Good Morning!

I was headed to Costco this weekend to start to load up on all the supplies I need for all the company we get on these summer weekends. We have a massive pools and outdoor kitchen and I hate having to run in and out of the house all the time…it must be a leftover memory from childhood, I can remember hearing my grandmother say, your getting the carpet all wet and stop leaving your towels laying all over the place!

Going to Costco is a trip no matter why you go in there. The TV’s, tires, laptops, clothes and then you have the wine area (my personal favorite). After trying red velvet cake, turkey, tri tip, hummus and some sorta smoothie thing, I had made it to the wine and beer section. I had 2 cases of Corona, a massive bag of limes and now to find out what’s new in the wine section. I am always surprised by the amount of wine people are loading into their carts.

Sometimes I recognize the wine labels and many times I have to read quite a bit because the labels are obscure and you can not tell what grape, where was it grown, how much etc… I can easily spend an hour in this section. I picked up 12 bottles of wine in total. 4 french wines, 4 Washington state wines and 2 Italian wines and 2 Spanish wines. I am not sure I had a plan when I went to get the wine…I was being adventurous and reading about the areas the grapes were grown and looking to see if I recognized the producers.

I was struck by some of the artwork on some of the bottles and I was intrigued by the selling price points from some of the producers. I have my limits on buying wine, unless it is bottle I have done some research on I will not spend more than $25. But most of the wine I bought yesterday was under $15-18.

I am constantly inspired by the wines of Washington and Oregon, they are so rich and in general, for me they are easier to drink have the young California reds. One of the bottles I brought home last night was Milbrandt Vineyards The Estates 2006 Merlot Wahluke Slope, 14.2% Alcohol by volume. After unloading all my treasures and I did what most folks do opened this bottle to let it breath a bit while we grilled up some t-bones and waited for the Mavs and Heat game to start.

I am sometimes on the fence about Merlot, Merlot is either ok or very elegant….This one was round, fruity, smooth and robust all together. It had a smoky almost woody aroma and I was worried it would be too young to enjoy, but the more it opened up the more balanced it became and the happier we became.

I did some research about Costco and how much wine they sell on a yearly basis and they are considered to be the number 1 or number 2 retailer in the country (depending on who’s list you check out)…They have huge selections of wines from every country, huge selection of wines at all price points, I saw bottles for $7.49 up to a bottle for $142…I saw reds, whites, pinks and bubbles…I keep a list of all the wines I buy and all my tasting notes, because once I like something I go back and get a case…the Milbrandt Vineyards Merlot, I will go back and pick up a case!

I hope you are prepping for summer and all the days and nights with friends and family, if you are like me head to Costco and take a van!

Much LOVE and wine,

Tammi