R101, Rawsonville, Western Cape | Alterations, Additions & Refurbishment | 2022
Nestled in the Breedekloof’s vineyards, the winery’s tasting room, restaurant, and outdoor spaces were hindered by spatial constraints. With sparse landscaping and vehicle-dominated layout design, the parking lots overshadowed key areas and fragmented outdoor spaces, with the outdated tasting room that was disconnected within its context. Together with this, uninviting bathrooms and cyclist showers, and constrained floor areas in the tasting room and restaurant created an unharmonious layout, disrupting the visitor experience.
The design response reimagines the winery as a cohesive destination, rooted in its winelands context. A new vehicular entrance and dedicated staff parking liberate the original entrance for pedestrian-focused spaces. A standalone ablution facility, framing Witzenberg and Slanghoek mountain vistas, serves all users, allowing demolition of existing bathrooms to expand the tasting room and restaurant footprints. The tasting room transforms with a modest footprint increase, activated outdoor seating, and a minimalist material palette that embraces openness and simplicity. Landscaping weaves paths to connect activities, with shaded seating and a centralized play area as the visitor core. Restaurant updates, guided by the tenant’s vision, include a relocated staircase for deck access. Constrained by budget, the design harnesses the landscape’s timeless beauty, crafting an inviting, sustainable haven that celebrates the Breedekloof’s allure.
