Going to Denver area for a week in late spring. Will be driving from Denver to Breckenridge, then to Boulder. Would love to stop by a Costco in Denver or on the way to Breckenridge to pick up some decent drinking wine and other supplies (bottled water, etc.) for the trip. I know SOME of the Costco stores in the area (or at least around Boulder) don’t even carry wine. I once went to the Colorado Springs store and it had a terrific wine selection…
Any thoughts on Costco locations in the greater Denver area that are likely to have a bigger/better wine selection than others?
The Park Meadows Costco is probably the best, it is probably 30 minutes outside of the city without traffic. The Arvada Costco has a pretty slim selection - I rarely find anything there I’m really interested in. If you’re heading down to the Park Meadows store, you will likely be going right past the Total Wine located off Colorado and I-25 in case you don’t find what you’re looking for.
Have fun in Breck / Boulder! Spring has brought great weather so far.
EDIT: The Arvada Costco is right off I-70, so much closer than Park Meadows. An alternative to driving out of your way (assuming you’re not staying in Denver) is Applejack Wine & Spirits. They’re located just off I-70 right before you hit the foothills. You could hit the Arvada Costco, then Applejack, then be on your way. Their prices won’t be as good as some of the deals you find at Costco, but they are generally pretty solid.
Thanks, that’s helpful and I’ll consider both options. From the airport, it looks like the drive south to Park Meadows only adds 20 minutes to my drive to Breck, so I’ll probably do that unless there is any additional reason I wind up wanting to go into the downtown Denver area. Then, as you say I can always stop at Total Wine if needed.
Just keep in mind time of day as well. Rush hour in Denver may not be as bad as, say, LA, but a 20 minute time difference at 1pm could be easily an hour or longer if it’s 5 pm. Probably won’t be much of an issue if you’re taking 470 all the way around.
FWIW, I live 6 miles from the park meadows Costco and the selection is decent. There is a second Total Wine very near the Costco. The tolls on 470 from the airport to that Costco is around $9 and might not save you any time over 225 to 25.
https://www.argonautliquor.com/ is closer to a straight shot from the airport to Breck and has a far better selection of wines than Costco in Lone Tree including a large walk-in cooler on the second floor. It’s in the central city and the old joke was their slogan should be “where the wino meets the yuppie”. The area around the store is interesting, but in the daytime, safe. I used to go there all the time and I lived to tell the tale.
The best Costco in the state for wine is in Eagle and serves the Vail and I guess Aspen markets. Never could figure out why they built a Costco in Eagle, but there it is. Screaming deals on spirits too.
Costco in south Denver is OK, the Total Wine nearby is better, but neither is worth driving all that way south from your intended route. Just my two cents.
I shop the Park Meadows Costco, and in my opinion it’s really only worth hitting up for wine if you’re already going there and you have no time to shop for wine anywhere else. I-70 goes right by AppleJack, I’d go there personally especially if you prefer old world wines.
The only problem I ever had with Applejack’s is they displayed things alphabetically. So you couldn’t just go to the cab or Syrah section. You had to look all the A’s, B’s etc. Drove me nuts. Do they still do that?
Yes they do, very annoying. Not a big deal if looking in Burgundy or Oregon, but the California section is unbearable. I live about 2 mile from them and go in pretty regularly.
That being said if driving from the airport it would be a much better stop there than at Costco in Park Meadows. Would be faster to stop at Costco on Wadsworth and Apple Jacks on Youngsfield then drive South to Park Meadows. Molly’s also has a decent selection and is very close to I-70.
Is that Eagle Costco wine area still open? The last time I was there they told me they were going to be closing. If that was that was the best, I thought it was pretty skimpy.
Raid your own cellar, pack the bottles selected in styro-case (s) seal thoroughly, and check them, in addition to luggage, at your airport!
Remember, they were packed by the winery (originally)!
The expense of shipping, on the airline, is negligible as compared to buying wines anywhere in Colorado, especially costco! The costco wine components in Colorado are privately owned, and stock mundane selections, in my opinion!
Don’t want to hassel the packed styro cases?
Ship to me, pick them up at my home, or I’ll deliver to you on your journey to Breck! It would be my pleasure! Also, promise NOT to taste your wines!!! Shipping cost-$45.00 more or less per twelve bottle case!
Also, if you are interested in dining out while in Breck, https://www.rootstalkbreck.com is supposed to be very good if you in to beer you’ve got to go to https://www.outerrange.com/ in Frisco. I also think the advice to go to Argonaut is a better choice than park meadows Costco.