Name: Around the World in 24 Wines Box - Same As New 2023 Wine Advent Calendar?
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Around the World in 24 Wines Box - Same As New 2023 Wine Advent Calendar?

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Skip to ContentWe heard from several readers that the Costco Wine Advent Calendar box for 2023 was at Costco so made a quick trip to the store looking for it, only to find a different, but very similar, box.So of course we had to pick it up for further exploration and to report back here. And what we discovered is quite interesting.There seems to be two boxes this year, this one, as well as the new 2023 Wine Advent calendar. And what we learned is that they feature the same exact wines, just different packaging on the outside. Interesting…let’s dig in.This Around the World box is a similar concept to many of the other boxes including the Advent calendar. You get an assortment of wines from around the world in half bottle size. There’s white, reds and rose wines.The box is $99.99 (same as years past) and you get an unbelievable amount of wine for the money. Each box comes with twenty four 375ml bottles (1/2 size of regular wine bottles) for what nets out to about $4 for each 1/2 bottle.As we’ve noted in our previous write ups on the Wine Advent calendar, the wines can sometimes be hit or miss, but the handiness of the smaller size bottles is the winning element for us. They are just convenient to have when you want just a glass of a certain style, or a glass of rose before dinner.If nothing else, they give you an opportunity to taste wines from areas you might not normally seek out or have easy access to, like Bulgaria, Hungary and Luxembourg. Most of the other wines in the box are from Italy, France and Spain.The full list of wines is at the bottom of this post (to give people a chance to keep them a surprise if they like).The packaging is great as always, and here’s where it started to get interesting for us…when you visit the website for this box. The first thing you see is a mention of the new Wine Advent calendar with a note that both boxes will be available in Costco stores starting in Sept.OK, but then as you click on all the links to see the details on the wines included in each box, it becomes apparent right away, that the wines are the same, and in the same order 1-24, with the same labels. So the only difference is the outside packaging from what we can tell.Well I guess that makes our job easier only having to review one box. And as we do with each box review, we’ll pull a few bottles out and sample them. This time we have a white, a rose and two reds, all to varying degree of quality, in our opinion.Palloncini Rose ItalyThis is a Rose made with 51% Sangiovese and 49% Merlot; it pours a medium salmon color, not a lot on the nose, kind of a strawberry sherbet, feels good in the mouth but finishes with a bit too much fruit punch for us. Just ok.Brass Rabbit Pinot Blanc LuxembourgHere’s one of the more unique wines in the box; medium yellow in the glass, aromatic, citrus fruit, a little peach, honey, not super acidic; this is a pretty good, easy going white.Secrets Revealed Red Blend PortugalThis wine is a medium purple; dark fruit on the nose, with flavors of blueberry, plum; dusty and dry, tastes really young; drinkable but nothing memorable for us.2022 Lightning Strikes Again Cabernet Sauvignon ChileThis wine pours a medium ruby with a nose of earth and red fruit; it is medium bodied and a pretty enjoyable Cab all around.So just an ok showing right out of the gate for us on these four random bottles (the Pinot Blanc and Cab being the best of the four). You have to remember the price you’re paying per bottle, which is extremely low, and set your expectations accordingly.We don’t view these boxes as a chance to score unbelievable wine at an amazing price, but rather a fun chance to have a wide range of different wine on hand, to pop a cork here and there, and enjoy for the fun of trying something new.From what we can tell, these are mostly new wines this year. It’s hard to say for certain since some of them sound similar to year’s past but have new branding; they may or may not be the same, but regardless there’s plenty of new regions to explore as well.We remain fans of these boxes for the simple fat that it can help advance your global exploration of different wines. That for us is the journey we are on, and a journey we very much enjoy.We’ll report back as we see the 2023 Costco wine advent calendar drop to confirm it’s the same. One thing to note is that this box has a different Costco item number than the Advent Calendar. This one is 1748589.Historically, the Wine Advent calendar has been: 1357643.And for those who want to know, here’s the full list of wines included in both boxes, in order.Chilean Cabernet SauvignonItalian Pinot GrigioFrench MerlotItalian red blendRomanian Sauvignon BlancArgentinian BonardoItalian Famoso (obscure white)South African PinotageItalian MerlotSpanish MacabeoHungarian BlaufrankischItalian roseBulgarian Cabernet SauvignonPortuguese white blendItalian MontepulcianoSouth African Chenin BlancPortuguese red blendFrench roseSpanish GrenacheItalian semi sweet redLuxenbourg Pinot BlancItalian Syrah-CabernetFrench red blendSpanish white blendClick here to cancel reply.The 24 half bottles of the Wines around the World in Ohio is 139.99. Not the $99.99 you see in other State. Save your money,it's definitely not worth an extra $40 BUCKS. BUYERS Beware in Ohio.So no sparkling wine?? A couple years ago in the Advent collection there was a delicious French Méthode Champenoise sparkler that was LOVELY. Just ONE! 😭 They’re killing me. But thanks for the review! I so appreciate the service you provide!Please reach out to me privately via the email I provided- I would like to send you a (pleasant!) thought about your blog. Thank you!In my experience in purchasing the annual box , in the first few years the selection was not bad overall, but in the past two annual iterations it was indeed a mixed bag in terms of quality. I will not be buying the 2023 boxes, but as was pointed out in the review - consider the price point of $4 per half bottle - you do get what the price point indicates.@Liam Reid, I found the wine to be undrinkable. I threw away most of the bottles.

Skip to ContentWe heard from several readers that the Costco Wine Advent Calendar box for 2023 was at Costco so made a quick trip to the store looking for it, only to find a different, but very similar, box.So of course we had to pick it up for further exploration and to report back here. And what we discovered is quite interesting.There seems to be two boxes this year, this one, as well as the new 2023 Wine Advent calendar. And what we learned is that they feature the same exact wines, just different packaging on the outside. Interesting…let’s dig in.This Around the World box is a similar...

Around the World in 24 Wines Box - Same As New 2023 Wine Advent Calendar?

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