Adega Mayor Winery

The Adega Mayor wine cellars are roughly 180 Km east of Lisbon, near the Spanish border. The hills are covered in olive groves and vineyards. On the west side there is an artificial lake and north of this squat industrial buildings. Integrating a large facility for wine production with the surrounding environment was a great challenge, particularly when the total surface area covered was going to be 1600 square metres. To avoid having to deal with this aspect, the easiest solution would have been to bury it. Siza chose a much more daring solution. He decided to make a contrast between landscape and his creation. Those who are aware of Siza’s respect for his surroundings and his great care in trying to integrate it might be surprised by what he went for – a 120 metre long, 40 metre wide and 8 metre high building, right on top of a hill! The reason why Siza opted for what is generally a linear type of building has to be found in his growing appreciation of the functional aspects of his work. The outcome is a building spreading length-wise, with no light, where the two extremities are the only plastic features present. On the north facing side, one storey above ground level, there are the administrative offices and these have access to a terrace roof, a hanging garden for all intents and purposes, with a lawn and a pool acting as a cooling off system for the rooms inside. The east facing side is protected by a veranda, a place where access to all the machinery (tractors and elevators) is possible through sliding doors. At the end of the south side there is a patio and a second veranda overhanging. A ramp running the length of the building gives access to a south facing platform. Here Siza used the slight incline of the land to his advantage, giving an organic quality to his creation. He went for a building with a very simple form, one that stands out in contrast to its surroundings because of its very size, daringly blending with it. The building is original thanks to its compactness, whereas its lack of lighting makes it look like a sculpture incongruously sitting on a piece of farm land.
F.B.

progetto: Adega Mayor
luogo: Herdade das Argamassas – Campo Maior
architetto: Álvaro Siza
collaboratori: Avelino Silva, Rita Amaral
paesaggista: Álvaro Siza
strutture: GOP, Gabinete de Obras e Projectos, Lda., João Maria Sobreira
impianto elettrico: GOP Gabinete de Obras e Projectos, Lda., Alexandre Martins
AVAC: Gestao de Emergia Técnica, Lda., Raul Bessa
impianto idraulico: GOP, Gabinete de Obras e Projectos, Lda., Raquel Fernandesa
sicurezza: GOP Gabinete de Obras e Projectos, Lda., Alexandre Martins
costo: 3.000.000 euro
area totale: 5543 mq
area costruita: 4262 mq
promotore: Sociedade Empreendedora de Agricultura e Turismo, S.A.
impresa: Mesquita, Construção Civil e Obras Públicas
data: 2003-2006
fotografie: Duccio Malagamba