La Castigada
Branding, Wine Label Design, Brand Strategy & Naming
We worked with La Castigada to develop a wine label that stood apart in a crowded Argentine market. What began with tango evolved into something sharper — a bold visual metaphor drawn from bullfighting.
Concept
It all started over espresso on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. The owner wanted to know how his wine could stand out in an already saturated market of Argentine blends. Initially, we explored themes from tango — and particularly la castigada, a striking leg movement that literally translates to “the punished one.” It’s a moment of reaction, of tension, of beauty.
Strategy
While tango provided the name and inspiration, it felt too predictable on its own. So we flipped the metaphor. We looked beyond the dance floor and into the arena — where the same physical language shows up in the drama of the bullfight. The result was a more arresting image of action and reaction — power and poise — that matched the bold, fruit-forward personality of the wine.
Production Details
Two varietals — Cabernet and Bonarda — were bottled in Argentina. Final art files were color-corrected and film-separated in the U.S. before going to press. The labels were printed locally at the vineyard and hand-applied to small-batch runs.
