Despite soaring temperatures and unbelievable humidity, my friend and I enjoyed the event. Live music was presented continuously from 11:30 a.m. until 10:00 p.m., though we were too busy planning projects and hiding out under shade trees to listen too closely to any one band.

The food at the festival was mostly really good. The organizers chose mostly locally-owned restaurants (Lola, Chefs de Cuisine Association of St. Louis, etc.). Each vendor offered something that was suitable to people of very different palates, from fruit and cheese plates to Chinese to crepes, and price points were spot-on; ranging from $1.00 to $6.00 per item.

I opted for a savory crepe from Lola, and oooh, was I satisfied. It was fantastic. I’m used to spending $6.00 at festivals for a hot dog and soda. This time the same amount of money bought me a delectable lunch from Lola. For another dollar, I bought a truly refreshing strawberry lemonade from O’Charley’s.

Unlike the cool, coordinated white tents used by the other food and wine vendors, Palermo’s Pizza was served from a mobile marketing trailer covered in photos of pizza and of the Palermo’s logo. I’m sure the pizza tasted fine, but the trailer the pizza was served from didn’t fit in with the crisp, preppy feel of the event. St. Louis Uncorked should opt for one of the many fantastic local pizza joints in the city next year.

The festival itself was free, and while the food was reasonably priced, the wine was a little bit on the expensive side for being served outdoors in plastic cups. $5 bought four tasting tokens, which seemed like a good deal until I realized that two ounces of wine was valued at two tokens.

If you’re having trouble visualizing what two ounces looks like, picture a shot glass or check out this picture:

My $5.00 in tokens bought me tastes of a 2007 Argentinian Malbec from Graffigna and 2007 Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon by Santa Rita. I liked the Chilean Cab, but not enough to buy a bottle. The Argentinian Malbec and I could have spent more than two tokens worth of time together. I’ll likely seek a bottle of this wine out at some point soon.

On a whole, StL Uncorked was a lot of fun. The organizers did a nice job with the venue (Soldier’s Memorial), the view of the Arch, and a wide enough street to allow plenty of people to move through comfortably. The food was great, and the vendors were friendly. I’ll definitely try to attend again if they hold the event in 2011.

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For more information about St. Louis Uncorked, click here.

For reviews of and directions to Lola, click here.

The Best 12 inches in the Midwest, photo by smalltowngirl

This is BBQ we’re talking about. 12inches of BBQ kabobs for just $5.00. Yee-haw y’all. Welcome to Missouri!

Sweet Meat Stix, photo by smalltowngirl

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For more blogs about the Apple Butter Festival:

Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival

Baetje Farms

The Perfect Gift

Apple Butter Festival Train

Please, Feed the Animals

Fish Face, photo by smalltowngirl

Just in case anyone’s wondering what’s on my holiday wish-list, I think it’s safe to say that I need one of these blue-eyed fish-faced things. I don’t know what they are, but if this dude drove all the way to Kimmswick, Missouri from Florida to sell them, I most certainly need one.

Fishin', photo by smalltowngirl

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Check out my last blog on the Kimmswick Apple Butter Festival.

I wandered, taking pictures, allowing my mind to wander, too.

I ate festival foods, and I felt the warm sun bring freckles to the surface of my cheeks. I met with old friends, and I paid way too much for the biggest, fanciest candy apple I’ve ever seen.

I bought gourmet cheese from an organic goat farm in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri, and I took notes as the farmer talked about what recipes I should try using the cheeses in. I’ll spend my day tomorrow cooking. I also went to a coffee shop, where I read the RFT and blogged and drank coffee.

I wandered across town to my favorite record store, where I listened for hours to CDs by bands I’d never heard of while strangers trickled into and out of the store. Somewhere inside the sounds of the music I recovered something of mine that I didn’t quite realize I’d lost in the first place.

I may blog as smalltowngirl, but this small town girl’s heart belongs in a bigger city.  Even though I miss Brooklyn more than I thought possible, I know that it’s time that I found ways to make St. Louis my home.