This cellar door for Running Horse Wines in Broke, NSW, is a sustainable shipping container structure that attempts to reinterpret the language of industrial farm architecture.
The brief
The brief was for an intimate wine tasting space that could be run by one person, with a variety of internal and external spaces for people to lounge and linger.
Design response
This project is a small, sensitive and almost temporary intervention into the landscape, reinforced by the architectural expression of the shipping containers and steel structure. Nestled in an existing stand of native trees, the structure required no trees to be removed and minimal ground contouring. It is hardly visible from the surrounding landscape, except for the reflection of the landscape in its large windows.
Inside, the cellar door’s plan is centred around the wine tasting bench, with more intimate spaces located at the end of each shipping container.
Sustainability
The use of highly insulated shipping containers and glass combined with modest proportions means energy use in minimised. The structure's raw internal finish and minimal site works (using stone from the vineyard) also minimised embodied energy.
Minimising costs
Limited site works and the use of shipping containers were key to minimising costs in this project. These elements harnessed local skills commonly used in the surrounding mines and rural properties. Once these elements were in place the project became a simple fit out by local tradespeople in their downtime from other projects.
