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2013 Kirkland Signature Chateauneuf du Pape

2013 Kirkland Signature Chateauneuf du Pape

2013 Kirkland Signature Chateauneuf du PapeTake a look at this little treat that arrived in Costco stores a bit earlier than normal this year.  I’ve already had several readers write to me about it, and the reviews seem pretty positive.  This has historically been a great buy at $19.99, far below most other wines from this premier region.  Let’s take a look at my ratings history for the Kirkland Chateauneufs going back to the 2008 vintage:

2012 91 points

2011 92 points

2010 91 points

2009 91 points

2008 90 points

This newly released 2013 is spectacular, perhaps the best of the bunch.  I’d love to try the 2010 and 2011 again to compare (note to start cellaring these).  This bottle is produced by Domaine de Nalys whose wines are typically priced much higher than this one, so it truly is bargain central.

Perfume, violets, some all-spice aromas on the nose; the wine is hefty, big body and good depth; beautiful layered red and black fruit, multi dimensional, begins with more red fruit flavor and then progresses into more dark fruit.  Loads of blackberry.  A little wood towards the end; dry sticky finish.  This wine really permeates and lingers.  What an awesome wine for $20.

If you’re not into Chateauneufs, you might want to give this one a look.  It’s made in the Southern part of France’s Rhone Valley and they can use 13 different grape varietals.  There are six listed on the bottle here, and these are likely the dominant ones (Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, Vaccarese, Counoise, Mourvedre), with much smaller parts of many of the others.

I just saved this draft and returned after enjoying a glass over the course of an hour while I pondered the rating.  This is a delicious wine.  I’m stuck in the 92-93 range, and I think I’m going on the higher end of it.  Buy these while you can. Going on the Top Picks list of course.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 93 points

Costco item number: 777662

Purchased at Costco in: Atlanta, GA

Christophe

Tuesday 19th of May 2015

Had one bottle last week. Went back today and purchased a case. Love this . A true winner. Deep,complex, enjoy.

admin

Tuesday 19th of May 2015

Happy to hear it.

Bartoli

Monday 18th of May 2015

Good quaff here for sure. Not sure if it has the backbone to age, but who cares at this price. DC Flynt MW is the importer and I look for his name on other Costco wines as a sign of quality. Check out his Cuvee A'Daire Sancerre for an amazing Costco white.

admin

Monday 18th of May 2015

Thanks. I'll keep an eye out for the Sancerre

Josh

Friday 15th of May 2015

Couldn't agree more with this review! I bought a couple of bottles - and they tend to have pretty good stock this year (total of ~300 in my local Costco when they received both shipments). I really, really like this. It seems like every bottle (we've had four thus far) have been better - I think it just continues to outperform our expectations each time. Well rated and I can only hope they don't sell out before June...

John W

Thursday 14th of May 2015

This is not available anywhere, according to my Costco wine guy!??? What is going on here? Is it a regional exclusive?

maxi

Saturday 16th of May 2015

This is really location specific, last year, 2012, I think bay area got it first, at least based on what I know about other places. I would give it a month, for my area especially with all that problems in Oakland port that we have.

Josh

Friday 15th of May 2015

It's still real early compared to prior years. Call your Costco (even the main customer service desk) and have them check by item number (which has remained the same). Mine was kind enough to tell me # of bottles (cases?) by shipment. They got at least two (it's a store with high wine volume).

admin

Thursday 14th of May 2015

I'm really not sure. We are independent of Costco so we don't have any special visibility into the distribution. I've received quite a few notes from people who have found it. So hopefully it will come your way soon. It was released earlier this year compared to prior vintages so maybe it's cycling through now.

Pam M

Wednesday 13th of May 2015

Today I bought the last 2 bottles at the Cumberland Mall Costco, and we're enjoying one now. Yum!

Josh

Friday 15th of May 2015

Doh! Other stores still have more - Cumberland is a tough area to sell wine compared to Brookhaven, Perimeter, and Alpharetta, which have higher household incomes and are now competing for wine like this.

admin

Wednesday 13th of May 2015

I'm only kind of happy to hear that. The Cumberland store is where I shop a lot and I was hoping to pick up some more. But the benefit of being in Atlanta is we have 4 stores within a 20 mile radius. Glad you enjoyed it.

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