Escala Humana Wines Winery | Monte Arquitectura de Autor

A thin line between heaven and earth defines the project’s premise. The horizontal element organizes the program and provides a reference point from which to measure and understand the immeasurable.

The Escala Humana Wines winery is located in Gualtallary, Tupungato, Mendoza, on native land with complex biodiversity, at the foot of the Andes Mountains. Its placement is based on specific studies of soil types, native flora, fauna, entomology, and microbiology, conducted in collaboration with specialists from various fields, demonstrating a genuine commitment to the environment.

In this context, the vineyards are arranged among natural islands of chañar trees, cacti, and wild vegetation, while the winery is situated on the portion of land least suitable for cultivation. This decision allows the architecture to be integrated as a precise element within the existing ecosystem.

The commission called for designing a winery that would house the functions necessary for winemaking and, at the same time, create intimate spaces for gathering, fostering an intimate, domestic, and sensitive experience. From this emerged a versatile architecture capable of linking production and livability.

The structure is organized around the tectonic and stereotomic relationship of its envelope. Heavy walls of local stone rise from the ground and define precise boundaries in the landscape; their presence is in keeping with the aridity of the Mendoza desert. Resting subtly atop this mineral mass is a lightweight, precise metal roof, enclosing a space of shade, coolness, and protection. Between the gravity of the stone and the precision of the sheet metal, the building creates a synthesis between the primal and the productive, between the cave and the ranch, between the farmhouse and the barn.

The bioclimatic strategy is a central dimension of the project. The walls with high thermal mass, controlled openings, cross-ventilation, and vine-covered eaves allow for the creation of a stable interior microclimate, suitable both for daily work and for the thermal requirements of a winery. Natural light enters in a measured way, avoiding excess and reinforcing an interior atmosphere defined by soft light.

The initial volume partially obscures the views. However, upon crossing the entrance threshold, the building opens up toward the west and frames the Andean landscape at the heart of the project. The floor plan frees up the main hall and concentrates the services in the east wing—restrooms, laboratory, storage, and machine room—allowing for flexibility during the harvest, bottling, and aging of wine in concrete vats and amphorae.

To the south, a semi-underground cellar and a technical office on the mezzanine complete the spatial organization. From there, the hall is perceived as the center of a home. Activities intersect, the industrial becomes familiar, and the winery finally acquires a human scale.

The user experience is conceived holistically. It begins with an appreciation of the arid, native desert landscape, continues along a path through vineyards surgically integrated into the terrain, and finds, in the very materiality of the site, the elements that define the architecture.

Office Name: Monte Arquitectura de Autor + Rare Studio Experimental + Unamuno Arquitectura

Office Website: https://www.instagram.com/monte_arquitectura/ ; https://estudiorare.com/ ; https://www.unamunoarq.com/

Social Media Accounts: @monte_arquitectura / @estudio.rare / @unamuno.ar

Contact email: monte.estudio.arquitectura@gmail.com  / rare.arquitectos@gmail.com / mateo@unamunoarq.com

Firm Location: Mendoza (Monte) y Córdoba (RARE / Unamuno), Argentina

Completion Year: 2024

Gross Built Area (m2/ ft2): 450m2

Project Location: Gualtallary, Tupungato, Mendoza, Argentina

Program / Use / Building Function: Winery

Lead Architects: Fabrizio Prosperi (Monte), Mateo Unamuno (Unamuno), Ivan Ferrero, Agustin Willnecker (RARE)

Lead Architects e-mail: monte.estudio.arquitectura@gmail.com  / rare.arquitectos@gmail.com / mateo@unamunoarq.com

Photographer

Photo Credits: Luis Abba

Photographer’s Website: https://www.instagram.com/luisabbaestudio/ ; https://luisabbaestudio.com/

Photographer’s e-mail: info@luisabbaestudio.com