Kirkland Signature Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Costco might just be my favorite place to buy wine. I don't think there's another place that has such 'hidden gem' potential.
Some of the Kirkland Signature Series wines are seriously undervalued and can take you by surprise with their quality.
This 2021 Kirkland Signature Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is one such wine.
In this review, I'll give my thoughts on why I like this wine so much.
Wine Specs
Appearance
It's a deep, dark purple. It's a bold looking wine which is just how I like them!
Nose
There's a bit of strawberry, some black cherry, and some plum.
This wine spends 16 months in French and American oak and you smell that oak influence too.
There's some light vanilla and also a slightly sweet smokey barbecue sauce type note. This is similar to a note I get with the 16 year old Lagavulin whisky but I've never had it in a wine before.
This wine needs decanted for a decent length of time. I had it sitting for an hour and the nose improves over this time. It also allows some of that alcohol vapor to settle.
Tasting
The cherry comes through along with blackcurrant, leading into some strawberry and lots of spice. The finish is of decent length and it's very satisfying. It's unusual to have such a substantial finish in a sub ten dollar wine.
I really enjoy the oak influence in this wine. I'm usually complaining about too much oak, especially with these cheaper wines, but they've done a great job here.
The oak adds nice depth and complexity to the fruit. The smoky note on the nose and then the spicy finish are two elements contributed by the oak that I really enjoy in this Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon.
The structure of this wine is also quite surprising for the price. It feels like a well made cab, which isn't always the case at this price! The tannins are firm and grippy, giving this full-bodied wine a lovely texture.
And there's acidity!
I've reviewed so many cheap bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon that are sweet and have little acidity. It almost seems like you're drinking a Zinfandel blend. But, this Columbia Valley Cab has great acidity that helps to emphasize that dark fruit.
That structure makes this a great Cab for food. Pair it with some charred red meat and thank me later!
Score
The Kirkland Signature Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon took me by surprise just at the right time.
I've tasted and reviewed so much sub $10 Cabernet Sauvignon recently and I was starting to lose a bit of faith. They were all slightly sweet, low acid, low tannin, crowd pleasing wines, pandering to the taste buds of the masses.
But this wine is authentic, traditional, uncompromising Cabernet Sauvignon. And very well made Cabernet Sauvignon at that!
It's bold, dry, fruity, spicy, and beautifully balanced.
This Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon is proof that great wine can be found on a budget and at just $9 this Cab is extremely undervalued!
If there's a better bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon to be had for nine dollars then I will be beyond shocked.
My score for the Costco Kirkland Signature Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is 7.5/10.
It really doesn’t get better than this for $9 when it comes to red wine.
I reviewed the similarly priced Yellow Tail Cab and Woodbridge Cab recently and this is just on another level.
