While shopping for a few items at Trader Joe’s (Orlando, FL) this afternoon, where I don’t normally look for wine, a few Bordeaux wines caught my eye. It had me thinking, if any of these were truly good deals (most don’t seem to be), could you trust Trader Joe’s to have treated the wine correctly? Has it been in the back of a very hot truck? Has it been sitting upright for years and years? Where has it been stored for the past 5-10 years? Here are the wines they had with their prices:
2009 Ch. Cantenac Brown (Margaux)- $69.99
2006 Ch. Giscours (Margaux)- $59.99
2011 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste (Paullac)- $57.99
2010 Ch. Talbot (St. Julien)- $67.99
I’d definitely worry about storage - have you seen the back room in most Trader Joe’s? It’s definitely ‘room temperature’ or hotter…and who knows where they got those back vintages. Pass, for me.
1 Like
One thing right off the top: You can buy 2012 GPL for $50. The 2011 has no business anywhere at a higher price.
1 Like
TJ is a major wine player in the States. They buy from reputable distributors. Never had a cooked or off bottle (other than TCA which they replaced) from them. I’d buy one try it and if you like it go buy more.
I’ve had the same experience. A few bottles with TCA and they happily replaced. If you start with small amounts you should be safe, that being said, their stores can certainly get on the warmer side in the summertime.
We help TJs in WA with wines like this, and I can tell you from Bordeaux to TJs they are treated like any fine wine…if one store has a hot back room then that is a store by store basis. These older vintages came in direct from BDX in the last few months, so prices are in line with what you have to pay for older vintages direct these days.
Correction. You can buy 2012 at $50 from shops who have had the wine since 2015 delivery. No 2012 from Chateau or direct from BDX is close to $50 today. As long as you trust that retailer then $50 is great.
Magnums of 2017 Labastide Dauzac Margaux for $40 at my Trader Joe’s. Seems like a deal?
The Cantenac Brown is/was a good deal
I wouldn’t say it’s a “deal” - that’s about or just above fair value for that wine. I don’t think it’ll be that rewarding and it’s certainly a questionable vintage.
I was eyeing some 2019 Giscours at TJ’s recently and made the mistake of getting bated into an argument with someone who works there. He came over and right off the bat told me something to the effect of, “I don’t really need to impress myself that much with how much I spend since there are so many amazing wines down here” (pointing to $10 and under wines).
Anyway, skipping past the details… I bought a bottle of Giscours to try since Costco hasn’t landed any in the KC area yet (to my knowledge).
2 Likes
I’m growing tired of the Trader Joes wine selection. I feel like it isn’t what it was 5-10 years ago when there were still some bargains and great wine to be found. I feel like a lot of it is just Super Purple / Coca Cola, wines now (like most other grocery store wine).
Please correct me if I’m wrong, though!
1 Like
Probably true, but also probably true you are just less tolerant of mediocre and bad wine.
My argument at TJs was over “How can a $6 wine still be $6 after everything that’s happened in the last 5 years?” I remember $6 was an amazingly cheap wine even over 20 years ago. The staff member thought I was being elitist in trying to point out that it was all industrial wine with problematic practices including chemical treatments and improperly paid labor.
He tried to claim that a French wine for $6 used the same practices for probably 200 years 
. I looked it up when I got home, and there’s a 90% certainty it’s just a fake wine house created by TJs.