MacRostie Winery & Vineyards-Architecture-Gould Evans

SYNOPSIS

In early 2015, a classic Sonoma winery moved into a new “spiritual home”—an Estate House and Barrel Building situated on a stunning 13 acre site along Healdsburg’s famous Dry Creek wine trails. The client desired a place that would feel more like a home than a business, as well as a structure that would fit into the character and fabric of the Sonoma agricultural landscape. The Estate House was sited to be highly visible from Westside Road, creating a welcoming aura and sustaining it throughout the tasting experience.

Two large Sycamores shade and frame the entry to the wooden Estate House—the center of a down tempo, genteel wine tasting experience. The modest scale and simple gable form recall Sonoma’s traditional agrarian structures. Manipulations in the gable open the interior space to view, light, and air, while large expanses of glazing enable dramatic views all the way through the building to the landscape beyond. A simple, refined material palette of stained Western Red Cedar siding, glass, and natural stone flooring is utilized from interior to exterior, reinforcing the sense of indoor-outdoor continuity. An array of outdoor tasting terraces – shaded by a trellis of exposed wood framing – further blur the distinction between interior and exterior. Each frames a different vineyard view for the enjoyment of wine: the East terrace hovers above the valley floor, the South terrace showcases the rolling hills of the vineyard, while the North terrace features a combination of the two.

The winery production Barrel Building is sited perpendicularly to the Estate House, defining an outdoor plaza and reinforcing its identity as a working estate winery. Metal siding distinguishes it from the Estate House, while glazing into the barrel room provides a glimpse of the production activities within.

SUSTAINABILITY

The project employs night air cooling, a traditional agrarian sustainable feature. The elegant barn structure is day-lit by large translucent polycarbonate panels, creating a pleasant interior environment for the winery’s production staff.