The Absurd $99 Costco Find That Every Holiday Party Needs

Naomi Tomky
Naomi Tomky
Seattle-based writer Naomi Tomky uses her unrelenting enthusiasm for eating everything to propel herself around the world as an award-winning food and travel writer.
updated Dec 5, 2019
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Credit: Trong Nguyen

It’s here, folks! We’ve found it — the absolutely most absurd thing you could buy for your holiday party, the kind of thing you’ll talk about for years afterwards. Thanks to Costco (and, of course, the Reddit Costco forum), the world will not miss out on the giant dragon-shaped bottle of brandy, complete with red fireball on its tongue.

The dragon retails for about $99 and has been spotted at Costco warehouses around the country. The thing contains a full 750-milliliter bottle of brandy, but as many of the posters point out, you’re not buying it for the liquor. “Tastes like crap,” said one Redditor. It comes in a big clear display case, and you have to pull out a little gold plug to open it. The dragon has blue detailing by the head, and an ornate tail, which is how you open the bottle itself and pour out the Emperor Napoleon brandy within.

So if you’re not buying this dragon for the mediocre brandy inside, what are you buying it for? Well, it would make an excellent white elephant gift (if the price limit is high enough) or a perfect centerpiece for a holiday party when you want to distract from having to talk politics with the family. On Amazon, an identical bottle appears to be sold for only a small amount less than the Costco version, sans liquor, as a “wine decanter,” so that is always another option.

Buy now: Wine Decanter Dragon, $83

Of course, if you go with the full version and need some options for how to make good use of the brandy, try slow cooker mulled wine, Tom and Jerrys, or slow cooker wassail punch