Costco Connection - November 2004

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Pinot Noir for the holidays

If the god Dionysus enabled him to create a wide range of wine drinkers, but it can be a the world’s perfect wine, writes wine tricky wine to buy,” says Nancy Griese, who enthusiast Mark Oldman, it would be oversees Costco’s Kirkland Signature wine Pinot Noir. program. “Its style can vary widely depending

This light, crisp varietal—a “juicy berry upon where it’s grown and how it’s made, so kiss”—is beautifully aromatic and of silky tex- the consumer isn’t always sure what to expect. ture, praises Oldman. Above all, Pinot Noir is We’ve taken the guesswork out and crafted a heavenly because it goes perfectly with a wide wine of superior quality and unsurpassed range of food. value.”

With its lighter body and ripe fruit, Pinot Try Kirkland Signature Pinot Noir with

Noir (pee-noh n’wahr) is a front-runner for your holiday meals this season. It will be Costco’s Kirkland Signature Pinot Noir the title of world’s best wine for food, he available in most warehouses beginning in delivers ripe, wild strawberry fruit with a writes in Oldman’s Guide to Out-smarting mid-November.—Tim Talevich subtle savory edge.

Wine (Penguin Books, 2004). “It deftly straddles the foods associated with both red and white wine, as flattering with heavier fish like grilled salmon as it is with pork, chicken or duck.”

Given this lovely wine’s natural affinity for food, it’s only fitting that Costco is introducing Kirkland Signature Pinot Noir in time for the holidays. It’s the second release in the Kirkland Signature series, following a Barossa Valley (Australia) Shiraz earlier in the year.

Pinot Noir’s gentle character belies its true nature. The grape is known among wine-makers to be capricious to cultivate, faring well only in a few select cool, foggy regions. One of North America’s premier growing areas for the grape is Oregon, which is where Kirkland Signature Pinot Noir comes from.

“This delicious wine has such a perfect balance of finesse and power that it appeals to

Karin Van Valkenberg’s
Grilled Thanksgiving Turkey

1 cup rock salt

2 cups brown sugar

14- to 16-pound turkey, trussed

1. Prepare brine of rock salt, brown sugar and at least 2 quarts of water. Place bird in a deep pot. Add brine and water to cover the turkey completely. Cover pot and let soak in the refrigerator for 2 days.

2. Heat lots of coals in a barbecue kettle. When hot, move the coals to evenly distribute around the perimeter. Make an aluminum pan from foil and place in the cleared-out center.

3. Place the turkey (discard the brine) breast side down in the pan and cover the kettle. You can add alder chips that have been soaked in water to the coals every so often for a smoked taste. Turn the turkey after it has browned. Van Valkenberg, a Costco member, notes, “Usually, a 14- to 16-pound turkey takes two-plus hours to cook.”