14 Hands Winery - from Wine label to brand experience

The Windswept product adds style, sophistication and practicality to what we designers have long called for ~ a reclaimed appearance with the stability and structural integrity of new wood backed by industry associaons, and at nearly half the investment of reclaimed woods with minimal waste. This combined with the warm Eco-­Story yields a fresh environmental chronicle.

Chateau Ste. Michelle

Prosser, WA

12,200 sf combinedRead full article 

http://bcradesign.com/projects/14-hands-winery

Situated in the picturesque Horse Heaven Hills sits one of the most well respected American wineries; Chateau Ste. Michelle’s 14 Hands vineyards. Critically acclaimed, this Washington wine’s success grew from the shelves of restaurants and select retailers. Ste. Michelle desired a new tasting facility to be the first platform for 14experience with their already established and successful wine.

BCRA first launched the design process for a new tasting room with an abstract understanding of what the 14 Hands brand experience could be. While 14 Hands celebrates successful varietals, and hails as the official Wine of the Kentucky derby, the customer experience of the wine itself lacked definition. The existing label artwork was the only existing visual expression of their brand. It highlights wild horses, known to be 14 hands tall, that used to be abundant in the Horse Heaven Hills region. Ste. Michelle executives also expressed a desire for a “Cowboy Nouveau" tasting experience.

Our design team’s branding effort began by conceptualizing the space with written narrative. Then came a cross disciplinary approach; bringing together Architecture, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture and Environmental Graphic Design working together to capture the unbridled spirit of the brand in a three-dimensional space. 

The site was unique; Ste. Michelle was faced with a decision to utilize a site with an existing 43,000 sf production facility or search for a new location. Many local wineries set up small shops with a mall-like approach to tasting, alluring visitors with one-stop shopping. In turn, this has removed visitors from the craft of wine making itself. BCRA’s designers sought to honor the age old traditions of the region complimented with today’s modern authenticity of the wine making process.

Much like the agrarian concept of farm growth over time, BCRA demonstrated the existing site could organically evolve to accommodate 14 Hands in a variety of ways, including a large 50’ x 20’ mural of the famed label artwork to create a minimalist illusion of a vast building. Moving from the warehouse, slightly rotating the orientation of the 2700 sf addition smoothly transitions the interior and exterior space. Finally, a spacious courtyard flanked by topographic walls break up the view from the parking lot and bring a visual line of interest to the open sky and surrounding hills.

Windswept Weathered Wood was utilized exclusively for all interior and exterior elevations, creating a timeless space complimenting the genuine and authentic ethos of 14 Hands brand.

A Western Red Cedar substrate was chosen for the exterior elevation while the warm and powerful Eco-Story of utilizing fallen or standing-dead beetle-kill Engelmann-Spruce Lodgepole Pine trees from the Colorado Rocky Mountain regions. 

Contact:

Glen Ehrhardt, Business Development

Windswept Weathered Wood

PO Box 59 

Lakebay, WA  98349

p. (253) 884-6255  

f. (253) 884-6256

email windswept.rep@gmail.com

web www.windsweptweatheredwood.com