The Wine Pair Podcast

Barolo Battle! Costco Kirkland vs. Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve!

• The Wine Pair • Season 1 • Episode 192

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We had to try it. We couldn’t help ourselves. And, can you blame us?!? Afterall, who can resist a $20 Barolo from Costco’s Kirkland Brand, or Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve label?!? Not us, and we bet not you either. The question on your lips, of course, is “are the wines worth their $20 price tag?” Look, you need to listen to the episode to find out, but here are a few things that might entice you even further. First, the wines are both from Serralunga d’Alba, both have pretty decent ratings from online sources, and both are made by very reputable and well known Barolo producers. So what could go wrong?!? We’ll give you our honest opinion about these wines, and we’ll also tell you about what all the hubbub is about Barolo. BTW, if you didn’t know, Barolo is considered by the majority of wine nerds to be the best of the best of Italian wines. We also have a scintillating wine in the news story about bribes and luxury watches, and an interview with a member of our tribe! Wines reviewed in this episode: 2020 Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo from the Bersano Estate Lot #6, 2019 Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo

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Show Notes

Episode #192: Barolo Battle! Costco Kirkland vs. Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve!  00:00

Hello Vino Veritas! And welcome to The Wine Pair Podcast. I’m Joe, your sommelier of reasonably priced wine, and this is my wife and my wine pairing partner in crime, Carmela. And we are The Wine Pair!

If you are new to our podcast, here is what you can expect. If you love wine and want to find great wines at affordable prices, and you want to expand your wine horizons, and you want to have some laughs and fun while doing it - then you are in the right place! Each week we explore a different wine varietal, style, brand, or region of the winemaking world, and learn about what makes them worth knowing about. And then we taste 2-3 of those wines that are reasonably priced to let you know if they are worth your hard earned money. If that feels like your vibe, then we are super happy you are here. And, we are proud to say that Decanter Magazine calls us fun, irreverent, chatty, and entertaining.

Carmela, Barolo is a favorite wine of ours and our family, but we have never done it on the podcast before, and there is a really simple reason why. It is hard to find a Barolo under $25, let alone one you would want to drink. We have done an episode on Nebbiolo, which is the grape that Barolo and its cousin Barbaresco are made from, and that was way back in January of 2023. We are also fans of Nebbiolo, and regular Nebbiolo can be a fantastic wine and well suited for the podcast because it can be delicious and reasonably priced. But Barolo is just often too darn expensive to bring onto the show.

And that is why doing an episode on Barolo from Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand and Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve house brand is perfect, because it may be the only way to get Barolo on the podcast.

However, Carmela, before talk about that we have a few important things to do, and the first is to talk to Hasini and learn a little bit more about the really cool name she came up with for our tribe this week, so here we go . . .

Interview with listener Hasini for our tribe name this week 03:05

That was super fun, and we are really grateful to Hasini for joining us this week and sharing her cool name for our tribe. And, super quick, after we did the interview, Hasini asked if we could do a little plug for her friend Tom from Tom Eddie Winery. She says it’s a small, family-run production and a real hidden gem in Napa. Some of the most beautifully crafted wines she’s ever tasted!

We love doing this segment and so if you have been thinking about reaching out to us, please do. We are getting a little low on tribe names, so we could use some more ideas, and if you send us a tribe name idea, we’ll ask you if you want to be on the podcast. You don’t have to do a recording with us, but if you do, I promise, it will be easy and fun! And, we’ll even let you plug something you want our listeners to know about!

Now, if you remember, Carmela, the focus of this episode is to try out these inexpensive Barolos from Trader Joe’s and Costco Kirkland brand to see if they are any good, and we also need learn more about what Barolo is and why it is such a big deal. But before we do that, we need to learn about another scandal in  . . .


WIne in the news this week: Buyer at major California grocery chain took bribes to carry certain wines, prosecutors claim 08:11

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/buyer-major-california-grocery-chain-220222292.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucGVycGxleGl0eS5haS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAFvs1aOlVNOvCgdzIwhAfH1t0J9j0bHJ4AuZXfb8_VtXS0teNabmgLnZkyAte_CZkf0v1ujb7sLegbAJmhoazeoGXms3zvIE4SwRM54TY8nswVckUDs7ALgZRcDQAOPGZPUExu49zzqa9Tqv3qKBckFPVHZNJuwtkVAYuz5mgNz1

Alright, Carmela, buckle up, because this week’s news has all the right ingredients for a soap opera: bribes, big retailers, and, wine. The article comes from the San Francisco Chronicle by journalist Esther Mobley, which you can find a link to in our show notes, and the title of the article is”Buyer at major California grocery chain took bribes to carry certain wines, prosecutors claim.”

You heard it right, and I am not surprised at all to find this since I am often perplexed by the crap for sale at grocery stores. A former wine buyer at a major California grocery chain, believed to be Patrick Briones working for Albertsons and Vons, has been federally charged with accepting bribes in exchange for favoring certain wines on store shelves. We're not talking about a modest thank-you bottle here and there; Briones allegedly took luxury watches, prepaid gift cards worth thousands, and all-expense-paid vacations to Maui, Pebble Beach, and Las Vegas.

Briones worked at Albertsons or Vons, it is not clear which store, but they are both owned by the Albertsons parent company, as an assistant sales manager for wines until spring 2024. His alleged favors came at the expense of fair competition, with some suppliers paying up to $10,000 just to have their bottles put in prime positions and pushed for purchase.​

One supplier, Bryan Barnes, already pleaded guilty. He was tied to Deutsch Family Wine and Spirits, the folks behind household names like Josh Cellars and Yellow Tail. Yep, two wines that I think are frankly shite, and we did an episode on Josh wines a couple of years ago and it is still one of our most visited episodes on the Google machine because it is popular despite being crap. Alongside Barnes, Matthew Adler, an executive at Deutsch, admitted to bribing distributor employees with all sorts of luxuries, including a Bentley rental and high-end watches, to promote their products through the supply chain. Prosecutors say it cost somewhere around $360,000 total.​

The U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, or TTB, which oversees fair alcohol trade, views such “undue marketing practices” as undermining the independence of buyers. And that’s a big deal for Californians who pride themselves on their wine. Albertsons quickly responded saying the behavior was “wholly inconsistent” with company policies and that they’re cooperating with authorities, but the damage to reputation and trust is already done.​

What’s next in this story? The buyer hasn’t entered a plea yet as far as I know, so we will keep an eye on it, but I think this goes on more than we think. 

So now, Carmela, I gotta ask you: What’s your gut reaction hearing about a wine buyer literally vacationing on someone else’s dime to push bottles? Does it make you rethink what’s on your grocery store shelf? How much does this affect your trust in retailer wine selections? 

This is why we sometimes do episodes on big brands found in grocery stores, because we know a lot of people buy them, but honestly, it is also why we just stay away when we are buying wines for ourselves, and why we just don’t do episodes on them very often because they are really a waste of time.

(Bread and Butter PR reached out for an interview with their winemaker and we had to politely pass)

But we are not here to talk about crappy grocery store wines like Josh, and we are not here to talk about bribes or shady wine distributors. Nope. We are here to talk about the great Italian wine, maybe the greatest of all Italian wines in Barolo, and we have two Barolos to taste and review, one from Trader Joe’s private label and the other from Costco’s Kirkland Brand to see if either is worth your hard earned money . . . 

But first . . . we have to do our shameless plug.

Thank you for listening to us and for supporting our show, and remember, we buy all of our own wine so that we can give you real and honest reviews, and we do all of the writing and recording and editing to  bring you a show every week because we love you all, and all we ask you for in return is that you please follow or subscribe to our podcast and also please leave us a nice rating and review  to help us grow our listeners - and a huge thank you to all of you who have done so already! 

You can also follow us on Instagram at thewinepairpodcast, and on Bluesky. You can contact us on our website thewinepairpodcast.com, and you can sign up for our email newsletter there and you can also visit our “Shop Wine” section where you can find links to buy the wines that we rate as buys in each episode. 

And we want to make content you care about and you like, so send us a note or DM us and give us some feedback or let us know if there are wines you want us to try or wine making areas of the world you are curious about - and we’ll take care of it! joe@thewinepairpodcast.com

  • East Idaho Foodies who reached out to us after we sent out our newsletter because our first article was on the decline of wine sales, and they said they had listened to an interview where times like these can actually be good for smaller, independent wineries who cater to their fans, which is cool.
  • Timmy who had to call out to us that he thought the name Grand Crew was pretty fucking good


And, as we do every week, we’ll tell you someone we think you should recommend The Wine Pair Podcast to - because the best way for us to grow listeners is when you tell your family and friends about us - and this week, we want you to recommend us to anyone who has been wondering if they should trust Trader Joe’s brand or Kirkland brand Barolo is any good, or if they just are wondering what the hell the big deal is about Barolo anyway, because they may like this episode.

RESEARCH ARTICLES AND LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE


Topic: WTF is Barolo, and why is it hard to find inexpensive Barolo? 16:44

Carmela, let’s learn about just what the eff Barolo is, because, again, it is one of our favorite wines and it is the wine your dad loves and, because of that, the wine that really made me appreciate how good wine could be.

Barolo comes from the Piedmont area of Italy which is in the northwest area of the country in the foothills of the alps - in fact, piedmont means foot hill - and is maybe its most highly regarded wine making region. Barolo is specifically from the Barolo area of Piedmont near the town of Alba, so it is one of those wines that is named for the region and not the grape which is always confusing. Barolo is considered by most to be Italy’s top red wine, and it is often nicknamed "the wine of kings, the king of wines.”

Barolo is also a wine that carries Italy’s highest designation for wine - DOCG - and follows very strict rules. Here are some

  • Barolo must be made from 100% Nebbiolo grapes, and all vinification and aging must take place in the Barolo area. 
  • It must be aged for a minimum of 38 months after harvest, so just over 3 years, with at least 18 of those months in wooden barrels. Wines aged for at least five years (62 months) may be labelled Riserva.
  • The wine can only be made from grapes grown in 11 recognized communes (municipalities)
  • The vineyards must be on hills. In fact, the code excludes things like valley floors, flat areas, wet areas, areas without sufficient sunlight, and areas with fully northern exposures.
  • Vines must be planted at an altitude not less than 170 meters (or 550 feet) above sea level and not more than 540 meters (1770 feet) above sea level
  • The harvest cannot be more than 8 metric tonnes of grapes per hectare - for Americans, that is 17,637 pounds for every 2.5 acres. For single-vineyard Barolo, the yields must be lowered to 7.2 metric tonnes or 15,073 pounds
  • Wines must be bottled in dark glass bottles of the Albeisa shape, and you will generally find the word Albesia on the bottle. This is the same for Barolo. 

There are no specific rules related to the type of oak that must be used or the type of yeast that has to be used, but there are some traditions around it. In terms of barrels, there was evidently a thing called the “Barolo Wars” in the 1970s and 1980s where the more traditional winemakers preferred large oak casks made with Slavonian oak, which is a lighter flavored oak, and that along with the larger size and older barrels reduced the oak influence. Meanwhile, modernists started using smaller French oak barriques which imparted more oak flavor. Today, many producers follow a middle ground. There were no yeast wars, however, most producers avoid commercial yeasts and prefer to focus on indigenous and natural yeasts. 

You may also notice that some winemakers in Barolo who expect their wines to age for a long time will use longer corks, because they will keep the oxygen out of the wine longer. And, on a side note, your dad always gets pissed when he brings bottles of his expensive Barolo to restaurants and the waiter does not pay attention when he tells them, over and over, that the cork is extra long and will break. And they generally break the corks. 

Now, let’s talk about Barolo and aging. If you are a bit of a Barolo snob like me and your dad, you would never, ever drink a Barolo younger than 10 years old, and even that would be considered pretty young. Unfortunately, the wines we are drinking today do not fall in that category, but that may be ok because they are not top of the line Barolos. But, on the topic of aging, are you curious about why is there is long cellaring expectation with Barolo and if it actually makes any fucking difference?

First, Barolos have a lot of tannin, sometimes known as the “iron fist.” Barolo tannins are considered some of the world's most powerful, often called angular and firm, and when they are younger, they are especially austere. Now those are some 10 cent wine words. When you hear angular, we often say the term sharp, and that often happens with high acid and high tannin wines, which Barolo is. The opposite sensation would be soft, smooth, or supple. Austere is sometimes described as tight, hard, or even thin, and super dry tannins like the wine has not opened up. Again, this can happen with high tannin and high acid wines that just need more age. 

Second, as we mentioned, Barolo has a ton of acidity, sometimes called brisk, which makes it great with food, and really helps it age, but it can come across as very tart or again sharp tasting.

What age does for these wines is it mellows them out, and makes them more velvety, softer, and rounder. I remember bringing a 12 year old Barbaresco to some friends and noting that the wine felt like a hug. I will say that some of the friends did not appreciate wine the way I do, and one even started talking about the legs on the wine which made me want to take the glass I had poured for her away. 

Now, the age at which a Barolo should be drunk really depends a lot on the vintage and the winemaker, but we would say don’t drink a Barolo younger than 7 years old. The sweet spot is 10 to 15 years for most Barolols, but many really great Barolos can age for 20-30 years, and when they do, they get some of those flavors wine nerds call tertiary that I tend not to love because the can be a bit raisiny, and musty - like the wine got too much oxygen. Again, Carmela, your dad loves that stuff. 

If you want to get a sense of what a Barolo tastes like but don’t want to spend the money, Langhe Nebbiolo gives you a good introduction. Just know that a Barolo and a Barbaresco are big wines, but not like a flabby California Cabernet Sauvignon. The classic aroma of Barolo is tar and roses. That gives you a sense of the kind of wine we are talking about. This is a thinking person’s wine. These are firm, complex, exciting, and challenging wines. 

And, this is why it is so hard to find an inexpensive Barolo. These are big wines that have very strict winemaking rules from a very limited area and that need a lot of time to age. A classic supply and demand issue. 

If you find a low-cost Barolo, it is likely to come from a larger producer and found in a larger retailer, or a grocery store, or a mass retailer like Costco or Trader Joe’s or Aldi. Boutique wineries are going to be more careful with their production, and may even forgo producing a Barolo wine in a bad year. Larger producers, particularly cooperatives and communes, are going to be more willing to produce lower cost Barolos because they are trying to move all of the grapes they get, and they are likely to blend grapes from various vineyards because their thing is volume. Additionally, selling directly to big retailers like Costco removes the middle-man or distributor, so there is a 15% or so reduction in price just from that, which is why those retailers can sell the wines at such relatively low prices.

So, does that mean that a less expensive Barolo is going to be bad? No, not at all. It will probably be really good to great. But it is not going to be made with the same care or craftsmanship, and the very specific vineyard, as a smaller, more boutique winemaker. I will say, however, you should probably buy a $20 Barolo over a $16 Josh Cabernet Sauvignon every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

But that’s enough information. I think it’s time to learn a little more about the specific wines we are drinking today. Whaddya say?

Barolo Wines We Chose for This Episode 25:57

As usual, the wines we have chosen for this episode are under $25, and both of them should be relatively easy to find because obviously I bought one at Costco and the other at Trader Joe’s. Now, Barolo is not hard to find if you go to any half-way decent wine shop or a good grocery store with a good wine selection or a good Italian restaurant. But, you will be unlikely to be able to find one that is highly regarded under $50 at a grocery store, or under $100 at a restaurant. 

The first wine we are going to drink is the 2020 Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo from the Bersano Estate Lot #6. We have talked about this in previous episodes, and we have done an episode on Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve wines vs.Costco before this past April where we compared their 2022 Oakville California Cabernet Sauvignon, but the Diamond Reserve is the top end of the Trader Joe’s private label wine, it is supposed to be relatively hard to find, and the quality is, as you would expect, supposed to be high. I don’t want to spoil it because we want you to listen to the episode, but the two wines were really close in ratings. 

We were able to find out some information about these wines. The Trader Joe’s wine is produced by Bersano, which they do call out on the bottle, and Bersano is one of the oldest family estates in Piedmont. This wine is bottled in Serralunga d'Alba, one of the 11 communes of Barolo. Bersano was founded in 1907 and is now the largest family winery in Piedmont in terms of land, with 10 estates and 230 hectares producing 1.2 million bottles annually. In 1968, with the purchase of Cascina Badarina in Serralunga d'Alba, Bersano became one of the first producers to make well regarded Barolos. The Massimelli family took over management in 1985, in case you are curious.

We’ll talk more about Serralunga d’Alba, where this wine is from in a minute, but let’s go to our next wine. 

The second wine we are going to drink is the 2019 Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo. Now, it would be best if could have done the same vintage for each because different vintages can be quite different. So you know, the 2019 vintage is said to be more austere with more long-aging potential while the 2020 is supposed to be more approachable at a younger age. Both vintages are supposed to be good, but my main concern is that the 2019 is just going to be too tight, and a good example of why a Barolo needs at least 10 years and why some people are confused sometimes about what the fuss is about Barolo - because they are drinking their Barolo too damn young before it has had a chance to reach maturity! Please never post about drinking a Barolo that is less than 5 years old. You should be ashamed!

The producer of the Costco Kirkland wine is Fontanafredda, also located in Serralunga d'Alba, and we have had some very good wines from Fontanafredda. Fontanafredda is one of the most historic and highly respected wineries in Barolo. Their 300-hectare property was first organized in 1858 by Victor Emanuel II, the King of Italy. And, Fontanafredda was the first winery to produce a single vineyard Barolo in 1964. Since 2018, Fontanafredda is the largest certified organic winery in Piedmont. And, as the biggest private producer of Barolo, Fontanafredda's production accounts for 6% of the entire Barolo appellation.

So, both wines share a big similarity - they're both produced in Serralunga d'Alba. So, even though they are different vintages, the fact that they are from the same general place makes them more comparable. But we’ll see

Serralunga is considered special because it has more limestone than anywhere else in Barolo, which is said to give the wines power and structure. While some of the best Barolos come from Serralunga, it is also known as a "supporting" commune, which means grapes from these vineyards were historically used to add structure to blended Barolos. Also, if you are looking for wines that are a little less expensive and don’t need quite as long of aging, the wines that are labeled "Barolo del Comune di Serralunga d’Alba," tend to be more approachable at a younger age, and are generally considered better bargains, but not as prestigious. 

Both the Kirkland and Trader Joe's wines are noted by reviewers as being more similar to Langhe Nebbiolo than true Barolo in terms of complexity. But, again, we’ll be the judge of that!

But, I think that is enough information - let’s get to drinking! We’ll take a quick break and be right back. And, if you have these wines or similar wines, drink along with us to get some participation points, which you can trade-in for free stickers. You just need to send me an email with your mailing address, and I will get those “I drink with The Wine Pair Podcast” stickers over to you!


LINKS TO SOURCES FOR THESE SPECIFIC WINES


2020 Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo from the Bersano Estate Lot #6, 2019 Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo Wine Tasting, Pairing, and Review 31:10

Wine: Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo from the Bersano Estate Lot #6
Region: Italy, Piedmont
Year: 2020
Price: $19.99
Retailer: Trader Joe’s
Alcohol: 14%
Grapes: Nebbiolo
Professional Rating: RWS 7.5 Vivino 3.8

What we tasted and smelled in this Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo: 

  • Color: Light purple, almost like a Pinot Noir
  • On the nose: Matchstick, cherry cordial, chocolate rum ball, alcohol on the smell, spice, gun smoke
  • In the mouth: A little thin, hot, chocolate cherry cordial, cocoa, very young very tight


Food to pair with this Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo: Needs food, rich bolognese sauce, roast, flank, ribs, grilled meat, pepperoni pizza
 
As a reminder on our rating scale, we rate on a scale of 1-10, with no half points, where 7 and above means that we would buy it, and 4 and below means that we are likely to pour it down the sink, and a 5 or 6 means we are likely to drink it and finish it, but we are probably not going to buy it. 

Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo Wine Rating: 

  • Joe: 6/10
  • Carmela: 5/10


Wine: Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo
Region: Italy, Piedmont
Year: 2019
Price: $19.99
Retailer: Costco
Alcohol: 13.5%
Grapes: Nebbiolo
Professional Rating: CWB 93, WE 91Vivino

What we tasted and smelled in this Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo: 

  • Color: Ruby red with brown hue around the edges
  • On the nose: Earthy, clay pot, potpourri, flowers, super tight, rose, tar, raisin, currant, licorice
  • In the mouth: Super young, cherry liqeur, kirsch, tar, astringent


Food to pair with this Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo: Needs food, good acidity for food
 
Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo Wine Rating: 

  • Joe: 6/10
  • Carmela: 6/10


Which one of these are you finishing tonight?

  • Carmela: Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo
  • Joe: Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo



Taste profiles expected from Barolo 45:42

  • General 
    • While tar and roses are classic markers, aromas and flavors include red fruits (cherries, raspberries, strawberries, redcurrant, cranberry, pomegranate, sour cherry, plum, mulberries), floral notes (roses and violets), and deep undertones of earthiness (truffles, mushrooms, porcini, forest floor, clay), as well as notes of licorice, leather, spice, sweet tobacco, and anise
  • Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Barolo
    • RWS: opens with pleasing aromas of red and dark fruit, mint and forest floor notes along with a little licorice, anise and leather.  The medium-bodied wine tastes smooth and a bit chewy and features similar flavors to the nose. It also has good balance and acidity plus a touch of earthiness. Like a lot of these inexpensive Barolos it’s really more like a Langhe Nebbiolo than a true Barolo, but that isn’t a bad thing as this is really quite tasty. It gets even a bit better after a few hours of air when a nice streak of spice develops as well. It ends dry and grippy on the long finish and was similar on day 2. This is a nice find that compares quite favorably to the Kirkland Signature Barolo at the same price.
  • Costco Kirkland Signature Barolo
    • CWB: The wine pours a medium garnet color and it is light enough that you can slightly see through it in the glass.  On the nose is dried red fruit and a little spice; medium plus in body with flavors of spicy black cherry, a little blackberry, some anise and pepper towards the finish that is ultra dry.
    • WE: There is no denying that the 2019 Kirkland Barolo is tasty! It has all the notes of a classic Barolo: dark cherry, sweet and savory spice, rose and truffle. The well-crafted palate is giving with ample red fruit notes followed quickly by persistent minerality, well-managed tannins and crunchy acidity. Drink now–2040.


What is your verdict on these inexpensive Barolos? 47:52
Doesn’t give a great picture or representation of a Barolo. Maybe go with a Nebbiolo Langhe instead. Drinkable, nice enough. They are fine. You have to wait 10 years to drink this wine like you should do with any Barolo.


Wines coming up in future episodes in case you want to drink along with us 50:39

Outro and how to find The Wine Pair Podcast 50:53

Ok, so, Carmela, it’s time for us to go, but before we do, we want to thank you very much for listening to us - and if you haven’t done so yet, now would be the perfect time to follow or subscribe to our podcast and also a fantastic time to leave us a nice rating and review on our website or Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts - and it is an awesome and free way to support us and help us grow listeners.

We would also love to hear from you about a wine you would like us to taste and review. You can leave a message for us on our website thewinepairpodcast.com and you can join our email newsletter there - and if you missed our latest newsletter, email me and I will send it to you. You can do that by reaching out at joe@thewinepairpodcast.com. And tell us some things you want to hear us do, or not hear us do!

Alright, with that, we are going to sign off, so thanks again, and we will see you next time. And, as we say, life is short, so stop drinking shitty wine.

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