Update: Costco’s 2025 calendar is out now! Peek inside the box here. Or, if you’re curious about what the wines taste like, check out our archive of reviews from the 2025 Wine Advent-ure Calendar.
As every suburban wino knows, the wholesale club Costco can be a reliable source for better-than-drinkable wine at rock-bottom prices. The Kirkland Prosecco is a steal at $8.99, and my wife loves seeing the Grands Vins de Bordeaux Box Set ($29.99) under the Yule tree each year.
But what we’re talking about today is Costco’s wine advent calendar. Is it a fun holiday bargain, or a $100 mistake? Let’s get into it. (Hint: 2024 is my third year purchasing the Costco wine calendar. They’re itty-bitty cute little bottles, and this blog is called The Wine Fairy! Obviously, I can’t resist it.)
The Stats
The Costco calendar features 24 half-bottles (375 ml) in a colorful cardboard box. It retails for $99.99 plus tax, the same as in previous years. This year, its holiday theme is coyly secularized to “Take a Wine Advent-ure: 24 Different Wines from Around the World.” It’s made exclusively for Costco by Flying Blue Imports, a negociant in California that has produced other calendars and variety packs for Costco.
The Costco Wine Blog reports that the distribution for the wine calendar is limited this year to the Northeast, Texas, Pacific Northwest and Southwest. (No wine for you, Midwest. That sucks, I’m sorry.) I snagged mine from the West Plano store. It’s been available some years as early as mid-September, but I didn’t get around to going to Costco this year until Thanksgiving week. No matter: They had plenty in stock. As of this early-December post, it’s available in my area in-store and for delivery through Instacart.
What’s Inside
That’s right, spoiler alert! We’re spoiling the Costco wine calendar. It’s not just me: Costco usually keeps an open case on top of the pallet of wine calendars, so curious shoppers can rummage through it to see what’s inside. If you have more patience, there’s a cardboard insert with little numbered circles that you punch out to reveal each day’s selection.
I tore open the whole cardboard assembly and threw the box away on the first day. I’ve got cheese in my fridge I need to eat, okay? I can’t wait to see what the wine-of-the-day is–I need those bottles lined up on my counter for easy picking.
If you like surprises, scroll past this next part, because here are all the wines you get for your C-note:
Les Champs D’Or Bordeaux Supérieur (Bordeaux, France)
Nightfall Königliche (Tokaj, Hungary)
Right Hook Pinot Noir (Danube Plain, Bulgaria)
Once Upon a Time Rosé (IGP Aude, Languedoc-Roussillon, France)
Ryokō Futsu-shu Saké (Japan)
My 2 Cents Shiraz (Barossa Valley, Australia)
Céu do Norte Vinho Verde (Portugal)
Legend Cabernet Sauvignon (Valle Central, Chile)
Brillo Solar Chardonnay (Alexander Valley, Sonoma County, California)
Butchery Cabernet Sauvignon (California)
Tranquille Garnacha (Spain)
Latitude 44 Red Blend (Languedoc, France)
Sheep Station Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand)
Mendoza Nights Malbec (Mendoza, Argentina)
The Perfect Match Syrah (Columbia Valley, Washington)
El Campeón Semi-Sweet Moscato (Valle Central, Chile)
Tinto de Sol Calimocho (Portugal)* or Coast Cabernet Sauvignon (Rubicone IGT, Emilia-Romagna Italy)
Fare Fiasco Organic Chianti (Italy)
Ciel Bleu White Blend (Côtes de Gascogne, France)
Who’s Who Pinotage (Western Cape, South Africa)
Strut King Old Vine Zinfandel (Lodi, California)
A Seaworthy Tale Sauvignon Blanc (California)
Secrets Revealed Red Blend (Portugal)
Brilliant Sparkling Rosé (France)
This year, the Costco wine calendar is truly global. There are 13 countries and 20+ regions represented here, in a whole cornucopia of styles. Upon opening the box, I was especially delighted by the novelty of a few of the picks. There’s a saké, a wine from Tokaj, a Calimocho (Spanish-style wine and cola cocktail), and a half-bottle of Chianti complete with a miniature basket. The premium packaging touches made the whole thing feel more special–I’ve been showing off the adorable baby Chianti to everyone who comes over to my house. On the “regular” wine bottles, the label design ranges from meh to pretty cute.
(* Note that the Calimocho wine cocktail isn’t available at all Costcos because of state liquor laws. If it’s not allowed where you live, you’ll receive the Coast Cabernet Sauvignon instead.)
This seems at first glance to be a really generous assortment, and I’m happy with the variety and the quality of the appellations. I’ve been disappointed in the past by wine calendars that were full of pretty anonymous-tasting California blends–which are fine for table wine or cooking but no good for wine exploration. The 2024 Costco calendar doesn’t have that problem. Even if you’re an intermediate wine enthusiast, I bet there’s something in here that you haven’t tried.
Quality & Value
How’s the quality? Initially, I thought I’d rate all the wines one-by-one, but it’s December and I have a lot of holiday parties to go to and other stuff to drink. So, I’d be lying if I said I’d sampled them all. However, the eight or so that I have cracked open have been surprisingly pleasant. They’re basically on par with the aforementioned Costco Prosecco and Bordeaux–more than good enough for everyday drinking, dinner parties, and trying something new.
For instance, the Who’s Who Pinotage was a good example of the style, all inky black fruit laced with smoke and a hint of anise. The Sheep Station Sauvignon Blanc from Malborough was likewise everything you could reasonably expect–bursting with tropical fruits and possessing a zippy dry finish. It was an admirable pairing with a homemade fish dinner. And the Once Upon a Time Rosé was delightful over a courtesy cup of crushed ice while I was watching Gladiator II at the movie theater. (Nero definitely would have approved.)
Overachievers, take note: If you want to really taste each bottle and not just drink them with cheese and popcorn like me, Flying Blue Imports maintains a Costco Advent-ure Calendar website with themed videos, detailed tasting notes, and suggested food pairings for all the wines.
Look, nobody is going to mistake these for ultra-premium wines, and I’m sure I’ll come across a few duds before I reach the last bottle. But $99.99 divided by 24 comes out to roughly $4.13 per bottle, which serves two people. C’mon, man: If you’ve ever taken a chance on a $4 house wine at happy hour, then I’d love to hear what you have against any of these wines. (Costco has kept the price of the calendar steady at $99.99 since at least 2019. Like the famous $1.50 hot dog and soda combo–I don’t how they keep doing it, but I don’t mind it.)
Not only is the unit price attractive, but half-bottles are a bargain in and of themselves. The 375 ml size is perfect for people who live alone. It’s also good for couples, when you want to share a small taste of wine but don’t want to get tipsy or waste part of a bottle. The half-bottle is the ideal grab-able size for mid-day picnics, cooking (“a little for me, a little for the pot, a little for me”) and–as I may have mentioned earlier, sneaking into the movie theater.
One more point about the baby bottles: For wine students who are studying systematic tasting and blind tasting, you’re supposed to try a lot of different styles and regions of wine. Unfortunately, most restaurants have the same generic Pinot Grigio/red blend/rosé wine list or wines that have been sitting open for too long. But buying more obscure bottles for tastings can get expensive, fast. Getting a whole stash of assorted half bottles in a kit is a good way to train your palate and experiment with food pairings. You may even get ahold of a few styles/regions that aren’t usually offered by the glass.
In short, I find the 2024 calendar to be a really good value and something that almost any wine drinker would be happy to receive as a gift. (Thoughtful gifters will add a corkscrew–the French wines all have corks and the set doesn’t come with one.) While it’s possible there will be a few bottles you don’t like or won’t finish, you can always keep the extra wine around for guests or put it in a sauce or something.
Who It’s For
Wine advent(ure) calendars are ideal if you have a taste for diverse wine–or if you have a friend or household member you can divvy the bottles up with. It’s great for students and wine-curious explorers. It’s not well-suited to someone who only drinks red wines, for instance, or sweet wines.
Another thing to keep in mind is that wine calendars are composed of “white label” wines and not national brands. The wine is purchased in bulk by the importer and given cute packaging for the retail and gift industry. So they’re no good for someone searching for their new go-to wine to buy at the restaurant or grocery store. If you fall in love with the Latitude 44 Red Blend, tough tannins–you will never find that particular product again.
Finally, this product is a Costco exclusive, so you generally have to be a Costco member or a guest of one. One small FYI, though: Around 14 states permit non-members to buy alcohol at members-only wholesale clubs. So if your Costco is in an eligible state, you can tell the greeter and the cashier that you want to buy wine without a membership in accordance with state law (and that the wine advent calendar counts as wine). They will probably hassle you a little bit, and they may have to radio for a manager–but it can be done.
P.S. Costco’s is the only wine advent calendar I’m going to be able to review for 2024. I wasn’t able to find the ALDI one near me. And I decided to pass on Total Wine’s 2024 calendar because past years were hit-and-miss. Happy wine advent-uring, and–as long as you’re not being an annoying wine snob–feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think of Costco’s holiday wine calendar!
Review disclosure: I was not compensated or provided any free products for this review. Opinions expressed on The Wine Fairy blog are entirely my own.
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