Local Costco likely to seduce some

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The newly opened Costco in Redwood City boasts an impressive collection of top-tier wines that make a wine aristrocat in us salivate, including Chateau Latour, d'Yquem, Mouton, Petrus, Gaja, Grange, etc... The prices are quite attractive, but a savvy wine buyer beware - you can find better prices on wine-searcher.com. But more importantly, 9 out of 10 times your local wine merchants like Beltramo's, K&L, and Vineyard Gate will be able to offer these wines at lower prices, on top of all the attention and special treatment they will shower you with if you buy wines like these, especially in this economy. Do not be seduced by Costco's brand reputation for value pricing, especially as you get into multi-hundred $$ purchases. Remember you can always ask the wine merchant if they can order the wine for you, even if they don't list it in their catalog. (A quick reminder: the 2005 vintage in Bordeaux is legendary, and 2006 is good, especially from top producers.)

Enjoy the photo shoot (click on a photo to see it enlarged for more details):






























Happy shopping!

Comments

Jeff said…
Love your site...always a good read. A note about Costco...they frequently carry stuff like that just when opening to get people in the door, and then back off after a while. It's for the "Wow!" factor. I went to a number of Grand Openings in the Seattle area (I used to work at their corporate headquarters), and saw some crazy stuff--tractors, pieces of art by Picasso, and of course, a variety of wine. They may keep some of these wines, but most likely, they'll revert back to a more normal selection soon. The Culver City Costco by me is probably demographically similar to Redwood City, and just for comparison, they've had some of those wines, but not all (Beaucastel, 03/04 Pio Cesare--not '05, Mouton, Dom, Prum, Leoville Barton and Pichon-Lalande.
October 26, 2009 at 8:57 AM
Iron Chevsky said…
Good point, Jeff. Definitely, I have seen occasional gems in various Costcos, but not at this level. The highest-end Costco is probably in Danville (in the East Bay) - they regularly used to carry 1st Cru Bordeaux, but never this much variety. Interestingly, they all struggle to carry any impressive red burgundy. One time I saw Corton, that's it.
October 26, 2009 at 9:21 AM
Jeff said…
That makes sense though, no? I mean Burgundy has a way smaller production than any of these...

The other interesting thing to note is that Costco has been getting a lot of stuff that they wouldn't normally get due to the economy, but you're right that they aren't always the cheapest. They're fair (ie not gouging), but people are selling for less.
October 26, 2009 at 9:28 AM
Iron Chevsky said…
Jeff, agreed. I am not surprised that they are showing all these 2006 Bordeaux - there is a glut of those on the market after the sought-out 2005, and with the economy the way it is, a savvy buyer shouldn't rush. 2007 is supposed to be a pretty bad vintage in Bordeaux, so there may be even more bargains in that vintage for top Crus, especially with the highly rated 2008 knocking on the door.
October 26, 2009 at 9:39 AM
ridgeman said…
Bought a lot of 05 Bordeaux at Costco RWC. 05 Pontet Canet or Malescot for only $80 bttl. Lately their prices have not been so good, local wine shops with distributor close outs have been better!
October 26, 2009 at 8:01 PM
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