Renegade Urban Winery Sherika 2024

A bright and crunchy light red made with Rondo, macerated Ortega and barrel aged Chardonnay. Juicy cherry and blueberry upfront fruit with an herbaceous and thirst quenching finish.  Fine tannins make it suitable for a chill.

The red Rondo grapes were destemmed and transferred into a stainless steel tank, where they began fermentation. After six days of extraction, the grapes were pressed, before finishing fermentation in stainless steel. The Ortega grapes were vinified in a similar way. The Chardonnay was fermented in stainless steel and in oak barrels, adding complexity and obtaining some oak influence. The finished wines were blended and bottled in summer 2025.

Rondo grapes from Hampshire, Chardonnay grapes from Essex and Ortega grapes from Suffolk.

And who is Sherika? She’s 34, she’s a doctor and she lives in Walthamstow.

When Renegade started making wine in 2016, they were copycat winemakers, asking the growers how they should make wine with their grapes. They soon realised this was a mistake. Taking advantage of the relative lack of legislation in the UK over terms and styles of wine, and drawing on London’s history of innovation, they sought instead to lead the charge on new wine styles and winemaking approaches, using both ancient and modern techniques. Renegade now make around 12-14 wines a year, from classical 
styles with a twist to wines that are entirely unique. Alongside the core range, they make a variety of new styles each year.

And who’s on the bottle? As a UK producer, Renegade wanted to celebrate the best thing about the UK. The weather? No. The people! Each label shows the eyes of a different person who lives in the UK. They may not be born in the UK, they may not have gone to school in the UK, but they’re part of this country. They each form a key part of the rich tapestry that makes the UK special. As as urban winery based in London, many of the faces are Londoners. But anyone can apply to be on the labels. Faces of Renegade have been students, plumbers, researchers, the unemployed, the retired, newspaper editors, receptionists, teachers and HR executives. They are aged between 19 and 70+. They are white, black, Asian, mixed race. They are straight, gay, transgender, queer. They are from all walks of life. Could it be you next?