We heard from readers that the latest vintage of the Kirkland Oakville Cab was hitting stores, and we finally found it after multiple trips to Costco over the past couple of weeks.
This is one of our favorite wines in the Kirkland portfolio, and it remains really hard to beat for under $20. And that’s the price where this one lands again with the new 2020 vintage.
That’s refreshing to see as often these $20 Kirkland bottles will jump up a few bucks, and then down a couple years later. This one just stays pretty consistent which is nice (it was $1 less a few vintages back).
Historically, this wine has delivered time and time again. Here are our ratings going back to the 2013 vintage.
2019 91 points
2018 91 points
2017 90 points
2016 90 points
2015 91 points
2013 90 points
90+ points across the board. 91 the past few vintages, and this new vintage, while not quite up to the ’18 and ’19 level is very close and will keep the 90 point string going.
It’s also worth noting that 2020 was an interesting growing year in Napa. Wildfires affected some operations, while others were completely unaffected, or had already harvested their fruit. So yields overall were on the low side.
We’re not sure how that impacted the volume of this Kirkland offering, but we can confirm that this wine seems have dodged any major issues.
This wine is signature Napa, ready to drink right now. Beautiful nose of ripe black fruit, bell pepper and cedar; full bodied, loaded with flavors of black cherry, blackberry and plum; a touch of vanilla into the finish.
Really good juice and fun to drink. Maybe just a hair below the previous few vintages, but still a wine that many of you who have enjoyed previous Oakville bottles will enjoy once again.
CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 90 points (a Costco Wine Top Pick)
Costco item number: 866663
Purchased at Costco in: Atlanta, GA (Kennesaw)
Alc. 14%
Jason Grinstead
Wednesday 29th of March 2023
Wow, You are WAY OFF, this wine in the past was the BEST value Cab in the buiss. This is a travesty, the 2020 tastes like a cheap Hopland wine while it retains none of Oakville's qualities. Trash.
Chuck H
Sunday 5th of March 2023
I just opened a bottle of 2020 Kirkland Signature Oakville cab. My first impression was it had a mild smoke taint whic i noted to my wife, whom i opened the bottle for. I didn't realize the vintage was from the year of the Napa fire. So my impression was candid.
s
Wednesday 22nd of February 2023
I have been drinking wine with an evaluating palate for 30 years now and I have yet to taste a 2.4 year old cab that was ready to drink. That is what this is. As my palate has grown in so many ways, I have gotten to the point that most medium to full bodied red wines should be at least 7-8 years old before opening. This included some cheap plonk that was highly palatable after 18 years. Yes, many Napa wines are made to drink earlier than they are made in Europe, but still not anywhere near as young. The longer I kept Brunellos and other Sangiovese based wines the better they get (Brunello 12+ years). Likewise for cabs, tempranillo, Syrah, etc. Sure the light reds might do best at 5 years, but frankly many reds reach their peak at 12-15 years and stay good for another 5-10. I have not tried this wine but it is inconceivable that it would be good now. Steve
Les Kangas
Wednesday 22nd of February 2023
I disagree with your 91 rating of this latest vintage. I liked the wine and had a couple glasses, then decided to put the rest away for the next day. After I put it away, I decided I wanted a half glass, but went to the Kirkland Cabernet Box I have in the pantry and it tasted virtually identical. I put both wines at about an 87, but the box has four bottles for less than the price of one bottle of Oakville.
patrick
Wednesday 22nd of February 2023
@Les Kangas,