Blind Red Wine Smackdown (with one hand tied behind our backs)

Guests are bringing any medium to full-bodied red wine THAT THEY'VE NEVER TASTED BEFORE. On good authority, they've heard their choice is amazing! Whose advice do you trust? (Contact Wade for some good resources.)

At stake is the Smackdown Champion of Bigfork, a soon-to-be coveted prize, for the person who brings the WOTN (wine of the night) by consensus. Also the Yaak Tongue Award, for the person who has the unfortunate distinction of bringing the least favorite wine in the eyes of his/her friends.

Who has the palate of a yaak? Who found the QPR (quality to price ratio) wine of the decade? Who brings the stunning wine that no one in his right mind could afford?

It may be their favorite varietal or blend. It may be that it's something they have always wanted to try. Old or New World style, from a region they are familar with or not. But NO Pinot Noir this time, because that's a little too light for this night.

Guests are also bringing an appetizer that will accompany these Reds; and Wade will have enough pasta with marinara and meatballs, because it's easy and goes with reds. We must be sure that no one dies of starvation; that would be a buzzkill!

Scoring will be based on the 100 point system, assessing appearance, aroma, mouthfeel, taste, and finish. Appearance 0-5 pts, Aroma 0-15 pts, Flavor and Finish 0-20 pts, and Overall Impression 0-10 pts. We will use the American system of adding 50 basis points to the total. The prize will go to the person bringing the highest scoring wine based on the tally.

Additionally, each person will a) rank the wines from their personal favorite WOTN to least favorite, b) pick their 3 favorite wines with our food, and c) pick their 3 favorite wines to drink all by themselves.

Honorable Mention Wines:
1. QPR
The best QPR wine will be determined afterwards by dividing the average final score by the price of the wine. It is the smart buy of the Smackdown.
2. Food Friendliest Wine
The food friendliest wine will be determined by vote from the top 3 food friendly wines.
3. Wine to drink all by itself
Again, determined by a guest vote from the 3 wines ranked for this HM.

A nice white wine to ready our palates and get our creative juices flowing.

A look at the wines will determine which flight they belong in.

From the look of these babies, they should bring thunder!

And chocolate of course!