Wiroa Wine Cellar
Wiroa Wine Cellar
2009, Bay of Islands
The French term for a wine cellar is a “Cave”, and when selecting the site for the “Wine Cellar” at Wiroa Downs, the notion of something “dug in” was in mind. From local vernacular, the coastal concrete bunkers from the second World War, remnants of which remain dotted around New Zealand’s coast, also gave a design inspiration for this building. The Wiroa design code called for rusticity and sophistication, to act as foils for each other. These requirements have been interpreted in a strong, simple wedge form that lines its niche. Whilst the building is just one room and a terrace, it manages to have a spirit of monumentality.
