisticated and b) mencia actually creates a deeply hued red wine of striking richness and flavor dimension. Delicate it’s not.

Dominio de Tares offers at least five different versions of mencia, all from the Galician district of Bierzo. The differences involve vine age (there’s a “Cepas Viejas” or old vine bottling for 60-year-old vines) and oak treatment.

The bottling called Albares might be considered the “secret” bottling, as it’s something the producer offers only to the American market, and that only in certain markets. (New York is one of the favored few.)

Intended as a kind of introductory wine, Albares sees no oak at all, which doesn’t really sit well on the Spanish palate. They like oak, as do we Americans. But the importer, Classical Wines Ltd., rightly recognized that the tangy, berryish, detailed taste of mencia can really shine without any additional oak flavor or polish. And without the oak it could be cheaper, which was also part of the inspiration. However, the producer had a proviso: If they were going to offer a “naked” mencia, then they would insist on using better-quality, rather than lesser, grapes – never mind the intended low price.

As a result, Albares 2003 comes from 40-year-old mencia vines grown on slate soils, which impart a distinctive, attractive, minerally savor. This is rich, bright-tasting red wine that’s destined for grilled meats, barbecued everything, and any other food (burritos, bean stews) that demands a straight-ahead red wine of considerable flavor, dimension, and savor – but not, ahem, delicacy. This is a steal in delicious red wine. $11.95.