Flavors are black cherry with some ripe blueberry mid palate.  The tannins are soft and juicy, leading to a smooth ride all the way through; finishes up dry and lasting with some tobacco, a little pepper. 

This is a nice package, not trying to do too much.  It results in a very approachable wine that I think most fans of red wine would find to be a good buy.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 88 Points

Costco item number: 753996

I always like a nice Montepulciano, so I was really looking forward to sampling the 2011 La Quercia Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, which hails from the eastern-central part of Italy. A quick sniff revealed hints of cherry and oak, and the first sip was tasty – light and fruity.

Not too fruity, though. This is a medium-bodied, well-balanced wine with hints of cherry and a crisp, pleasant finish. I found it complex enough to pair with a tasty plate of fusilli with bolognese sauce without it being overwhelmed. Having said that, I enjoyed it even more on its own later that evening when I kicked back for a viewing of Francesco Rosi’s Hands Over the City, one of several memorable Italian movies celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

At $9.99, the 2011 La Quercia Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is kind of a tweener price-wise, but I was pleased to find that it compared favorably with similar wines in the $12-$15 range. Definitely worth grabbing a few bottles.

Grade: 88

— Ryan, Viva Italian Movies

In the past I was pretty much a Napa Cab guy, but the Spanish Tempranillo I bought opened me up to a wonderful world of new wines.

Since I live in Southern California, there are at least 8-10 Costco’s within an hour of where I work and live.  It’s amazing how you can walk into one Costco and find a completely different selection of wines than at a Costco 15 minutes away.  That being said, I do enjoy visiting the various Costco’s to see what they happen to have on display.

I noticed this wine about a month ago.  At $19.99, it checked the box of what I was willing to spend on a wine for this week, not to mention I was specifically looking for French wine.  As I normally do, I opened the bottle and poured a splash to taste as I decanted the rest.  The color was a very deep purple and the nose reminded me of a romantic, floral, light fruited wine that I was going to enjoy drinking.

At first taste, the wine was a little sweeter that I thought it would be with moderate acidity and tannins.  Mid palate you were greeted with flavors of plum and leather with a semi long finish.  After decanting it for about an hour, the sweetness subsided and plum flavors really took over.  I thought the wine would be a little out of balance, but after more time in the decanter it came together much better.  The wine doesn’t quite have the flavor of ripe fruit if that’s something you’re considering.

All in all, it’s a great wine for the price if you enjoy (or want to try) French wine that’s a little sweet, dark fruited with predominantly plum flavors and isn’t overly acidic or tannic (but not soft).  Rarely does a winery’s description describe a wine so well, so if you happen to find this one in your local Costco, feel free to give it a ride.

Overall 89 points for flavor and value.
— Adam L

Nose was tight at first, a little floral and pepper to note.  On the palate the fruit is just fantastic; ripe and pure blueberry, blackberry, cedar, a touch of green pepper.  I wanted to learn a bit more about the fruit and found the following line from the 75 Wine Company website: “…a blend from our Lake County vineyards, Mendocino fruit and Valley floor fruit from our beloved Napa Valley.”  Beckstoffer seems to own grapes everywhere and can really pick and choose how to make his wines to deliver great quality for the dollar.

Finish brings a touch of pepper, a little dry and very smooth.

This is a good buy and a solid California wine for the money.  It also seems to be pretty widely available at a lot of Costco stores so I hope you can find it.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 90 Points

Costco item number: 241276

Also note that the 2011 Kirkland Sonoma Chardonnay ($7) was named a Consumer Reports Best Buy.

It’s predominantly Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon with small parts of Petit Verdot and Cabernet France.  On the first pour the nose just jumped out of the glass with loads of peppery spice, but after a few hours the wine settled a bit.  In the mouth this one is medium in body and stuffed with fruit flavor; lots of dark fruit, plum, sticky and dry which made it awesome with steak.  This is definitely a food wine.

I’m a fan at this price point.  It’s a solid wine for the money; just not anything too over the top.  About what I expected.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 89 Points

Costco item number: 724744

This bottle is $17.99 at Costco, and it is a fantastic Pinot in my opinion.  It’s as smooth as smooth gets.  I usually hate using the word “smooth” to describe wine but in this case, it tastes near perfect.  This wine is fresh, opening up with red berry flavors with some vanilla, a little pepper, subtle tannins and a lasting finish.  I enjoyed this bottle with a spicy veggie stir fry and it was absolutely perfect.

I’m a big fan and plan on adding a couple to the cellar.  I’m also putting this on our Silver Rated wine list, which typically doesn’t see many wines under $20.  And if you didn’t read my review of the Firepeak Chardonnay, it is also a big time winner.  This is a winery to remember.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 92 Points
*Silver Rated*

Costco item number: 345740

Nose is fresh, floral and earthy;  in the mouth, the first thing you notice is the beautiful tannic structure.  This wine feels like it’s about 5 years older than it is since the tannins are so subtle; love this mouthfeel.  Fruit is dark berry, tobacco, a little black licorice and pepper spice, but young and fresh.  Finish is amazing for something in this price range.  Long, touch of spice, sticky.

I’m really impressed.  This one hit me right across the board.  I’m going to add it to our Bronze Rated wine list, and highly recommend you try it.  I’m going to buy a couple more to keep on hand.  These are the kind of wines I like to try a year or two later and see how they’ve changed.

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 91 Points
*Bronze Rated*

Costco item number: 345392

Nose of perfume and flowers, gets a little spicy the more you put your nose in. The wine is medium in body, lighter than I was expecting, and the lightness feels good in the mouth amid the firm tannic structure.  I think it would improve in the palate with a little more age and air time. Flavors of red berry, cherry and tobacco.  The finish is a little short and discreet. 

For the under $9 price, this falls in line with most other low priced Mendoza Malbecs – they are hard to beat for the money.  But going $5 up market could yield a wine with a lot more character.
 
CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 87 Points

Costco item number: 485363

Nose led with sweet fruit and hinted of a smooth texture and blackberry flavor.  Popped and poured my first sip which had the dark fruit spicy flavor and was smooth.  Mid palate you could feel it coat the back of your throat with a fine texture that I hoped meant a great finish was coming.  Finish was not as long and complete as I was tempted with, with some but not marked acidity.

I decanted it for about 30 minutes and came back a little disappointed.  The dark fruit was still there but was showing signs of being muted as was the spice that accompanied it on my first sip.  I let it sit another 20 minutes or so and it seemed to want to start to settle.  The Blackberry flavor returned when I came back to it with a lingering tartness that pretended like it was going to turn quite bitter, but never did.  Still I couldn’t quite put my glass down.

This one is easy to drink, but not for the above average wine drinker.  $13.99 price tag.

In my review of the 2011 vintage I compared this to the Kim Crawford and White Haven, two very nice wines that taste similar to this one for a few dollars more.  The 2012 retains the same sub $8 price as the 2011, and it really hit me right on the super hot sunny day when I enjoyed it.

Bright citrus flavor all over the palate; a lot of lemon and lime, and some apple and grapefruit. Finishes pretty quick with some tangy acidity.  I’m going to add this bottle to our Value Picks list.  As I said before if you like New Zealand Sauv Blancs, this is a no brainer. 

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 87 Points (same as last year)
*Value Pick*

Costco item number: 301904

It is signature Carneros from the start.  The nose is a good mix of floral aromas surrounded by a little citrus and oak that carry through to the palate.  In the mouth, this is rich and layered, starting with a touch of citrus flavor and moving to a buttery (but not too much) and creamy finish with subtle oak notes.  I get turned off by Chardonnays that overdo any one of these elements, but this bottle hits them all just perfect.  A real treat, and a solid addition to our Bronze Rated list.. 

CostcoWineBlog.com Rating: 91 Points
*Bronze Rated*

Costco item number: 681700

The Kindle version is only $3.99 and it includes information on major French wine regions including Bordeaux, Loire, Burgundy, Alsace, Rhone, Languedoc-Roussillon and Champagne.  This book is short and conscise, written to help the beginner wine drinker become more familiar with French wines that may seem overly complicated and complex.