travel | Flowers Winery's guest experience space

House of Flowers, a new wine tasting space of Flowers Winery is as comfortable as a neat country home. 

 

Walker Warner, a San Francisco-based architectural firm, has masterly invited surrounding nature into the interior of architecture: from Napa Valley's 'Quintessa Winery' pavilion that is gently placed on the wind path, and Hawaii's 'Kua Bay' residence lying on top of the horizon creating layers, and to 'Tiburon Bay View' residence where one can relax in a private pool facing beautiful San Francisco Bay. Their latest winery project gently charms its guests with a country home like comfort.

Part of the reception room on the second floor of the tasting building in Flowers Winery 

Bleached cypress wood panels bring bright vitality to the interior

 

Located about an hour and a half from San Francisco, Healdsburg in ​​Sonoma County has its own inspiring atmosphere backed by wealth and nature, and is a popular weekend destination for the Bay Area locals with its renowned wineries. Among them, Flowers Winery is known for its elegant and expressive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.  

 

Tasting building made of black redwood and metal roof

An outdoor space where you can fully enjoy the vineyard

 

The facility of Flowers Winery was built in the mid-1970s with the most common architectural style in the area. Now, the building has become old and outdated and an update was needed. When Walker Warner took charge of a new design, they understood the wishes of the winery owner who values ​​nature and local culture. Thus, they decided to remodel the existing buildings, instead of building a new one: recycling.

 

Entrance to the tasting building. The black building exterior contrasts with the bright cypress interior finish

 

The most important thing in recycling the buildings was, of course, improving what was already there. The design of the building was visually refined, colors were restrained, and traditional details that had existed since before were abstractly changed.

Among them, the ‘House of Flowers’, a visitor center for wine tasting, is the highlight of this remodeling. While the previous tasting room was located in a location where it was difficult to enjoy the view of the vineyard, the former warehouse building newly designated as the tasting room faces a beautiful view of the vineyard. By adding a new floor to the single-story building, the architect made it easier to view the surrounding scenery. 

 

“Our plan was deceptively simple. The idea was to let the natural environment lead (the experience) and let architecture outline the experience.” – Brooks Walker, co-founder & principal of Walker Warner  

  

 

First floor lobby of the tasting building ‘House of Flowers’

Staircase space with color contrast between cypress walls and steel railings

 

As you pass through the black redwood forest, a black tasting room appears beneath the shadows, seemingly inspired by the dark tones. This is the new visitor center, ‘House of Flowers.’ As you approach the entrance, visitors are greeted with a lively interior decorated in bright cypress, which contrasts sharply with the black exterior. The design, which harmonizes the dark exterior and bright interior like a harmony of yin and yang, takes its cue from Scandinavian style. Cypress wood panels, which are bleached and therefore more transparent and brighter, are used throughout the interior walls to create a comfortable yet sophisticated atmosphere.  

 

“The space is designed for visitors to discover slowly. Each experience is designed to provide a simultaneous, relevant contrast to the previous experience.” - Mike McCabe, a partner of Walker Warner  

 

The lobby located on the first floor heightens guests’ anticipation. Climb the stairs following the path led by the thin striped iron railing. It's like entering a secret space due to the view being blocked, and there's no way to know what's up there. Then, the moment you step on the last step of the stairs, you realize it. It feels like your closed field of vision is opening and you are falling into the landscape. What awaits you is a dramatic view of a ripe vineyard with clusters of grapes full of grapes.

The dramatic vineyard scenery you finally see when you reach the top of the stairs

Details of the reception room in the tasting building

 

In teamwork with 'Meca Huneeus Design', an interior team that provided the idea of ​​Scandinavian wooden architecture, and 'Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects', a landscape design team famous for landscaping New York's Hudson Yards, the space become filled with a delicate sensibility like a home.

Among them, artwork placed in the right place and lighting that creates a soft atmosphere with multiple light sources dispersed stand out. Materials such as wood, wool, linen, and ceramic were intentionally used to create a comfortable atmosphere. The team recalled the biggest challenge was transforming an old, uncharacteristic space into something special that appealed to people.

Kitchen located on the outdoor terrace on the second floor of the building

 

The tasting experience of pairing luxurious wines grown and presented here with matching food is all concentrated on the second floor of the building. From the dining room, living room, library, fireplace area, outdoor terrace, and even to a private VIP room. No matter where you are on the second floor, you can enjoy a wonderful view.

Meanwhile, the ground-level garden adjacent to the vineyard was used as an outdoor tasting space. The old compacted earth wall that existed here before the remodeling was slightly reshaped and reborn as an attractive outdoor structure, including an outdoor bench and fountain area.

 

A garden and outdoor tasting space created using an existing compacted earth wall

An outdoor tasting table with a simple feel of a farmhouse

 

Flowers Winery’s architectural recycling is so subtle and discreet that it goes unnoticed unless it is intentionally mentioned. Wouldn’t that be even more impressive and make you wholeheartedly agree? Its thoughtful architecture provides a tranquil refuge for visitors.

 

“I wanted it to feel like you were entering a home. So that you can have a comfortable time without pretense while drinking good wine.” – Owner of Flowers Winery 

 

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Words by J.M. | Photos by Douglas Friedman | Courtesy of Walker Warner | Originally published on Naver's design blog