colonelgrape: 96. This was an outstanding bottle. It had everything I look for in a great Barbera: a combination of red and black fruit, minerals, lots of acid, and low tannins. It had great structure as well, hitting all the right places on the palate at the right times.  At $36 this is an expensive Barbera but I still say it’s a value bottle due to the quality. It’s hard to find any bottle of wine this good for $35…I’d highly recommend picking a few of these up. Top notch pairing for rustic Italian meals.

MobyGrape: 86. In my attempt to be more domestic I made some crazy Moroccan chicken skewer things (compliments of my more cooking-inclined friend at www.foodstorm.wordpress.com).  The last time I tried to make something involving wooden skewers I was trying to impress the Colonel when we were dating and set the skewers on fire.  I’m pretty sure that meal tasted like smoked shit, but he kindly ate it anyways and hey, he married me after all so let that be a beacon of hope for you ladies out there who aren’t exactly Suzy Homemaker.  While my cooking skills have improved somewhat, there’s a reason I write on a wine blog, instead of a food blog.  I didn’t think a white in our repertoire would stand up to the amount of stuff I put on that chicken so I boldly requested a red that was acidic, possibly a pinot noir or an italian that wasn’t a montepulciano.  I could hear the Colonel laughing all the way to the basement but he still showed up with something I kind of asked for so I’m taking it as a win.  This did pair well with the chicken, it had a tart kick to it but wasn’t too overbearing.  Reminded me of cherries right off the bat.  And after the meal the wine was still easy to drink, seemed to mellow out a bit. So try the skewers, and the wine.  And maybe keep a fire extinguisher handy, just in case.