Auteur is a vintner-founded winery specializing in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines. The winery operates a popular tasting room in downtown Sonoma but wanted to create a visitor experience more closely tied to its Healdsburg vineyards, which look out over the Russian River and forested hillsides. It is within this context that Auteur engaged our practice to create a modern tasting room that embraced the stunning natural setting and reflected its commitment to experimentation and creativity.
The new tasting room was designed on approximately the same location as an aging residential structure that previously occupied the site, allowing much of the 8-acre property to be planted with new vineyard and native landscaping. Embodying a similar residential scale, the new 3,000 square-foot building nestles into the hillside and vineyards, the form of its shed roof following the slope.
A limestone-clad entry wall establishes a visual threshold on arrival, while organizing support and back-of-house spaces. Passing through the entry, the tasting room interior reveals panoramic views through a 50-foot wall of windows along the south elevation. A variety of wood species —oak, cedar, and Douglas fir — along with a blackened steel fireplace and redwood hearth bench, bring warmth and texture to the interiors, responding to the forested hillside site and desire for year-round comfort. A private tasting room tucked behind the fireplace offers a dedicated space to hold more intimate events. The project provides an immersive hospitality experience where guests are intimately connected to the life of the vineyard, deepening their knowledge of Auteur’s winemaking practice. Contrasting with many large venues found throughout the region, the tasting room offers a flexible space that balances an intimate, residential scale with the opportunity to host large groups and events throughout the year.
All water resources for the building, as well as site irrigation, are harnessed on-site from an existing spring and stored in five large concrete tanks on the property. Stormwater intercept drains on the property run underground and daylight at a new network of bioswales along the entry drive, which collect and dissipate water. New drought-tolerant plantings were selected to minimize water use throughout the year. The project is also all-electric except for propane used in the fireplace, which provides additional warmth in cold weather. A ground-mounted 24-kW solar array on the slope above the tasting room helps the project achieve an approximately 60% reduction in energy consumption from benchmark.
