Bogati is in a stark white concrete building shared with an art gallery and a country store about 25-35 feet from the highway. Not exactly what we expected, but let's not judge on first appearances. Inside there is a very nicely decorated, comfortable tasting room and lounge area.
We were happily greeted by a young girl working behind the counter that day. She told us that the owners of Bogati were inspired by their trips to Argentina to open an Argentinian style winery here in VA. This sounded promising to all of us since my family likes bold, interesting wines.
(L to R: My dad, Joe; my big brother, Vinny; and my mom, Lila)
Dad, mom, me, and Vinny. I'll always be the shorty
Starting off with the whites, our first wine was the Seyval Blanc. It was a nice, light golden color with aromas of honey and oak that followed through with even more honey, pear, and ginger. I like the way the flavors play together in this wine, it was nice and light but still had some interesting spice. Next was the Viognier (which I learned is the state grape of VA). The alcohol smell was strong with this one. It essentially tasted like Welch's white grape juice with some minerality to it. Pass. Last of the whites was what they call their Tango Blu. It's a blend of Riesling, Vidal Blanc, and Viognier. I like the citrus lemon nose as well as the sweet mango flavors. This was my favorite of their whites and I thought the acidity and sweetness were really nicely balanced.
Now for the reds. The first red we tasted was the Cabernet Franc. This one was a total vanilla bomb on the nose, which I liked very much. There are flavors of mixed red berries and firm tannins. I thought this wine was also really well balanced. So far I haven't met a Cabernet Franc I didn't like. Next up we had the Syrah/Mourvedre (a 50/50 blend). There was nothing sweet or fruity about the bouquet on this one. It's very earthy and mushroom-y, really nice. This wine was really smooth with a balanced combination of floral, mineral and herbal flavors. Now here came the most anticipated wine for me and my family - the Malbec. And wouldn't you know it, they were sold out. We did still get to taste it though. This Malbec is blended with a little Cabernet Franc and Merlot. I've only tried a few Malbecs, but this was different from all of those because it's very fruit forward. There were cherries and berries, mixed in with a little nuttiness. To my disappointment I found this wine hollow, but it finished smooth which I liked. For our last drink we had a little of their mulled wine. It was a 40 mph cold wind kind of day so we all appreciated this. I don't remember which red wine they made it with, but does it really matter once you add in all those spices? It was delicious as always.
After the tasting we took a load off on the nice leather couches by the fire place with a bottle of the Cabernet Franc. On the website it said they allowed food, so we had packed a lunch, but turns out they only allow it on their porch, and we didn't want to get blown away so we waited until we left to eat.
Me, my mom, and Vinny chillin
While we were there other people came in and had some wine and lunch from the Bogati kitchen, and the staff seemed to know them by name. Bogati is set in the midst of lots of Loudoun County Mc-mansions (even some actual mansions), so I can see how this would be a nice place for those well off to come enjoy a casual lunch on a weekly basis. We were told the the country store next door had some amazing pies, so we popped over and grabbed and apple pie then went off to have our lunch. It was a pretty good start to our winery day!
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