The Cité du Vin is a museum and exhibition center dedicated to wine, located in Bordeaux, France. This institution invited three wineries -that won the Best of Wine Tourism Awards from the Great Wine Capitals Global Network- where the architecture is truly remarkable. The participants were Alpamanta from Mendoza, Ysios Winery in La Rioja, Spain, with avant-garde architecture that fits perfectly into the shape of the Sierra de Cantabria, and the Château de la Dominique Winery in Saint Emilion, France, which terrace with views of the vines are covered in multi-hued red glass beads. Andrej Razumovsky, owner and founder of Alpamanta, presented in person about his project.
A unique experience
“It was an honor to share this presentation in France. Each winery presented a wine and there were two workshops of more than 40 people each, where the wineries presented their project, with its distinctive characteristics. We presented a Malbec with which we wanted to highlight the aging capacity of that varietal, so we presented one from 2012 with 10 years of aging in bottle,” reported Andrej Razumovsky.
“Both the Spanish and French wineries that accompanied me in the French museum were designed by world-renowned architects. In my case, when I decided to build Alpamanta, in 2019, I wanted something very subtle. I didn’t want to make an architectural monument in which only the building stood out. I wanted a project that was harmonious with the landscape. That it respected the vineyards and the biodiversity of the place,” said Razumovsky.
Alpamanta was designed by Japaz Guerra Architects, from Mendoza, which developed a functional building, with a marked aesthetic line, sustainable and respectful of nature. “We work in all areas – from the barrel room to the lagoon in front of the winery – with awareness of the water footprint, trying to reuse water and recycle effluents so that they return to the vineyard. The entire architecture was designed with thermal insulation, to save energy and trying to minimize the water resource, which is a scarce resource in Mendoza,” Razumovsky highlighted.
Asked about what the world knows about Argentina, Andrej Razumovsky assured that our country “has a great reputation, it is a wine country with a lot of tradition that also transmits very positive emotions through culture and gastronomy.. It generates great interest in Europe. The international Gold awarded to us by the Great Wine Capitals Global Network and the possibility of participating in this workshop at La Cité du Vin allows us to communicate something that many countries in the world ignore: in Latin America we work on sustainability and take care of the environment”, he concluded.
The event was held at the Cité du Vin at the end of April and was presented by Catherine Haurie, Supervisor of Sommeliers at La Cité du Vin. It had the collaboration of Rioja DOCa, Bordeaux Interprofessional Wine Council, Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux and Wines of Argentina. It is part of the international activities that the winners of the Best of Wine Tourism Awards can access along the year.
Interview with Mr. Andrej Razumovsky by María Cristina Sinatra and Carolina Suárez Garcés from ProMendoza, Mendoza, Argentina.
Photo Credits: Andrej Razumovsky, Alpamanta Winery