ON THE NOSE:
Pleasant enough nose of cherry and charcoal, but also a hint of cheap-wine aroma which has something to do with the way the alcohol is perceived, with sour overtones, almost like bad breath, that make us wonder if this bottle was worth $20. This was a grocery-store wine, which is always a risk, though an occasional gem can indeed be had. I sometimes hear good things about Bogle so we decided to give this one a chance tonight.
ON THE PALATE:
The initial attack is bold and audacious coupled with wonderful tannins that push this wine into a thumbs-up category for us. The acidity is dark and just a little subdued, which is really, really nice here, i.e. not too harsh on the mid-palate. This stuff isn’t too bad; right after popping it offers a pleasant enough experience to make potential believers out of us. That being said we do have to report that the heat is overpowering early on, so if you find yourself in possession of a bottle of Bogle Phantom, do yourself a favor and let it decant for an hour first.
Ultimately this wine holds its own for us, offering sour cherry, some graphite, some nice smokiness that helps to temper the sour, and a very balanced sweet fruit profile that never even hints at going over-the-top, but rather keeps its place in concert with the other players. This is a nice blend; well behaved, mostly balanced, distinct. Again, the heat is an issue that never really balances well, and the mid-palate gets flabby far too soon, so be aware of this notion and drink this wine while it has some body to offer, otherwise you’ll end up using it for cooking.
Our evaluation is that this is a surprising little wine that is most likely found in many grocery stores, so if you find yourself having to choose something on the run, you could do much worse than this. We feel it’s price-point should be more at the $15 range, as at $20 there are far, far better wines to be had, but to be fair, there are also many inferior wines at this price as well, so … yeah, you could do worse, and we have, many times. To us this wine never completely lost its cheap-wine flavor somewhere there in the back, but there are indeed enough interesting things happening here, and ultimately Darcey and I agreed that we liked it, were not unhappy with the purchase, are satisfied that we know what this wine is like now, and will probably never buy it again. That’s mostly because we really like trying new things, and when we DO buy a wine again it means the wine was extraordinary in some way, and almost always a great QPR. With such a small wine budget we have to be very conscious and savvy.
The verdict? A solid 85-point wine here. Nothing to write home about, but nothing to sneer at either.
(Click here for an explanation of our ratings ...)
Our Rating: 85
Would we drink it again? 
Maybe ... maybe ... if at a party and a bottle of this was available and open I would probably pour myself some. Yeah, we would drink it again.
Would we buy it again? 
As mentioned, if we needed something in a hurry that we were familiar with, we would grab one on the run, but in general, for us, this Bogle is not something we will buy again.
Winemaker's notes
The black magic is back…Phantom. Three unique varietals combine lush berry and fierce spice into a full-bodied wine. Intensely fruit forward on the entry, this deep ruby apparition begins with aromas of blueberries, violets and chocolate-covered cherries, dusted with touches of black pepper. From the deep dark depths, subtle notes of spice, clove and mocha emerge and compliment the concentrated fruit characters of this wine. Aging for two years in 1, 2 and 3 year-old American oak barrels has yielded a vexing array of toasty oak aromas to Phantom. Though this wine is remarkable now, age in the bottle will only integrate the three distinct varietals more. Welcome the winery ghost into your home again with this latest vintage, and enjoy with full-flavored and hearty meals…before it vanishes again.
Although the Bogle family has been farming since the mid-1800's, it was not until 1968 that the father and son team of Warren and Chris Bogle planted their first 20 acres of wine grapes in Clarksburg, California. In this small farming community nestled along the Sacramento River, the Bogle family's years of hard work have developed into an impressive grape growing operation, as well as a nationally acclaimed winery.
Today Bogle Vineyards farms over 1,200 acres of wine grapes in the Delta region. While the winery was established ten years after the first grapes were planted, its success has grown tremendously along with the vineyards.
The success of Bogle over the years is firmly rooted in one thing: the day-to-day involvement of the Bogle family in the hands-on effort to produce and promote quality wines. Patty Bogle became involved in the early years of the vineyards with her late husband Chris, when they planted fields together in the early 1970's. Patty took over operation of the winery in 1989 and has directedproduction to new and exciting heights. Patty's daughter Jody also contributes to the family business by being active in customer support, as well as running the wine club and handling all international sales. Patty's son Warren, named after the founder of Bogle Vineyards, is the sixth generation of the Bogle family to farm this fertile Delta region. Like his grandfather and father, Warren understands that in order to produce quality wines, you must first produce quality grapes. This tradition of respect for the land and the vines is crucial to the success of Bogle wines.
The production of Bogle wine is influenced by this family tradition as well as the ever-changing trends in the wine industry. Since 1992, Bogle Winery has participated in the California Appellation Program. In this program, winemakers source fruit from some of the best vineyards in the state and blend them with Bogle's Estate Vineyards in Clarksburg, thus assuring that the wines benefit from many of the incredible grape growing regions of California. Each and every Bogle wine created is a unique and exciting blend with true varietal character and an approachable style. With their deep commitment to quality, the Bogle family wouldn't have it any other way.
About the Yolo County Region
Yolo County, just east of Napa County, has been quietly fueling the San Francisco Bay Area's food revolution since the 1970s when pioneer organic farmers started growing fresh market crops for the Bay Area's restaurants and selling seasonal produce at the emerging farmers' markets. Now Yolo County, founded in 1850 and long an agricultural powerhouse, is beginning to claim its own place in the Northern California stratosphere of food, wine, and the good life.
The county has long been known for its commodity crops like processing tomatoes, alfalfa, and seed crops, but now wine grapes, almonds, and walnuts are among the top crops as well, many grown by family farmers who settled the land five and six generations ago. The thousands of Community Supported Agriculture boxes of food that are prepared each week by local farmers, plus farmers' market sales, make Yolo County first in the nation in direct sales.
