Valpolicella Wineyard – Wine-tasting pavilion

HISTORY
The vineyard ‘Marchesi Fumanelli Estate’ is located on a hill surrounded by cypress trees, in the heart of the most classic Valpolicella winery area, near the Garda Lake.
Here, from 1470 Marchesi Fumanelli began producing grapes and high-quality wines on the remains of the ancient Romans. Since 1998, after a careful restoration, the villa’s ancient cellars are once again used to store the classic Valpolicella wines in oak barrels.

DRAFT
On the edge of the estate, along the country road connecting Verona to the Garda Lake, the client asked to design a pavilion where to taste the wines from his family business.
The design process resulted in a compact, faceted body in stamped concrete. On both street sides, the volume looks like an introverted monolith, a sort of erratic stone, from the inside reminding the inside of a cellar.
The measured incidence of natural light, coming in through a side cut. No visual connections to the outside world, beside one opening spacing over the vineyard estate as far as the eye can see. This favours a cosy, introverted ambience, focused on tasting the products.
The solidity of the walls enables avoiding air conditioning and favours a pleasant temperature, ideal for storing and tasting the wines.
A small wine cellar in the basement level, not accessible to the public, is reachable by elevator.