I realize that the selections at Costco stores likely vary based on state/region, etc, however, I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations of some good wines that have been purchased from Costco? Are any of the Kirkland label wines any good?

Thanks in advance.

I have had their Napa Chard @ $5 and both of their champagnes @ $19. I think that the champagnes are really nice for the price (considering it's champagne and not CA bubbles). The chard tastes like a $10 oaky chard. For $5, I like it.

Much of the Kirkland branded stuff is simply re-bottled/labeled juice from otherwise excellent wineries at significantly lower prices. Unfortunately it's hard to tell since often they will hide the winery's name (kind of how TJ's does it). Doubtful you will go far wrong by trying wines from grapes/regions you are familiar with. They CA bubbly is good as well - I think it might even be Mumm Napa. Their vodka compares quite favourably to Grey Goose (says my relatives who are vodka connoisseurs).

The Kirkland wines are pretty mediocre and lousy deals compared to some of the other stuff that they sell. They get some pretty good South American stuff in their these days. The Santa Rita Cab and the Santa Ema Merlot when they have it is pretty good. So is the Chateau Ste. Michelle Indian Wells from the Pacific NW (cab or merlot) when they get it.

I cruise through there weekly or so, but the problem is that if you buy a bottle to taste, you run the risk of it not being there at all the next time.

Oddly enough, the local Wegmans fishes the Costco prices and pretty much matches them on stuff they have in common.

I haven't had any of the Kirkland wines, but usually find good deals in there. Kirkland did have a CdP that was rated 91-92 points, or something like that. I tried to find it at our local Costco, but no dice.

rnatalie wrote:Oddly enough, the local Wegmans fishes the Costco prices and pretty much matches them on stuff they have in common.

I miss Wegmans. Nothing in the northern plains where I live now can even come close to it.

Costco is pretty good for wine. I'd say there are usually a few wines there that catch my interest on a given trip. In an average grocery store with maybe 5x or 10x the SKUs, there is nothing interesting. A real shop, though, will have dozens of choices. Costco does well given its limited selection, I'd say.

I haven't tried the Kirkland branded wines since they haven't hit my areas and varieties of interest. But I suspect they are solid at their price point provided you can get over the label. Costco tends not to sell utter crap due to their return policy.

They are very reliable at sourcing Chilean and Argentinian varietal wines, usually a solid notch above the entry level, say the big production stuff at $12-$18 stuff like Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexander, Santa Rita Reseva, and Marquis de Casa Concha. Occasionally there are somewhat more adventurous things like Barbera, Chenin Blanc, Chinon Rose, Barolo, Brunello, Pinotage, Albarino, Riesling and so on. The wine buyer clearly isn't narrow-minded, though they certainly work within their system sticking mostly to Cab, Chard, Merlot, Malbec and the like. If you find something there, generally you won't do better on price.

gcdyersb wrote:Costco is pretty good for wine. I'd say there are usually a few wines there that catch my interest on a given trip. In an average grocery store with maybe 5x or 10x the SKUs, there is nothing interesting. A real shop, though, will have dozens of choices. Costco does well given its limited selection, I'd say.

I haven't tried the Kirkland branded wines since they haven't hit my areas and varieties of interest. But I suspect they are solid at their price point provided you can get over the label. Costco tends not to sell utter crap due to their return policy.

They are very reliable at sourcing Chilean and Argentinian varietal wines, usually a solid notch above the entry level, say the big production stuff at $12-$18 stuff like Casa Lapostolle Cuvee Alexander, Santa Rita Reseva, and Marquis de Casa Concha. Occasionally there are somewhat more adventurous things like Barbera, Chenin Blanc, Chinon Rose, Barolo, Brunello, Pinotage, Albarino, Riesling and so on. The wine buyer clearly isn't narrow-minded, though they certainly work within their system sticking mostly to Cab, Chard, Merlot, Malbec and the like. If you find something there, generally you won't do better on price.

Sounds like a great place to get party wine. Solid, unspectacular, middle-American good-value. Makes business sense!

One of the nice things about Costco is that they don't mark up any item more than 14% and so if they get an exceptional deal on a wine, you will too. In fact, some buyers in the know have picked up some high end wines for very reasonable prices. But you have to know what you are looking at to recognize whether it's a deal or not. For instance, krugsters knows Chateau d'Yquem and recognizes when there is a good price for a vintage. Several Wooters have managed to score decently priced Yquem from their local Costco store. You just never know what you might find.

And I find that their selection is quite varied. Our local store has a great selection of South American, Australian, Italian and French wines as well as the occasional South African, Hungarian, etc. I have really enjoyed experimenting with the wines offered there.

Also, take a look at CostcoWineBlog.com for independent reviews of Costco wines. It might help you make some decisions. They also have an iPhone app.

pcuccaro wrote:Also, take a look at CostcoWineBlog.com for independent reviews of Costco wines. It might help you make some decisions. They also have an iPhone app.

I'm familiar with that site, unfortunately he seems to be in Cali or some place else because his selections (with the exception of the Kirkland stuff) is completely different than what we have in the NoVa Costcos.

richardhod wrote:Sounds like a great place to get party wine. Solid, unspectacular, middle-American good-value. Makes business sense!

A bit better than this, actually. The low to mid end party wines are there reliably. But for example I picked up a Caparzo Brunello a few weeks ago that by most accounts is a solid, traditional Brunello for a shade under $30. Not something a Brunello collector will poop himself over I'd guess, but more interesting than generic entry level Napa Cab made from re-hydrated raisins with acid additions.

They do stock some interesting stuff in the $20-$40 range. Selection was much better in CA, though. In NM there are less cool options, particularly with respect to small CA producers.

gcdyersb wrote:A bit better than this, actually. The low to mid end party wines are there reliably. But for example I picked up a Caparzo Brunello a few weeks ago that by most accounts is a solid, traditional Brunello for a shade under $30. Not something a Brunello collector will poop himself over I'd guess, but more interesting than generic entry level Napa Cab made from re-hydrated raisins with acid additions.

They do stock some interesting stuff in the $20-$40 range. Selection was much better in CA, though. In NM there are less cool options, particularly with respect to small CA producers.

I noticed about 5 different Brunellos in my Costco today. I'm going to have to go back when I can spend some more time to see if any of them are worth picking up.

I think Costco does an excellent job of selling interesting wines at good prices. If I wasn't so addicted to buying wines online, I'm sure I'd be buying more there.

I bought a couple bottles of Insignia for $60 less than I saw it elsewhere. Also found Caymus Select for "cheap," although I found it somewhere else at a similar price.

I'll have to look at some of their Brunellos the next time I'm there. It is pretty remarkable what one can find there, especially if you know what you're looking for. Would really like to find the Kirkland CdP locally.

redwinefan wrote:I noticed about 5 different Brunellos in my Costco today. I'm going to have to go back when I can spend some more time to see if any of them are worth picking up.

Wow, that's a lot of options. You must be in a wine savvy area (or wealthy one) for Costco to stock that many Brunellos! I think the sweet Moscatos and oaky Merlots sell best here, though it does mean the interesting wines linger in the wood boxes longer. It's not like in CA where you had to get it one trip or miss out when you go next month.

gcdyersb wrote:Wow, that's a lot of options. You must be in a wine savvy area (or wealthy one) for Costco to stock that many Brunellos! I think the sweet Moscatos and oaky Merlots sell best here, though it does mean the interesting wines linger in the wood boxes longer. It's not like in CA where you had to get it one trip or miss out when you go next month.

I've never noticed this many Brunellos at the store before, so I'm not sure what's up. Maybe it's for the holidays.

I bought a Kirkland Napa cab that I thought was excellent value for the price. A pile of 05 d'Yquem. A bunch of other one off bottles. Great place to buy wine

redwinefan wrote:I've never noticed this many Brunellos at the store before, so I'm not sure what's up. Maybe it's for the holidays.

before I started reading the woot boards I thought a Brunello was a kind of bear.

richardhod wrote:before I started reading the woot boards I thought a Brunello was a kind of bear.

In San Fran, it is.

richardhod wrote:before I started reading the woot boards I thought a Brunello was a kind of bear.

I thought it was a fancy boxed pasta.

bhodilee wrote:In San Fran, it is.

ha ha, it's a dwarf! (thank you for the correction, polarbear!)

La sua statura, acciò tu lo conosca,
non è sei palmi, ed ha il capo ricciuto;
le chiome ha nere, ed ha la pelle fosca;
pallido il viso, oltre il dover barbuto;
gli occhi gonfiati e guardatura losca;
schiacciato il naso, e ne le ciglia irsuto:
l'abito, acciò ch'io lo dipinga intero,
è stretto e corto, e sembra di corriero.
(Orlando furioso, III.72)

That thou may'st recognise the man, in height
Less than six palms, observe one at this inn
Of black and curly hair, the dwarfish wight!
Beard overgrown about the cheek and chin;
With shaggy brow, swoln eyes, and cloudy sight,
A nose close flattened, and a sallow skin;
To this, that I may make my sketch complete,
Succinctly clad, like courier, goes the cheat.

richardhod wrote:ha ha, it's a dwarf!

Fixed the link.

I liked the 2007 Kirkland CdP. Not to be mistaken for Beaucastel, but then again neither is the $20 price tag. Last night I tried the Kirkland champagne at a friend's NYE party. Not bad, really. But for less than ten bucks more I'll go for Nicolas Feuillatte (which I have not seen at Costco), or for California fizzies the Roderer Estate Brut Rose (ditto) or the California Mumm DVX (which I have seen at Costco).

Non-Kirkland wines I like that I've found at Costco at a good price: the Zaccagni Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (aka "the twig wine"), Botani dry moscato (if you haven't tried this, and the style sounds at all interesting to you, do pick one up if you can find it), Seghesio zinfandels, and the aforementioned Mumm DVX.

Costco prices for known wines do seem to be very competitive. I don't know the wine personally, but the highly-rated 2006 Flaccianello was recently at my Costco for a price at the bottom of the free wine-searcher.com price range. They also had the 2002 Dom Perignon for $119.95/bottle, which is currently only beat by three places on the free wine-searcher.com - and the $5 savings at the best one will be more than eaten up by the shipping, unless you either happen to live nearby or have the bankroll to buy your DP by the case.

mstein609 wrote:I liked the 2007 Kirkland CdP. Not to be mistaken for Beaucastel, but then again neither is the $20 price tag. Last night I tried the Kirkland champagne at a friend's NYE party. Not bad, really. But for less than ten bucks more I'll go for Nicolas Feuillatte (which I have not seen at Costco), or for California fizzies the Roderer Estate Brut Rose (ditto) or the California Mumm DVX (which I have seen at Costco).

Non-Kirkland wines I like that I've found at Costco at a good price: the Zaccagni Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (aka "the twig wine"), Botani dry moscato (if you haven't tried this, and the style sounds at all interesting to you, do pick one up if you can find it), Seghesio zinfandels, and the aforementioned Mumm DVX.

Costco prices for known wines do seem to be very competitive. I don't know the wine personally, but the highly-rated 2006 Flaccianello was recently at my Costco for a price at the bottom of the free wine-searcher.com price range. They also had the 2002 Dom Perignon for $119.95/bottle, which is currently only beat by three places on the free wine-searcher.com - and the $5 savings at the best one will be more than eaten up by the shipping, unless you either happen to live nearby or have the bankroll to buy your DP by the case.

Tell me about the Feullate. And how much it costs. NV is currently on at Tesco here in London for £15 (#22) along with Heidsieck Blue Top NV. Bubbly price war among the supermarkets...

richardhod wrote:Tell me about the Feullate. And how much it costs. NV is currently on at Tesco here in London for £15 (#22) along with Heidsieck Blue Top NV. Bubbly price war among the supermarkets...

I love the Feuillate. We first picked it up at the duty free in Iceland. I've seen it for $26 in the US, though retail is higher. Can't give you detailed descriptors off the top of my head but I do remember a good slug of Pinot noir (a positive in my book).

richardhod wrote:Tell me about the Feullate. And how much it costs. NV is currently on at Tesco here in London for £15 (#22) along with Heidsieck Blue Top NV. Bubbly price war among the supermarkets...

I love the Feuillate. We first picked it up at the duty free in Iceland. I've seen it for $26 in the US, though retail is higher. Can't give you detailed descriptors off the top of my head but I do remember a good slug of Pinot noir (a positive in my book).

i

aces219 wrote:I love the Feuillate. We first picked it up at the duty free in Iceland. I've seen it for $26 in the US, though retail is higher. Can't give you detailed descriptors off the top of my head but I do remember a good slug of Pinot noir (a positive in my book).

I love PN in sparklers. That rough and fun Domaine Chandon Blanc de Noirs is one of my favourite cheap fizzes (often are $15). Thank you! Got myself a bottle to try..

richardhod wrote:Tell me about the Feullate. And how much it costs. NV is currently on at Tesco here in London for £15 (#22) along with Heidsieck Blue Top NV. Bubbly price war among the supermarkets...

It's been a while since I've had it, but what I chiefly remember liking is that it has a nice crisp taste and finish. I like minerally wines, but I'm not fond of the heavy chalk finish that some houses produce.

I can get a bottle for under US$30, tax included - though it would make sense that it would be cheaper in England, as the transport is cheaper. But if you're not willing to risk even 15GBP to find out if you like it, I believe you should be able to find half bottles and even quarter bottles.

Looks like the thread has drifted a bit, but here's some info on the Kirkland wines:

Kirkland Signature's three-tier program

FWIW, a lot of the wines that my local stores carry have been listed on either WTSO, lastcallwines, or letspour. Costco does have them for a couple bucks cheaper, though. Prices also seem to vary slightly between those two stores:

07 Jordan Cabernet: 37.99 vs 34.99
09 Dr. Pauly-Bergweiler Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese: 21.99 vs 24.99
09 Ridge Geyserville: 27.99 vs 24.99
07 Mondavi Reserve Cabernet: 74.99 vs 79.99

I'd say maybe 40-60% of the inventory overlaps between the stores and the majority of that is in the lower-end (under $15) wines. Turnover is pretty frequent, so I try to stop by once a month or so.

I picked up a Kirkland Signature 2009 Napa Cabernet for $20 this week. This is the only Kirkland wine I've seen that's cost more than 8.99, so curiosity got the best of me. I'll try to open it tomorrow and post my thoughts here for those who are interested.

Tried the '09 Kirkland Signature Series Napa Cab tonight and I was very pleasantly surprised. Nobody is going to mistake this for a high-end wine, but it offers pretty solid QPR. Upon opening, there was quite a bit of heat on the palate and grip in the finish. After 20-30 minutes, however, it had a much different character:

Deep ruby color, prominent legs after swirling. Cherry and blackberry aromas with a little bit of toast. Red fruit tastes are upfront but they're properly ripe, as opposed to jammy. A fair amount of vanilla and cedar come through, so I wouldn't classify this as a fruit bomb. Tannins are very smooth, the finish is medium and some nice eucalyptus comes through toward the end.

It wound up being more balanced than I'd anticipated and actually seemed to gain in complexity over the evening (no decanting/aerating, just left the bottle open on the counter). For $20, I've done a LOT worse. I'll probably wind up getting a couple more bottles of this on my next Costco run.

richardhod wrote:Tell me about the Feullate. And how much it costs. NV is currently on at Tesco here in London for £15 (#22) along with Heidsieck Blue Top NV. Bubbly price war among the supermarkets...

I like that it almost spells Felate.

mstein609 wrote:I liked the 2007 Kirkland CdP. Not to be mistaken for Beaucastel, but then again neither is the $20 price tag. Last night I tried the Kirkland champagne at a friend's NYE party. Not bad, really. But for less than ten bucks more I'll go for Nicolas Feuillatte (which I have not seen at Costco), or for California fizzies the Roderer Estate Brut Rose (ditto) or the California Mumm DVX (which I have seen at Costco).

Non-Kirkland wines I like that I've found at Costco at a good price: the Zaccagni Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (aka "the twig wine"), Botani dry moscato (if you haven't tried this, and the style sounds at all interesting to you, do pick one up if you can find it), Seghesio zinfandels, and the aforementioned Mumm DVX.

Costco prices for known wines do seem to be very competitive. I don't know the wine personally, but the highly-rated 2006 Flaccianello was recently at my Costco for a price at the bottom of the free wine-searcher.com price range. They also had the 2002 Dom Perignon for $119.95/bottle, which is currently only beat by three places on the free wine-searcher.com - and the $5 savings at the best one will be more than eaten up by the shipping, unless you either happen to live nearby or have the bankroll to buy your DP by the case.

I wish my local CostCo carried the 2006 Flaccianello, although I should check out some of the other CostCos, as it sounds like the ones in nicer areas of town may have a better selection.

otolith wrote:I wish my local CostCo carried the 2006 Flaccianello, although I should check out some of the other CostCos, as it sounds like the ones in nicer areas of town may have a better selection.

What is it with Italians and naming wines that make you think of junk?

Despite the DC area being ranked as the #3 wine metropolitian area in the country, the northern VA Costcos in VA serving DC have a disappointing selection of wines. Also, prices on non-Kirkland wines no better than the sharpest-priced wine/liquor stores in DC. Very disappointing.

I've had two different kinds of Kirkland champagne, and I was not blown away by quality or price on either. Both sold for about $20.

I haven't seen the bargain Kirkland line discussed in this thread but at under $10 it would be nice to find some here to evaluate for serving at very, very large parties.

Cameron Hughes reps did do a roadshow here recently but that's one road i have no desire to walk down again due to prior bad experiences with their "higher" grades of wine (I like to think of CH stuff as "mystery wine"....kind of like the "mystery meat" which I used to eat in school cafeterias.)

smartheart wrote:Despite the DC area being ranked as the #3 wine metropolitian area in the country, the northern VA Costcos in VA serving DC have a disappointing selection of wines. Also, prices on non-Kirkland wines no better than the sharpest-priced wine/liquor stores in DC. Very disappointing.

Of course, it's inconsistent. I had some excellent Tokai there for next to nothing but it only appeared once. They get the Ghost Pines stuff in now and again which is good value wine but again it's spotty.

I wouldn't say it is "disappointing", just typical for Costco (it's a whole lot better than Sam's Club). The reason the prices aren't much different is the competition (Wegmans, Total Wine, etc..) tend to match Costco's price so on Costco's loss leaders.

Cameron Hughes reps did do a roadshow here recently but that's one road i have no desire to walk down again due to prior bad experiences with their "higher" grades of wine (I like to think of CH stuff as "mystery wine"....kind of like the "mystery meat" which I used to eat in school cafeterias.)

I've only had a few of his (not the numbered ones but the cheap flying winemaker stuff).

I don't taste out of NyQuil cups so I usually avoid the tastings at Costco.

smartheart wrote:
Cameron Hughes reps did do a roadshow here recently but that's one road i have no desire to walk down again due to prior bad experiences with their "higher" grades of wine (I like to think of CH stuff as "mystery wine"....kind of like the "mystery meat" which I used to eat in school cafeterias.)

It's definitely a hit or miss sort of thing. I tend to be more interested in his small production wines rather than the ones that end up making it to Costco which usually are in the multi-thousand case production variety.

Hey, but then again, I love a mystery.

someone was telling me that they've seen latour sold at costco before....

sukeiasa wrote:someone was telling me that they've seen latour sold at costco before....

Nope.com

that was my first reaction, until i saw a panerai up for sale right before xmas...

I'm currently at Costco #372 in Coon Rapids, MN and this location does not sell hard alcohol. Since they only offer beer and wine, the selection here is the best I've seen (amongst Costco stores.)