Costco Red Wines That Aren't Worth The Price, According To A Sommelier

Costco's wine department offers a lot of phenomenal deals, so many that you may assume that every single bottle they sell is a steal. Do a little digging, though, and you'll find that while many of their wines are deals that are too good to pass up, some are not. These wines are skippable for various reasons: you may be able to find them cheaper elsewhere, there may be better options, or they may just be unremarkable.

As a wine expert and frequent Costco shopper, I can't resist scouring the shelves for great wine deals every time I make a trip to my local warehouse. While there are some that I always pick up, like these great bottles that are under $50, there are others that activate my spidey-sense. With so many wines available, it's all too easy to get lost in the sauce (literally, in this case) and grab whatever looks good. Go in armed with some cold, hard information, though, and you can be sure that you're only getting the best deals and not wasting a penny. Here are five red wines I skip when I'm refilling my cellar at Costco.

One of the best-known wineries in the Paso Robles region of California, Justin has grown grapes since 1981 and is still going strong. The style of Cabernet Sauvignon produced in this region by Justin and other wineries is unique in the state, largely due to the area's intense temperature swings. Hotter and sunnier daytimes ripen the grapes, which means more sugar, higher alcohol content, and often sweeter, bolder flavors. Justin's entry-level cabernet is a prime example, typically pushing 15% alcohol by volume and showcasing plenty of ripe fruit flavors and rich oakiness. If you love a big, dense red, you're likely a fan of Justin.

However, I walk right by this wine because of the price. Compared to other big box booze retailers nearby, it's the same price or close to it at Costco. That doesn't mean you need to avoid it at all costs, just that you aren't necessarily getting a deal. At Costco, I opt for other California cabs that offer better value, such as the J. Lohr Seven Oaks, another Paso Robles Cab that gives you a similar experience at a fraction of the price. The Kirkland Signature series of Cabs is also well worth exploring.

Chateau Buena Vista is another rich California Cabernet Sauvignon, this one from Napa Valley. Like Justin, you won't find much of a deal on it at Costco. This is certainly a lovely Napa wine, particularly if you prefer your Cabs to be fruit-driven, lush, and velvety in texture. There is so much good competition in the category, however, that you can find other wines that are comparable in style and better value.

I was able to find Buena Vista's Cab for about a dollar cheaper at more than one retailer, checking both local stores and online wine shops. If you're a fan specifically of Buena Vista's Cab and don't mind shelling out an extra buck a bottle, by all means go for it. If you are a frequent buyer, though, that small discrepancy can add up, and so you may want to seek it out elsewhere. If it's simply Napa Cabernet that you're after, you have no shortage of wonderful options. During my last visit, I counted nine other Napa Cabs priced lower than the Buena Vista.

Generally speaking, the more expensive the bottle at Costco, the better the deal you're getting. Some of the highest-end offerings in the wine department sport the largest discounts compared to other retailers, making them excellent items to splurge on or add to your cellar collection. In rare instances, though, these pricier products aren't much to get excited about, and one of those is Penfolds Bin 389. 

Now, I'm not saying you shouldn't get excited about this wine. The Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz blend comes from Australia's most legendary producer, and it's a gorgeous, high-quality blend, but it can be found comparably priced at many other retailers. Depending on your location, you may even be able to find it cheaper elsewhere. While poring over Costco's premium red wines, this one stood out as a rare skip. It might be an excellent wine, but it's not a great Costco buy.

Costco sells Rutherford Hill Merlot at a pretty decent price compared to many retailers, though I was able to find some that had it just as low. It's a fine Merlot, classically Napa in style, with the traditional flavor combination of plums and chocolate with a soft, smooth texture. You can certainly do worse than this bottle, and Costco has it priced well. It's still usually a skip for me, though, and that's because it has a lot of competition.

This Merlot is going up against other domestic wines made from the same grape, but it also has Bordeaux to contend with. In my experience, Costco's range excels at Bordeaux wines, both in variety and price. While Bordeaux reds are generally blends, and some can be heavier on Cabernet, the options at this price point tend to be merlot-dominant. It's tough for me to reach for this bottle when there's a Saint-Emilion that's the same price or cheaper sitting right next to it. That's not to say Rutherford Merlot isn't a decent buy — it's just not at the top of its category.

Pinot Noir is notoriously challenging to grow and vinify successfully, so I'm always somewhat skeptical of the lower-priced wines from this grape. That said, there are some excellent examples of sub-$20 Pinots that are made with care and attention. Meiomi Pinot Noir, however, is a mass-produced industrial product that has so little resemblance to most other Pinot Noirs, it's hard to believe it's the same grape that creates the beautiful, elegant wines of Burgundy and Willamette.

Meiomi Pinot Noir contains a whopping 15 grams per liter of residual sugar, placing it firmly in the "off-dry" category, meaning it's quite sweet compared to most other table wines. It's also bottled and sold non-vintage, which in practice means the wine is meant to taste the same from bottle to bottle and year to year. Such a feat can only be accomplished with major intervention in the winery, which means lots of additives and industrial processes. Wineries aren't required to disclose their ingredients, so we can't know for sure what they do, but if you really want to experience Pinot Noir the way it's meant to be, there are so many better options out there. While Costco's price on this wine isn't bad, it can be found cheaper at other retailers, making it a definite skip.

I'm a sommelier and Costco member, so I've spent more than my fair share of time in the store's wine department, always looking for new finds and the best deals (and the best cheeses to pair with them). I currently work in wine retail, so I have solid and in-depth knowledge of brands, their relative quality, and average prices. To come up with this list, I searched the inventories of not just my local Costco but several others across the country, and looked for red wines that I typically avoid purchasing for various reasons.

Once I had that list, I compared prices at my Costco store, Wine.com, Total Wine & More, and wine-searcher.com, which shows an average price across multiple retailers. I also checked Warehouse Runner, which compiles prices of Costco items nationwide, to find the national average for each bottle. These five wines stood out for one or more of the following reasons: their Costco price isn't that different from other retailers, they are outshone by other wines in their category and price point, or they're just plain mediocre-to-bad wines that should be avoided.