THE
HOUSES THAT WINE BUILT
Adventurous Wine Architecture
by
Michael Webb
(Images Publishing, $38)
Reviewed
by James Riswick
When
people think of a stereotypical winery, they probably picture
a quaint château nestled in the French countryside dripping
with centuries of tradition. The swooping metal roofs of Frank
Gehry probably don’t jump into their minds. Yet, quality
winemaking has expanded into new corners of the globe, and with
these new frontiers has come a new trend of adventurous wine
architecture that seeks to create a vineyard experience and
reputation that greatly exceeds simply what’s inside a
corked bottle. This book exhibits some of the world’s
most striking, spectacular and peculiar wineries, bastions of
modern architecture and their often breathtaking surroundings,
vividly captured by the lens of photographer Erhard Pfeiffer.
Each
winery is distinctly modern, but author Michael Webb breaks
the book down into four sub-sections that highlight different
trends. Expressive Forms are clearly the most avant-garde, and
include Gehry’s Marqués
de Riscal in Spain,
Bodegas Ysios featured on the book’s cover and Austria’s
strange Loisium that resembles something assimilated by the
Borg. Out of the Earth, as you might guess, presents wineries
that blend harmoniously into the landscape. Napa’s Dominus
is constructed using gabian wire walls filled with small rocks,
while the cellars and interior of Stag’s Leap are elegant
caves built into the earth. Monumental Presence wineries are
distinctly different, like Argentina’s
Bodega Septima (which looks like an Aztec fortress) and Opus
One—big and bold edifices that declare their, well, presence
in the surrounding land and in the wine market. Rural Vernacular
are designs that have a rough-and-tumble look about them and
are vaguely retro, like Black Barn Vineyards in New Zealand.
One aspect that is clearly noticeable is the complete absence
of wineries from France,
Germany
and Portugal—countries that continue to rely strictly
on tradition. In addition to New World regions like Australia,
New
Zealand, and North and South America, Spain is solidly represented
as its wine industry continues to grow and prosper after emerging
from decades of isolation and fascist oppression.
This
book would make a perfect gift for the jet-setting wine lover,
providing a great road map for their next global travel adventure.
Architectural buffs will also get a thrill from the photos and
illustrated blueprints, but you don’t have to be an expert
in either winemaking or building making to enjoy this fascinating
trip through the world’s most adventurous vineyards.
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