A Vino Duo reader raved to us about a Primitivo he and his wife swooned over from the Puglia region of Italy so we set out to find it at our local wine shop. Primitivo is a southern Italian grape variety that is the 'kissing cousin' to Zinfandel. Gary and, especially, Lisa, are Zin fans, but had yet to find a Primitivo that matched Zin’s spice and charm.

Tracking down the Layer Cake Primitivo (2006) proved quite the challenge. ''It's like a cult wine," one shop owner told Gary. "We can't get it, and when we do, it flies out the door." The next shop didn’t have the Layer Cake Primitivo either, although the owner talked up the winery’s Shiraz. She also recommended an alternative Puglia Primitivo, A Mano, which we bought in hopes of going mano-a-mano ☺ with it and the Layer Cake

We finally tracked down the elusive but inexpensive ($15.99) Layer Cake at Blanchard's liquors in Jamaica Plain. Cases of the Primitivo lined the shelves but we limited our purchase to two bottles, figuring we could always head back for more if the wine lived up to its promise.

Armed with the 2005 A Mano and the 2006 Layer Cake (not apples-to-apples but the closest we could get) we set up a blind tasting. As often happens, Gary and Lisa had wildly different reactions to the wines on the first night, but came close to a consensus on night two.

Layer Cake Primitivo 2006 ($15.99)
For Lisa, the Layer Cake was all look and no show. A striking ruby red, it sat pretty in the glass. But where was the nose? Where was the flavor? Was this really worth schlepping and searching all over the Boston 'burbs??

Gary begged to differ. He picked up spice and pepper on the nose, good fruit on the palate, and mocha on the finish He pronounced the Layer Cake "very nice, '' which is not exactly a rave but miles from Lisa's cavalier "there is nothing to recommend here."

On the second night, the tables turned a bit. Lisa still found nothing on the nose, but pronounced the flavor "Much Improved." Oddly, the Layer Cake lacked any hints of a Zinfandel’s spice or smokiness. Gary's night two experience found him noting an ''off-soil'' taste. But he still picked up satisfying mocha flavor with an "explosion of anise."

In the end, we agreed the Layer Cake Primitivo did not live up to its advance billing and would not be joining our list of “must buys.”

A Mano Primitivo 2005  ($11.99)
In the glass the A Mano lacked the Layer Cake's deep ruby beauty But what it lacked in looks, it made up for in personality, at least to. Lisa. "This actually tastes like something," she noted. "Nice body, good fruit, with a hint of Zin-like spice. But no finish."

Gary was having none of it. "Tastes like dishwater. Puckery dishwater."

On night two, the profile changed yet again. Lisa thought the flavor improved but the wine lost some of its smoothness. It was a bit rougher, more rustic on second tasting.

For Gary, yesterday's “dishwater" comment was a memory. The A Mano redeemed itself, with "rich fruit, some spice, and leather on the nose.''

The final verdict, A Mano is the better wine for a casual pizza, pasta, ribs night. Its bottle lacks the cute cake illustration on the front, but it's easy to find and a pleasant, drinkable wine.