Costco Fans Are Outraged Over This New Sourdough ― Here’s Why

Remember a few years ago when we all became experts at making sourdough? We don’t have to go into the reasons, but there was a time not long ago when a bunch of us decided, not only to learn how to bake bread, but to tackle one of the hardest breads of all. I wonder what happened to all that bread.

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My best guess is a small percentage of brave bread experimenters continued with the hobby (bread-baking really is one of the healthiest addictions out there) while the rest of us are back to buying our sourdough. And that’s a good arrangement―leaving the wild yeast strain to the baking professionals―but it doesn’t always work out. Or so we’re learning after Costco recently debuted a loaf of cherry-studded sourdough.

A Loaded Loaf, Mixed Reception

We’ll get into the mixed reviews, but first, the bread. It’s called Cherry Berry Sourdough Bread with Pecans―which, yes, is a mouthful, so let’s unpack what’s inside it before anyone tries to take an actual mouthful.  The bread is made with dried cherries, blueberries, and cranberries, plus pecans. And from the looks of it, it should taste good. 

Seriously, it looks rustic as heck, with big chewy bits of fruit and nuts visible in the Costco picture. And believe it or not, “rustic” is kind of the goal with a sourdough loaf―a nicely browned, medium-thick, crisp but not crunchy crust, an airy but chewy texture to the bread itself (it’s  definitely a fleshier dough, in a good way, when made well). Speaking of made well, the mixed part of the reviews seems to be twofold. First off, nobody likes the bread’s higher price tag. (The word “overpriced” is repeated all over Reddit’s recent take.) And that’s fair, since it costs $9.99 at most Costcos, high for a store bought bread (and there’s good store bought sourdough out there.) Even enriched breads tend to top out somewhere just above five bucks―and definitely never tread near double digits. 

It’s Not That It’s Sour ― It’s “Off”

What’s more interesting, especially from a bread-lover’s or bread-baker’s perspective, is the issue of taste. For instance, one review simply says “All of Costco’s sourdough disappoints.” Really, if you look into it, bread enthusiasts (who are nothing if not thorough) have some informed feedback for Costco’s bakery department: “had a weird off flavor,” “their sourdough isn’t actually sourdough in my experience,” “in my area the ‘sourdough’ bread is always under proofed and has knots of dough inside it.” (Seriously, Coscto, listen up.)

Other reviewers really like it, though―with olive oil or melted butter (which improves everything). One reviewer even suggested it’d work well with charcuterie. The “off flavor” comment definitely leaves an impression. Something about the vagueness of saying something tastes “off” is ominous, and usually indicative that something is, well, off. But if you’re up for it, there are enough positive reviews to justify trying it for yourself. The only thing all reviewers agree can’t be justified? The price.