Anyone (particularly in California, primarily southern CA) find any good Chianti/Sangiovese deals at Costco lately?
Itās been mentioned up thread but Bibi Graetz āTestamattaā has been seen at many Costcoās at prices ranging from $30 to $50 per bottle.
And most locations seem to have Vitticioās Chianti riserva for $20.
Iām not as enthused about those producers but they seem to have their fans.
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So curiousā¦ if you all see a collectible wine at Costco, does that rule out you buying them direct from the producer at full price, again? I always wonder what effect seeing discounted wines like this has on buyers. I have to assume it is not a good one.
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Itās been discussed on here from time to time.
My personal answer is this: if Iāve had a good relationship with a producer and once or twice I see some of their bottles getting cleared out on a discount at Costco, LastBottle, etc., I donāt really think that affects my outlook going forward. I understand that there are going to be times a winery needs to move inventory like that, I donāt begrudge anyone needing to be flexible dealing with inventory and budgeting.
If I saw that a lot more often, to the point that I felt like the value proposition of buying direct was becoming poor, then it would probably affect my buying.
More broadly (not just Costco or clearance deals), if I felt like I was paying significantly more to buy direct and the wines were often available at retail, Iād probably drop the list. And for many wineries, thatās very much the case. Your typical big winery like Mondavi or BV, their discounted club prices are above, and often way above, what those wines sell for widely at retail.
I mean, itās for each person to prioritize cost, convenience, etc., but for me, I would never do that kind of deal. Even aside from the actual money difference (which would be far from life-changing), Iād just not feel good about it. Why are you consistently saying ā$60 but with a club discount itās $48ā when itās available on shelves all around for $35? That just feels crappy.
One last comment in response to your question, Roy: most of the time, wines at Costco are not priced at crazy low levels. Most of their wine is in the ānear but usually above WSPro lowsā level, and only a small percentage are really below good retail pricing elsewhere.
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I donāt agree, if I have been a loyal club member or list member for years and I see a flash site put the same wine up for $20, $30 or more for less than what I paid direct that is the kiss of death for me. Hey you can send your emails for every release or club release why canāt you send a note to your loyal buyers and give a heads up?
Now I know the flaw to this theory is the distributer dump on a wine store. Just my humble opinion.
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The short answer is it depends. WBers are certainly more knowledgable than most and I think a large variable is whether itās in distribution or not. If it is (like Ontogeny) then you should expect to see an occasional deal below DTC price. I would guess a much lower % here buy DTC for such wines for that fact.
If the wine had no/limited distributed and all of a sudden showed up discounted that would certainly raise some eyebrows. Even then, I donāt think itās clear cut whether to drop after the first offense as other variables come into play such as relationship, vintage, prior DTC price changes, etc. Second timeā¦
if i saw a couple bottles of your cab iād be equal parts shocked and giddy and immediately buy them. Figure it was a one off or special promotion and that i got to get a few more at a discount
Iād continue to order my allotment, unless it was a yearly thing at Costco with a significant price difference, which for the customer undercuts the need to do DTC at a premium to ensure access
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Like Chris said below, if a wine can consistently be found below winery direct at retail then it only makes sense to buy retail.
I think the larger issue is the run up in Napa pricing and wines selling for significantly less on the secondary market. If I can find aged wine much cheaper for auction than a current winery direct release price then itās time for me to stop buying direct.
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Casanova di Neri BdM for $62.99 at Las Vegas Costco
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100% Kiss of Death, agreed.
We bought Sinegal, direct from Dave Sinegal at his property right after they opened the doors. The 2013 CF and Reserve are great wines!
He personally told me, we wonāt sell our wine to Costco because:
We canāt make enough,
We want to keep the quality high,
We want to keep the brand as premium as possibleā¦
Blah, blah, blah.
The 2017 Estate Cab was $100/bt but showed up at Costco for $40 less than what I paid through the club. They made so much of the 2017 it was being dumped to restaurants for $35/bt, wholesale.
There is no way they had enough grapes on their property to make Estate wine for Costco distribution. Even the UPC codes on the label were different.
Cancelled as soon as I saw the first bottle at Costco. Never bought anything from them again.
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Another important note is that generally the wineries are not selling to Costco directly. Many may have a relationship with them and you will see wider distribution on certain brands on a national scale, but there are local and regional buyers as well which is why there is not as much as overlap on the true fine wine items. Another reason it can happen is that distributor is just dumping their excess inventory and taking the margin hit. For instance, I see Shea at a Costco near me but it is not to be found at any of the others I have been to, but I have yet to see it on a single post here, that indicates to me it is just a one off and not a broad agreement with Costco.
For what itās worth, I searched on āSheaā in my Google photos directory since I take pictures of wines/prices often, and found a Costco one from December and (earlier) two other ones from non-internet non-warehouse retailers, also discounted. Iām assuming you mean Shea Cellars, Oregon Pinot. I think this was just their Shea Estate vineyard.
The problem of channel differentiation for sales is not unique to wine though.
Costco, no, outside CA it has to go thru a wholesaler so costs are higher and someone on the chain outside Costco is breaking even or losing money.
Multiple online discounters, maybe.
I donāt think people really care. People who drink collectible wines are not immune to a good deal and would also likely know the state of the wine market and understand why wine āXā is at Costco. A savvy buyer if you will. I understand the fear though as a producer.
Portland airport store has the 2022 canvasback red mountain cab for $19.99.
Get it while,you can now that canvasback closed down in Washington.
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Decent deal at local costco. 2021 Chateau Figeac for 149. First time being able to try the chĆ¢teau and compared to 369 for the 2022 seemed like a good flyer to take a chance on. Very plush and beautiful red and dark fruit. Nose is a bit reticent but itās starting to open. Good start to the weekend
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Most of the ādeal sitesā or Costco operates on the inventory with unpredictable pattern. Hence I will almost never sure if they will stock again for next vintageā¦
Therefor I usually keep staying on the clublist, maybe email to ask reduce the quantity as the room is limited.
However, if a wine/producer is constantly showing up all over the place, with same or even lower price tag than the club memberās price, I would drop the club.
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