Fast Facts:
- 2019 Kirkland Signature Sancerre, Loire Valley, France ($15.79 @Costco in California – Item #1476058)
- 2019 Fleur de Napa Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, CA ($6.99 @Trader Joe’s in California)
Move over red-breasted robins, daffodils and crocuses. From here on out, the harbinger of Spring for lovers of Sauvignon Blanc may well be the arrival of Kirkland Signature Sancerre in the wine bins of their local Costco.
This is a new addition to the Kirkland Signature wine portfolio, and hopefully it will be an annual rite of Spring at Costco. It’s priced around $15 – entry level for good Sancerre. But this wine drinks better than mere entry level. It competes favorably with those priced around $30.
Tasting Notes:
I think the back label provides an instructive set of notes and expectations for how this wine presents and why: “Kirkland Signature Sancerre is 100% Sauvignon Blanc from the most famous appellation of the Loire Valley of France. Grapes are grown on the three terroirs found in Sancerre – chalk, flint, and clay-limestone- each adding a degree of complexity. Aroma: lemon and ripe citrus mixed with peach and white fruit. Palate: concentrated and refreshing with minerality and a fruity finish. Pairing: seafood, white meat and goat cheese.”
It’s just turned Spring, but this Kirkland Sancerre will make a nice poolside companion through the long hot summer to come. This is one to stock up on – now, before the rest of the Costco universe discovers it.
Half the price can be twice as nice!
When you want to conserve your precious stock of the aforementioned Sancerre, we have a really good alternative in this Napa Sauvignon Blanc. The Fleur de Napa Sauvignon Blanc is a Trader Joe’s exclusive, and makes for a good study in contrasts. It differs stylistically from Sancerre for sure. But the biggest difference is its price point. At just $6.99 the Trader Joe’s bottling is less than half the price of the Kirkland juice. But like the Kirkland, this bottle drinks like wines that cost at least twice as much in the Tasting Rooms of Napa. With said Tasting Rooms in Napa and elsewhere shuttered for the past year, you can probably thank the global pandemic for wine this good being sold at this price.
Tasting Notes:
This wine pours a nice clear color, a clean shimmering wheat yellow. It has a lovely nose of tropical fruit, peach, white fruit and Sprite, with faint notes of spice. But unlike cooler weather Sauvignon Blanc (like the Kirkland Sancerre and those from Marlborough, New Zealand) this one has some heft and weight on the palate. Its taste is a melange of tree fruits (citrus, green apples, pear and peach) and tropical fruits (pineapple, melon and mango) balanced by nice acidity. This would pair well with seafood, pastas with white sauces and soft cheeses.
Need More Wine Picks from Costco – or Trader Joe’s?
If your wine shopping excursions land you in Costco, prepare by grazing our most recent reviews of Costco wines here in our Lucky 13 list.
And if your shopping finds you at Trader Joe’s, you can find our Lucky 13 list of TJ’s wine here.
Cheers!