It brings us great pleasure to share our second Costco ‘Kirkland Signature’ Wine Report. Some people may not know that Costco sells more wine than anyone in America. While they might not have the range of wines that other retailers can boast, you know that you won’t experience a large mark-up with wines from Costco. While Costco has a well-crafted, albeit a bit small collection of wines of the world, most of the wines at Costco are sourced from wineries, rather than from a private label. Over the past ten years Costco has created their own label of wine under their ‘Kirkland Signature’ mark. Their wines, like all Kirkland Signature products, deliver serious value and have transformed the American wine market. We have been purchasing Kirkland Signature wines for more than ten years, and in general we have found these wines to show solid value and in some cases, good aging potential. Some of the wines can be outstanding in quality.
Given that Costco is based in our home state of Washington, it seemed appropriate to publish a wine report covering all currently available Kirkland Signature wines as of December 2019. We searched for these bottles over several Seattle area Costco locations. This year the reviews were solely done by Owen Bargreen and Tan Vinh, writer for the Seattle Times. Our individual reviews were shared after all of the wines had been reviewed and we were a bit amused that essentially every wine received a similar grade.
Reporting on the wines I continue to be highly impressed with the ‘Brut’ Champagne by Kirkland Signature not only in this collection of wines but the world of wines. You would be very hard pressed to find a better value in Champagne as there are virtually no Champagnes that deliver this quality at this price point.
The Prosecco offers a fantastic value at under seven dollars. If I were a starving college student, I would buy this all day. I was also impressed at the value at the 1.5L ‘California’ Pinot Grigio delivers with its good degree of ripe fruits and minerality.
For the second year in a row, one of the great value Sauvignon Blancs out of New Zealand is made by Kirkland Signature, their 20109 ‘Ti Point’ which really impresses at this very low price point, roughly five bucks less than Kim Crawford. This Sauvignon Blanc has the wonderful brightness and terroir that you would expect for a higher priced wine. I would steer clear of the 2018 ‘California’ Cabernet Sauvignon which is inexpensive but tastes like a headache in a bottle.
Here are my reviews of the Costco ‘Kirkland Signature’ wines.
NV Kirkland Signature ‘Brut’ Champagne ($19.99)- The NV Kirkland Signature ‘Brut’ Champagne weighs in at 12% alcohol and was produced by Manuel Janisson. The wine is a proprietary blend of Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. This shows a nice bouquet of baked apples, ginger and shades of sourdough bread that take their form in the glass. The palate shows a soft mouthfeel spoon entry, offering a good sense of brightness and salinity. Japanese apple, Challah bread and quince flavors that impress. This is a seriously good value that would be a great aperitif. Once again, this is one of the great values you can find out of Champagne as most wines of this quality cost at least twice this retail price. Drink 2019-207- 90
NV Kirkland Signature ‘Asolo’ Prosecco- ($6.99)- Weighing in at 11% alcohol, the ‘Asolo’ was sourced from a range of vineyards in the Asolo-Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. Sweetened apple and shades of candied ginger that mingle together in the glass. The palate has good astringency offering straightforward orchard fruits that complement the lemon zest edge. This is a sensational value sparkling wine at under 7 dollars as it is hard to find palatable sparkling wine anywhere near this price. Drink 2019-2022- 88
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘Grave’ Pinot Grigio ($5.99)- The 2018 ‘Grave’ Pinot Grigio by Kirkland Signature weighs in at 12.5% alcohol and shows very faint white flower and pear aromas that connect in the glass. The palate has good freshness but delivers very little in terms of richness with wet stone and light tree fruit flavors. That said, this is a solid value buy for a refreshing and lithe summer wine at a mere $5.99. Many wines at this quality are twice the price. Drink 2019-2022- 87
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘California’ Pinot Grigio ($7.99 1.5L)- The 2018 Kirkland Signature ‘California’ Pinot Grigio is a really good value at less than four dollars a bottle. Slightly sweet with a good degree of freshness and weight, the wine shows orchard fruits and shades of lemon infused shortbread cookie. Similar to the ‘Grave’ Pinot Grigio, this is a terrific value summer white wine. This wine is a essentially $3.50 a bottle. How can you find a white wine this good at this price? The answer is Costco. Drink 2019-2022- 87
2019 Kirkland Signature ‘Ti Point’ Sauvignon Blanc ($6.99)- The 2019 ‘Ti Point’ Sauvignon Blanc is a sensational value New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc at less than 7 dollars. Crafted by Tracy Haslam of Ti Point Vineyard in Marlborough, the wine weights in at 12.5% alcohol. The brightness on the nose is nice with grapefruit, Jalepeno pepper and shades of white flowers that all come together in the glass. The sense of freshness is really good here as lemon zest, kumquat and green apple favors play with minerals on the palate. This its a sensational value at a mere $6.99 that is perfect for a warm summer day. Drink 2019-2023- 90
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘Sonoma County’ Chardonnay ($6.99)- It is uncertain who made this wine, although the back of the label mentions that it was produced by Geyserville, California. Kirkland Signature has created a good value buy here. Weighing in at 13.5% alcohol the nose shows buttered popcorn and shades of baked apple that take their shape in the glass. The wine has a soft texture delivering slightly sweet orchard fruits with vanilla cream.You would be hard pressed to find a California Chardonnay this good at this price. Drink 2019-2023- 87
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘California’ Chardonnay ($7.99 1.5L)- The ‘California’ Chardonnay bottling has slightly more alcohol (14.5%) than their ‘Sonoma’ bottling. It is uncertain who made this wine, although the back of the label states ‘Cellared & Bottled by Dc Flynt MW Selections’ in Modesto, California. The wine has a soft texture but comes off a touch cloying with little richness or ripe fruit flavors. Drink 2019-2022- 84
2017 Kirkland Signature ‘Premier Cru’ Chablis ($17.99)- The 2017 ‘Premier Cru’ Chablis by Kirkland Signature was sourced from two different vineyards in Vau Ligneau and Vaugiraut and is made by Odil Van Der More. Weighing in at 12.5% alcohol, the wine begins with aromas of salted Marcona almond that mingles with suggestions of Gravenstein apple and cloves that all mingle in the glass. The soft texture really entices here. The salinity and bright minerality is really good as ripe green apple, green papaya and crushed seashell flavors all take their shape in the glass. The long finish lingers for nearly a minute on the tongue. Fantastic now, this beautiful effort will cellar well for the next decade. A Chablis at this quality would be twice the price. Drink 2019-2029- 91
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir ($12.89)- The 2018 ‘Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir was made by Barbara Ignatowski and was also bottled at DC Flynt MW Selections in Hopland, California. The nose shows cola and sweetened strawberry aromas that meld in the glass. The texture is very nice although the flavors are lacking a bit as this suffers from a lack of balance. There are considerably better wines by Kirkland Signature at this price point. Drink 2019-2024- 86
2018 Kirkland Signature Cotes du Rhone Villages ($6.99)- The 2018 Cotes du Rhone Villages is a really good value by Kirkland Signature. Made by Patrick Lesec, the wine shows good aromatic brightness with Provencale herbs, cigar ash, red currants and citrus rind that all come together in the glass. The freshness and richness of the wine is seriously good with Hoisin sauce and leather that mingles with the lovely herbal tones and red fruits. This is seriously good for the price. It is really hard to find a red wine this good at the seven dollar price point. The 2016 Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet Sauvignon would deliver similar value but costs $9.99 not $6.99. Drink 2019-2025- 90
2018 Kirkland Signature ‘California’ Cabernet Sauvignon ($7.99 1.5L)- The 2018 ‘California’ Cabernet Sauvignon was also made at DC Flynt MW Selections in Modesto, California. At 13% alcohol this delivers very forward red and dark fruit flavors that are excessively sweet with oaky tones. Tried out of the 3L box this tastes similar in both packages. The best used for this wine is for Beef Bourgignon as I would not recommend bringing this to a barbecue let alone a graduation. Drink 2019-2022- 83
2018 Kirkland Signature Malbec ($6.99)- Sourced from Mendoza, the 2018 Kirkland Signature Malbec is a sensational value at this price point. this wine delivers good richness and density with black tea, violets and blackberry pie with chocolate flavors. This is fantastic right now and will provide drinking enjoyment for another five to seven years. Drink 2019-2025- 90