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Costco sells a LOT of red wine under $15. But which ones are actually drinkable? I did the only reasonable thing: bought EVERY SINGLE ONE and blind-tasted them in a bracket tournament. Some of these wines made me question my life choices. One got so offensive I literally put it in timeout. But plot twist — a few of these cheap bottles are legitimately GOOD??
Let’s find out if any bottle under $15 can actually earn the crown. Spoiler: one does, and it might already be in your cart.
WINES IN THIS VIDEO:
All under $15, all available at Costco right now. Full list with prices in the video chapters.
I’m Dustin, and I’ve tasted thousands of wines—my mission is to make wine accessible and fun for everyone by cutting through the snobbery and complication with honest, helpful reviews for non-wine people.
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Watch my other videos here!
🍷 Sommelier Ranked Every Costco Wine (Ultimate Costco Wine Tier List) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkfkgLQJnMg
🍷 I Rank Every Red Italian Wine at Trader Joe’s (There Were 23!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24-npw_9SPo&t=480s
🍷 I Took On 21 Bottles of Trader Joe’s Pinot Noir in One Sitting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKhsSc4lx4s&t=203s
🍷 How I wish ORDERING WINE was explained to me as a beginner https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSxtx0vux4I&t=22s
🍷 Sommelier Ranked $400 of Trader Joe’s Bordeaux Wine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKaousRwylg
🍷 I Tested Costco vs. Trader Joe’s Cabernet Sauvignon: Which One Is Best? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Qvuj5zlhWE&t=5s
🍷 Is a $300 Champagne Really Worth It? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0i4s-ZD1mdk&t=782s
TIMESTAMP
00:00:00 Intro
00:00:35 Round 1
00:00:37 Chateau Ste Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 Columbia Valley | $9.99 vs. Beaujolais – Villages 2020 Louis Jadot | $9.49
00:03:56 Bogle Vineyards Phantom | $8.97 vs. Lucia Victoria Reserva Rioja (Tempranillo) | $10.99
00:09:17 Kirkland Signature Vacqueyras | $11.49 vs. Kirkland Signature 2023 Malbec | $6.99
00:13:05 Kaiken Indomito Malbec 2019 | $12.99 vs. Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | $9.99
00:17:14 Menage a Trois Red Blend 2022 | $6.89 vs. Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 (Columbia Valley) | $7.49
00:20:06 Gen 5 Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 California | $4.97 vs. Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 Washington State | $14.99
00:24:00 Josh Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Lodi | $11.99 vs. Columbia Winery Merlot 2021 | $12.99
00:28:16 Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 Sonoma County California | $6.99 vs. Octopoda Cabernet Franc 2023 | $8.97
—————–
00:32:59 Round 2
00:33:06 Beaujolais – Villages 2020 Louis Jadot | $9.49 vs. Bogle Vineyards Phantom | $8.97
00:36:39 Kaiken Indomito Malbec 2019 | $12.99 vs. Kirkland Signature Vacqueyras | $11.49
00:39:11 Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 (Columbia Valley) | $7.49 vs. Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 Washington State | $14.99
00:41:21 Columbia Winery Merlot 2021 vs. Octopoda Cabernet Franc 2023 | $8.97
——————
00:44:30 Round 3
00:44:52 Beaujolais – Villages 2020 Louis Jadot | $9.49 vs. Kirkland Signature Vacqueyras | $11.49
00:47:39 Columbia Winery Merlot 2021 | $12.99 vs. Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 Washington State | $14.99
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00:49:24 FINAL ROUND
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33 Comments
It’s funny, I can’t stand Josh wines but many of my friends love it.
This is the first time I've seen a video when it premiered! Can't wait to actually watch it!
I love the fact that you reviewed wines you can BUY at Costco vs. just Kirkland branded ones. This is much more useful to the average shopper.
Another entertaining and informative and cool 😎 video! Keep them coming!
This is a bullshit experiment, like comparing chicken to beef. If it isn't blind, then it is just a sham. WTF??? Joe the plumber?
Your winner is also one of my Costco favorites, but this video has enticed me to try some of those other wines on my next Costco run. Thanks for making this video!
Hey Dustin! Love your videos and I am a wino! You however realllly need to do something about your focusing! Either put the camera further so you get everything in focus at F11-F16 or put on the eye focus if you have a Canon camera. Just saying
Keep up the good work…
Love the wine descriptions!
Low Dye
Lol maybe do some more home work on Beaujolais. Its a sub region of Burgundy and its massive not just a village
I have not made it to the final four yet, but I hope the HÜTTE gets busted out for the epic showdown! Keep it up brother you are killing it!
Give me a closed,tight,young Spanish Tempranillo over anything from California any day of the week..
I liked Bogle in the beginning but now I find it too sweet..
However,I don't think they changed,I did..
Not sure about the wine but menage a trois's dont smell as nice as they look.. Now that me and the wife are in our 50's,i imagine they don't look as nice these days either,😢..
Wow,a Cab Franc for under $10..
Wow,stunning..
I have never seen a cheap ( under $15) CF..
I will be surprised if Jadot beaujolais gets beaten..
Such an amazing bottle for its price..
The 2021 Columbia Merlot was probably a distributor special – Columbia Winery (and Hogue Cellars) was sold by Gallo to Ackley last year; Columbia was a VERY slow selling product, and we all know how hard selling Merlot is….
Thanks for another great, informative video. I’ve watched your other ones as well and enjoy the exuberant irreverence, but I also enjoy the calmer tone of this one! Gotta go buy me some Kirkland Vacqueyras!
Question, why you don’t do the match by grape? Or at least with some similarities
Unfortunately, the lack of depth of field change when you lean forward and back makes this video unwatchable. Also it looks like you have a filter on the camera that is softening the image too much. I enjoy your content but you can find a way to have crisp focus throughout the shot.
Now i am nitpicking. There are no Bordeaux grapes in the Phantom. Zin and Petit sirah Come on Dustin get your facts straight. Keep some notes
Vacqueyras is predominately Grenache ! Come on .
We need to boost your channel
We always enjoy your videos, Dustin. The Kirkland Vacqueyras is one of my favorites as well.
Your work is very much appreciated. Keep it up! Thank you.
We love the winner too. We had it two months ago. So sad it sold out so quickly
That was fun. Great entertainment and I’m glad Vacqueyras won as I am a huge fan of southern Rhône GSM. Thanks for the video
This was awesome! THANK YOU. Very helpful and a lot of fun. Kirkland, Bogle, and other value wines, seeing how they stack up was great. I always appreciate how comprehensive you are. Thanks for another one.
We bought the Lucia Victoria Reserva Rioja last week and I thought it was outstanding. The nose was beautiful, and if you can just give it five minutes in the glass it will open up. And it didn't lose anything on day 2. We bought the Kirkland Signature Vacqueyras as well but have not opened it yet, but I have never been disappointed by it in years past. My favorite Kirkland wine is the Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It's just under $20.
Have you guys ever noticed on many cheap, factory wines, the leading flavor is vanilla? My guess is that many times that comes from the use of oak chips in an attempt to add something to a wine that doesn't otherwise have much going on.
Great and informative video but I think you said California was the biggest state in the country. That is not correct Texas is bigger than California and Alaska swallows both of them.
This is such a great video and so much fun to watch! It's so enlightening that you can actually get good quality wines for under $15, which is a fraction of the cost of overly manufactured, terrible wines like Meomi and Prisoner. I hope this helps people navigate the wine aisle at Costco and if people realize you can drink fine wine that's also affordable, maybe the wine industry has a chance!
That Vacqueyras is a great wine. It's produced by Guillaume Gonnet and with their label retails for $26 so it's a steal for $11.49 at Costco. I believe Gonnet also produces Kirkland branded Gigondas and CDP. Great video BTW.
to anyone watching this, the Louis Jadot chardonnay that is like $12.99 is amazing too. Blows many $30 whites out of the water.
This was great, thanks for sharing this. I'll be getting a few you had on this for sure. Thanks!