It definitely LOOKS like a second label...
Quick hit review tonight. I have to admit that I was very nervous popping open the 2008 Renegade, because Renegade Wine Co. is the second label of Sleight of Hand Cellars, the Washington State winemakers who put together the 2009 Spellbinder, a.k.a. the second lowest rated wine on PnP so far (82 points). All external signs pointed to the conclusion that the Spellbinder should be a better wine than the Renegade: a producer’s first label is generally of higher quality than its second label (which is the whole point of existence of the second label — it lets the producer make cheaper lower-end wines without devaluing its main brand), the Spellbinder was more expensive than the Renegade (mid-twenties as compared to high teens CDN), and the Spellbinder was actually grown and vinified by Sleight of Hand while the Renegade was blended together out of juice sourced from third party growers. But wine is always full of surprises. Read the rest of this entry »
