Gnarly Head, one of the great value Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon producers in the country, is conducting a “Rippin’ Ribs” tour to discover who has the best pork recipe. This is a “Cue” issue (as in Barbecue), and Gnarly Head has a five city jaunt starting in Memphis and ending in Seattle, with Charlotte, Chicago, and Washington D.C. in the middle, to find the best Cue masters who can showcase their “smoking skills.” The winner from each of the five cities meets in Kansas City for a further competition in October. The winner of this final event receives a grand prize of $5,000 in cash and a spot on the Gnarly BBQ Team, which will convene a World Championship of Barbecue in May 2012 in Memphis. Rib recipe worthies are encouraged to visit www.rippinribs.com and enter their recipe and get more contest information. Rippin’ ribs is serious, passionate stuff in the U.S. — a country obsessed with grilling food. Visit any Home Depot and see the vast amount of stoves, smoker and charcoal grills for sale. Doing “Cue” is a genuine piece of Americana. It’s also serious slow cooking, with professional and home chefs using special woods for their unique food fare. We’re in the era of celebrity chefs, like Bobby Flay, and there are more than 50 food and gourmet shows on television, along with a host of Cue cooking publications emerging each year. Ribs and beer move over: the country is drinking more wine with smokin’ ribs than ever. In fact, when the winning recipe is announced, how well it’s paired with wine counts for 25 percent (originality, taste appeal, and simplicity account for the remaining 75 percent). For Gnarly Head, it’s marvelous marketing. For much of the country, it’s fabulous eating.