This is straight up a super solid wine at a great Costco price. Certain to be a hit for fans of wines from Washington State's Columbia Valley.
There is a subtle difference though to this wine that wasn't apparent at first. About 4 years ago we reviewed a similar wine, branded North 46 from Washington State, but it was listed as coming from the famed Red Mountain area.
The price was $1 more, and we really enjoyed the wine, going a solid 90 points. A $9 wine from Red Mountain is practically unheard of.
This latest vintage (we hadn't seen it since) removes the Red Mountain designation, so the fruit must be sourced from elsewhere in the Columbia Valley.
In the end, that's fine, because the wine was once again delicious, actually exceeded our expectations a bit. Costco's price is $7.99.
In the glass, the wine is a deep ruby; a little funky on the nose at first, almost reminded us of a Bordeaux; juicy dark fruit flavor of blueberry, blackberry, anise; medium plus to full body; some woody, vanilla notes into a dusty finish.
Red Mountain or not, this is a fantastic buy on a delicious red.
CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 89 points
Costco item number: 1837390
Purchased at Costco in: Atlanta, GA (Cumberland)
Alc. 14.5%
Marsha says
Tried it last week in Bradenton Fl. Got excited bc I remembered the previous review 4 yrs ago on the Red Mtn. Ava one. Bought a case. Returned 9. Tried to like it but it just doesn't hit the mark for a good Columbia Valley Cab.
It's not bad, but even at this price point it doesn't do it for me. A bit rough around the edges. I like a red that makes me go ahhhhhh, hmmmm or wow. This one was meh.
JoAnn Padgett says
I did not think you could return wine or alcohol
Sandi Pink says
I couldn’t agree with you more. This is by far the worst wine I’ve ever had. I was in disbelief that this was even sold by Costco.
Andrea says
You have to let it breathe... a LOT... and then it’s amazing!
Director of Wine Consumption says
Scored a bottle of this in Lutz, FL last week before seeing this review. Wife and I both thought it was excellent and an outstanding value. Will be picking up a couple of cases next week.