Bogle Family Tree: Meet Chris Smith, Bogle Director of Wine Growing

You may know that Bogle Winery is owned and operated by the 3rd generation of the Bogle family, grandkids of founder Warren Bogle. But we have an extended family as well. In the months to come, newsletters will feature an employee who has worked at Bogle, and truly has become part of the family…

“March 12, 1992.” That is the date Chris Smith joined Bogle Vineyards. He can recite as quickly as if it were last Thursday. He says it is easy to remember because it was the day he made one of the best decisions of his life.

“I always wanted to live in an agricultural area and knew it would be a great place to raise a family,” said Chris. “Looking back now, it is easy to see how the move to Clarksburg has had such a positive imprint on my life.

In the early days, his wife Chi, his son Jeremy, and daughter Natasha, would only be a few steps away from Chris at all times. Not only did Chris work on the Bogle Ranch, the Smiths also lived on the Merritt Island property.

Originally Chris was hired as the winemaker, but the job included a lot more than trying to find the right blend. It was common to find him loading the truck with fruit, moving grapes with the forklift, running the crusher and even rebuilding the bottling corker when it went down.

“Patty Bogle would come into the warehouse and look at the corker in pieces all over the floor,” Chris recalls with a smile. She’d look shocked and say, ‘What have you done?’ but back then we didn’t have the time or the money to wait for someone to come out and fix it. So we did it ourselves. We were the maintenance crew.”

Even with Chris’ limited knowledge in mechanical engineering, he was always willing to learn and take on new roles. After 23 years with Bogle Vineyards, Chris has ascended from Winemaker to Director of Winemaking to his current role, Director of Wine Growing.

In this role, Chris travels up and down the state meeting with Bogle Vineyard’s partner growers to ensure that exacting quality and farming practices remain consistent year in and year out.

While no longer on the ranch each day as he was in the early years, Chris says after two decades he still enjoys coming to work every single day.

“It’s not just a job, it is a lifestyle, and I’m still loving every moment of it.”

The photos above show Chris working crush in the early days on the job with Bogle Vineyards, and Chris in the vineyards today.

Alfresco: A Huge Success

Thank you to all of you who attended our Friday Alfresco events throughout the summer.

The Bogle family is committed to being active citizens in the local community. Our Alfresco events raised more than $14,000 for nonprofits in the Yolo and Sacramento County region this summer.

Approximately 2,700 visitors came to the winery to eat local foods and listen to local bands play each Friday night from June to September.

We hope to see all of the great nonprofits, bands and food vendors again in 2016!

Uncorking the Bogle Family History

Sixth generation farming family Warren, Jody and Ryan Bogle held their first ever Bogle Uncorked event at the B Street Theatre in Sacramento Thursday, August 27. In front of Bandwagon Wine Club members and B Street Theatre supporters, the siblings told stories and shared memories of growing up on the Bogle Ranch.

“When I was in high school I wanted so badly to be a lifeguard at the community pool, but my father (Chris Bogle) had other ideas,” recalled Jody Bogle. “He said to me, ‘I’ve got a job for you right out there in the vineyard.’ So, while I was less than thrilled with my summer jobs, I learned the hard work that goes into a bottle of wine and am thankful for it today.”

Jody, Warren, and Ryan all spent their younger days working in the fields, and each has come back to the family business, finding their own niche. Warren serves as President and Vineyard Director, Jody in Public Relations and Ryan as Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer. All three are committed to creating a great bottle of wine that anyone can enjoy.

“It’s pretty simple: quality, value and consistency…that’s our philosophy,” says Warren.

The family would like to thank everyone who came out to the event and looks forward to hosting another Bogle Uncorked in the future.

Photo above: Ryan, Jody and Warren Bogle on stage at Bogle Uncorked at the B Street Theatre in August.

Bogle in the News

Bogle Wines have gotten some great press recently! We want to thank all of out regional, national and international media for continuing to recognize the hard work all of our staff puts in to make quality, consistent wine each and every year.

Look out for the November issue of Wine Enthusiast magazine where both our Essential Red and Chardonnay wines received 89 points and Best Buy award!

Last week, Bogle’s 2013 Petite Sirah was named Wine of the Week by The Santa Rosa Press Democrat. Read The Press Democrat’s complimentary article here.