WHEN WINE MEETS ARCHITECTURE

 

L"Astemia Pentita in Barolo

Hello to you all guys!  After talking about strange buildings in the world, now it’s time for the designer cellars among the most beautiful in Italy. When wine meets architecture a dialogue between art and nature takes place and that leads to the birth of real works of art. Here are 5 projects of wineries that enhance the beauty and riches of the Italian territory.

L"Astemia Pentita in Barolo: the first POP winery

Designed by architect Gianni Arnaudo, at the request of the ex-abstaining entrepreneur Sandra Vezza, the "Astemia Pentita in Barolo was born to amaze,  starting from its name - unusual and deliberately with quotation marks instead of an apostrophe - and continuing with the architecture of the cellar.  Its designe represents, out of scale,  two boxes of wine superimposed and staggered. 

The part of the cellar that houses the stages of the production process develops underground, to respect the landscape of the Langhe and not to "steal" precious soil from the vineyards. The environment aesthetically evokes the production process, from the large Nebbiolo leaves,  which recall the time of the harvest,  to the blue skies,  which represent the phase of rest. There are also iconic design pieces such as the Bocca sofa, the Cactus, the Roxanne armchair and the giant Mickey of Dreams armchair. Do we still need to ask why it is called POP winery?

Cantina Petra, the "drawn flower" in stone

Among the most famous designer wineries,  we certainly find Cantina Petra, in Val di Cornia, on the hills of Livorno, Maremma. It is by the archistar Mario Botta,  who was commissioned  by Francesca Moretti and family to realize this design work.

Cantina Petra looks like a stone cylinder, 25 meters high, dissected with an inclined plane which follows the course of the surrounding hills. The top of the cylinder is the point of collection of the bunches and from there the berries fall softly into the maceration and fermentation tanks.

Interesting note: the tasting room is located on the ground floor, where a long tunnel has been dug which runs through the interior of the mountain up to a rock wall. 

Tenuta Castelbuono and its design Carapace

We are in Umbria, in Cantalupo, in the province of Perugia, and here we find the Carapace of Arnaldo Pomodoro. Commissioned by the Lunelli family, it was designed to be a real casket for wine and it is considered the first sculpture in the world which is habitable .

To the eye the Carapace looks like a large dome covered with copper, with engravings that recall the furrows of the earth, a representation of the link with the territory and nature. Why a turtle for this designer winery? It is a symbol of longevity, stability and slowness, just like the transformation of grapes into wine, which is slow and lasting.

In order not to make the cellar go unnoticed, Pomodoro places a second sculpture, a few meters from Carapace, a large red dart 18 meters high. Impossible not to notice it! 

Tenuta Ammiraglia: the seagull wing pointing towards the sea

The winery of Tenuta Ammiraglia is located in Tuscany, in the Grosseto Maremma, and it's owned by the Marchesi Frescobaldi. Designed by architects Piero Sartogo and Nathalie Grenon, the structure is perfectly integrated among the hills in which it stands: a gull wing projected south, or even the bow of a ship pointing towards the sea.

A flap of earth was raised, "cutting" in half the hill horizontally, inserting the Cellar in a crack of 130 meters. Many of the materials that have been obtained from these works have been used for the roof covering, covered by a turf.

Looking at the winery, you feel a sense of continuity with the rolling hills of Tuscany overlooking the Mediterranean. 

Mezzacorona winery and its wavy roof

Finally, we move to Trentino. Designer Alberto Cecchetto was  the one in charge of the design of the new factories of Mezzacorona Winery. The settlement of 11 hectares, born as a symbol of re-connection between agricultural territory, landscape and wine production, develops on what was an industry now in disuse.

Cecchetto studied the Piana Rotaliana and designed the roof of the building, taking up the "waves" of vineyards cultivated with the pergola pattern, typical of the area.

The materials used for this architectural structure, also included in the lists of Italian "eno-meraviglie", are only steel, wood, glass and aluminum. Distinctive element? The metal tower next to the historic structure.

 Cristiano P., 4sc