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Beirut's Food Influencers. Diversity in Fashion. Millennial Desserts

no.91 October/November '17 LL10,000

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VINTAGE DESIGNHow architects burnished the image of four wineries across the globe This page and opposite page Ixsir winery in

the Batroun hills, Lebanon

Words J. Michael Welton

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There’s more to making fine wine than growing and harvesting, crushing and pressing, fermenting and clarifying, then aging, bottling and corking. There’s architecture also. It’s a discipline that can eclipse a

winery’s functionality with beauty and grace – and no small amount of branding.

Here we have four world-class wineries on as many continents. They’re homes to excellent wines, to be sure

– but also to the work of some of the top designers on the planet. Daring American master Tom Kundig honed his early architectural chops at the Mission Hill Family

Estate Winery in British Columbia. Chilean push-it-to-the-limits Smiljan Radic designed a Pritzker Prize-

nominated winery for Viña Vik in Chile. Florence-based alchemist Marco Casamonti planted a winery halfway between Florence and Siena for Antinori Nel Chianti

Classico. And Lebanese modernist Raed Abillama merged contemporary with classical design in Lebanon

for Ixsir.

MISSION HILL WINERY IS SET IN

BRITISH COLUMBIA’S OKANAGAN VALLEY

Ixsir, LebanonArchitect Raed Abillama turned his vision into an internationally recognized green building. Constructed underground, the winery kept the landscape intact, while a restored 17th-century feudal house serves as entrance and symbol for the winery. “Abillama is a well-known architect, and an authority on the integration of modern construction with old, authentic Lebanese buildings,” says Aurélie Khoros, brand manager at Ixsir, which is located in Batroun. Now that it’s built, the winery reduces water consumption by 28%, electrical energy consumption by 62% and green waste by 100%, compared to other Lebanese wineries with equal production levels. It boasts Lebanon’s biggest planted roof, and is home to a botanical garden that groups, side by side, all 21 different varieties of grapes planted in Lebanon. It’s also earned worldwide distinction. “It was named by CNN as one of the greenest buildings in the world, and won the international Architizer A+ Award as well,” Khoros says.

Mission Hill, CanadaIn British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley in 1991, proprietor Anthony von Mandl purchased land for a vineyard and winery,

The barrel cellars at Canadian winery Mission Hill, located in British Columbia

Oculus is a Bordeaux-style wine produced by Mission Hill

and plunged into planting. “Most of the early efforts went into the vineyards and developing the land,” says Darryl Brooker, general manager and chief winemaker. “Then in the late 1990s, he put in the winery, the cellars and the winemaking facility.” In 1996, he called in Tom Kundig, a young architect with a big future. Mission Hill was one of

undig’s first pro ects, and his designs there would help him achieve his rock-star status today. He helped master-plan and execute the

ission Hill pro ect in phases, with two wine cellars, an amphitheater, a 30-story tower, a loggia and an entry keystone. “It all sort of flows into one, Brooker says.

Viña Vik, Chilen 00 , Alex Vik challenged his scientific

team to produce the best red wine in South America. They chose a valley between the

acific cean and the Andes ountains, km from San Vicente de Tagua Tagua, analyzed the soil, wind and water, and commenced planting in 2006. Then they got serious about design. “We held an architectural competition with entries from the top architects in Chile,” Brooker says. Winner Smil an adic worked for three years to perfect the winery’s location, design and materials. In 2014, he

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Viña Vik in Chile is innovative, green and energy-efficient. Architect Smil an adic worked for three years to perfect the winery’s location, design and materials. n 0 , he finished, and Alex Vik began making wine there

The winery at Viña Vik in Chile

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finished, and Vik began making wine there. His winery is innovative, green and energy-efficient. Vi a Vik is also breathtakingly beautiful – enough to attract the international ritzker rize committee. he ury came twice,” he says. “This was the work by Radic that they wanted to see.”

Antinori Nel Chianti Classico, ItalyFor six centuries and 26 generations, the Antinori family has been making fine wines in uscany. n , they introduced their first vintage of ignanello, made out of Sangiovese grapes with a small percentage of Cabernet. It was considered a trailblazer for the new Italian wine

enaissance, and was recognized as one of the first Super Tuscans. “Ancient roots play an important role in our work, but they’ve never held back our spirit of innovation,” says owner Piero Antinori. From 2004 to 2012, architect Marco Casamonti of Archea Associati designed and built a new winery in the hillside area of Chianti Classico, a 30-minute drive from Florence. He integrated it into the rural landscape, concealing the complex with a covering that blends its new facade into the countryside. Vines grow along the contours of the hillside, as the façade stretches horizontally along a natural slope marked by vine rows.

Antinori Nel Chianti Classico winery in Italy’s Tuscany region