I think we are in the middle of a resurgence in Australian wine. For some reason, it seems that outside of the occasional Shiraz I would encounter, I didn’t come across a lot of Aussie wines, whether I’m looking at Costco or elsewhere over the past five years. I know they’re there; I just wasn’t seeking them out or buying them often.
Maybe it’s me but now I’m not only seeing more Aussie wines, but I’m enjoying them more than ever. This bottle was interesting as the label doesn’t really call out that it’s from Australia, just the region in Southern Australia, “Adelaide Hills,” which many people might be familiar with.
I’m not sure I’ve had many Chardonnays from the area so was curious what was inside. Turns out this was an absolutely delicious wine from start to finish.
It pours a light pale yellow in the glass, distinctive nose that gives clues to its Southern Hemisphere roots, and then this wine is just clean as a whistle. Little to no oak with awesome flavor of white peach, nectarine and pear. On the finish a touch of creaminess and vanilla.
This style of Chardonnay is going to find a big audience; it’s versatile, food friendly, and hard to beat for under $15. Retail is $21, and Wine Enthusiast went 90 points, which is exactly where I’m going to end up.
This is high quality juice for the money, and the caliber of wine you’re just not going to find elsewhere in the wine world at this price. I’m on the lookout for Aussie wines now, more than ever before; this bottle confirms it's a worthy hunt.
CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 90 points (a CostcoWineBlog Top Pick)
Costco item number: 1365789
Purchased at Costco in: Atlanta, GA
Alc. 13.5%
Maria Jette says
I’ll buy it for the labels alone— HILARIOUS! Note the baby bottle and the kangaroo head in the family crest: that’s the “first drop” for the “Mère et Fils” (Mother and Son) of the vineyard’s name, and the Aussie-ness that’s cleverly concealed with all the faux-Frenchiness of “appellation non controllée”! And then the BACK LABEL— délicieux, especially the wine pairing with « bonnet de douche, » aka SHOWER CAP.
Rip Light says
Hi: Thanks for this blog, which I enjoy reading. I have a disconcerting problem though: the branches of COSTCO that I frequent here in the Bay Area have almost never had ANY of the wines you review. Interesting that local COSTCO wine buyers appear to have that much flexibility - and good for them! But, man, do I want to try some of your recommendations.
Editor says
Hi,
The hardest part about running this blog is availability of the wines at various Costco stores. Believe it or not I’ve had readers in Tokyo find the wines we review while readers one state away do not find the same wine. It’s really hit or miss. Unfortunately, there isn’t a great solution. Part of me wants to work with Costco and see if I can acquire distribution info and include in the reviews. But from day one on this blog I’ve wanted it to be 100% independent, so that we can say or write how we truly feel about the wines without any outside influence. We want you to avoid buying bad wines as much as find good ones.
To get distribution information would start to infringe on that principle.
I started the Costco wine forums to help people share finds in their local markets, hoping to crowdsource the knowledge and availability.
I wish there was a better solution. I hope you continue to follow the site and I hope some of our reviewed wines turn up near you soon.
Andrew