A big name at a low price thanks to Costco, but does it still measure up? We review the latest vintage of the Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon.
Cabernet Sauvignon from Oakville, Napa Valley, California.
This Kirkland Signature wine is available exclusively at Costco, selling for $19.99.
Despite the Oakville name on this bottle, this wine hasn’t always been a hit so let’s check out the latest vintage.
First up, the winemaker for this wine has jumped around between Glenn Hugo (2021) and Alison Crowe (2020, 2022, 2023). Confusing, yes, but both winemakers have impressive histories: Glenn Hugo at Girard Napa Valley as well as B.R. Cohn Winery and Alison Crowe at Garnet Vineyards and a stint at Bonny Doon with Randall Grahm. They also both have a number of other Kirkland Signature Napa and Cabernet bottlings under their belts.
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From the bottle:
The fruit for this classic Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon comes from select vineyards in the heart of Napa Valley. Oakville AVA is renowned for producing intensely concentrated, balanced grapes from well-drained soils of gravel and sand.
“This wine is a true reflection of the vintage with dark fruit aromas of sun-warmed blackberry, cassis and plum preserves that match seamlessly with vanilla and baking spice notes of toasted French oak.” Alison Crowe, Winemaker
Cellared and Bottled by DC Flynt MW Selections
14.5% Alcohol
The Oakville AVA is one of the most exclusive areas within Napa Valley. The home of Screaming Eagle, very few wines under $25 come out of this region; in fact, I only found 1 on Wine-Searcher that had an average price under $25!
Despite this we’ve seen a ton of Napa Valley bargains coming out of Costco and Trader Joe’s as of late. And not just Napa Valley, but the famed sub-appellations like Oakville and Rutherford.
Let’s see if this latest vintage can keep up the positive trend. We were really on the fence about the 2021 vintage of this wine, it just barely squeaked by with a Recommended Buy rating. The 2022 couldn’t even do that, falling below our standards to recommend thanks to a lack of complexity, green notes, a bit too much sweetness and some artificial flavors.
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The 2023 Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon opens with a pleasing aroma of ripe black cherry and blackberry along with vanilla, a bit of cedar, a bit of spice, a bit of mint and no green notes!
Soft and smooth, the wine features juicy fruit and similar flavors to the nose. It’s definitely a step up from the 2022 and it gains even more complexity as it has time to breathe. We also didn’t detect any artificial-like flavors. I’d even say this vintage has some good aging potential.
It ends dry, long, grippy and a bit oaky and juicy. It was just as good on day 2.
I can’t really say this is distinctively Oakville, but it is definitely a step up from the 2022 with more complexity and the removal of the unattractive green notes.
2023 Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon
Looking for more of the best Costco wines? Browse our multi-page listing of recommended wines along with more information on how to best shop the store!
You can also find more of our favorite Cabernet Sauvignon here.
Review Summary
Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon - Still Good?
A big name at a low price thanks to Costco, but does it still measure up? We review the latest vintage of the Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon.
7.5
Pros
- 91-93 points
- A big step up from the previous vintage
Cons
- Not distinctively Oakville
- There are probably better options at this price
And here’s our previous review of the 2022 vintage.
The 2022 Kirkland Signature Series Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon opens with a pleasant enough aroma of ripe black cherry and blackberry along with vanilla, a bit of cedar, a bit of spice and a bit of mint. It also has some green notes that we didn’t detect in previous vintages.
Soft and smooth, this wine is made in a very similar style to the 2020 and 2021 despite the varying winemakers (and both are very different than the 2019). It’s still a bit oaky when first opened but also definitely more fruit forward with a touch sweetness and a bit of an artificial flavor. Those green notes also continue when tasting.
Much like the 2021 this wine lacks complexity, unfortunately, where the 2021 made up for it in mass appeal we can’t quite say the same about this vintage.
It ends dry, long and a bit grippy. At $19.99 this vintage just isn’t good enough to get a Recommended Buy rating.
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