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In its expansion project of Château de Beaucastel, the historic winery in southern France, the design team let the site’s unique character inform the project. Run by the same family for more than five generations, the estate in the Côtes du Rhône region is well known for its biodynamic wines. Studio Mumbai and Studio Méditerranée expanded the estate with a design intended to endure through time, adding new cellars and an underground cistern that work in concert with local conditions.
As the concept of terroir ties a wine to its geographic origins, the expansion is grounded in the site’s specific conditions, from its soil composition to the climate and local craft skills. On-site excavation produced 25,000 cu. m of earth, gravel, and sand, while the demolition of existing structures recovered tiles, stone, and crushed gravel. These reclaimed materials were used as raw inputs and reincorporated into the construction as raw earth, concrete, mortar, and plaster – a material vocabulary that makes the building feel like a natural extension of the ground.
This continuity carries into the interiors, where a palette of earth tones – selected from the local soil’s hues in collaboration with color artist Muirne Kate Dineen – defines tactile, materially rich spaces. The beams that frame the entrance to the main hall are from old barns, while the essential, often handcrafted, furnishings reflect local craft traditions. Ash and stone tables, silk rugs, and linen armchairs sit among alabaster lamps that cast a soft, sculptural light. The austere, contemplative atmospheres of the interiors preserve and quietly reveal the site’s heritage. Thresholds between inside and out frame the landscape. Some windows have no glass, reflecting a design approach that treats nature and the built environment as active partners in an ongoing dialogue.
The architects approached the local climate as a design resource, building wind towers inspired by Persian badgir to harness the steady northwest wind, and using passive cooling systems to stabilize interior temperatures around 15°C and maintain humidity levels optimal for wine maturation. The underground cistern passively moderates temperatures while also serving as a reservoir for winemaking processes and rainwater collection. Raw-earth and concrete walls provide thermal mass, absorbing and slowly releasing energy. Surfaces and materials were selected for durability and to age gracefully, as part of the lifecycle-driven approach that underpins the project.
This project embraces transformation: grapes become wine, soil becomes structure, and the site’s lineage becomes part of its present and future.
THE PLAN Interior Design & Contract 12 is the twelfth supplement that THE PLAN has dedicated to the world of interior architecture. The publication, out in April 2026 as a supplement to THE PLAN 169, looks at around twenty of the most important inte... Read More
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![The Plan 170 [05-2026]](https://www.theplan.it/cdn-cgi/image/width=300/images/theplan170cover.jpg)
