A monument to winemaking - A temple to wine -- Mayan-style

By Micaela Meyer 
Buenos Aires Herald, July 27, 2003

It is reached along a straight, well-kept, tree-lined road, stretching through seemingly vast, neat vineyards. As a backdrop, the Andean foothills are discernible, with the mighty snow-capped Andes themselves looming beyond. Then the building finally comes into view: an unexpected, imposing and rather magnificent sight. 

We are in Mendoza, the western province producing most of Argentina’s wine and, at 33º latitude, roughly the same distance from the equator, as are the premier grape growing regions of France, Italy and California. And we are in one of Nicolás Catena’s vineyards, located in a valley 940 m above sea-level in the Agrelo district. The soil and the dry climate are just right for this vineyard, La Pirámide, planted in 1983, mainly with Cabernet Sauvignon vine varietals, as well as Chardonnay, some Malbec, with just a few of its 105 hectares given over to other highly selected grape varieties. 

A native of Mendoza, Nicolás Catena, lecturer in economics, third generation vineyard owner, interested in history as well as progressive vintner, decided a few years ago to build a new winery, or ‘bodega’, in order to produce premium quality wines, mainly for export, using the most advanced technology available. 

While admiring the distinctive French ‘chateaux’, the vintner wanted his new Catena Zapata winery to express authentically its unique South American, mountainous setting, in contrast to Europe and the old world. Having searched the continent for the most appropriate style, on visiting Tikal, in Guatemala, with his wife, Elena, Catena instructed architect Pablo Sánchez Elía to allow Mayan stepped pyramid temples to inspire the design: the indigenous pre-Columbian Mayans lived in a similarly mountainous area, used irrigation and were highly advanced in mathematics and architecture.

The quite spectacular result, opened two years ago in April 2001, is a sort of modern ziggurat built in local stone quarried in the Andes, some of it crushed , pulverised and mixed into a naturally yellow stucco. Wood from local trees --- such as autochthonous poplars, ‘lapachos’, willows and vines --- was used for massive doors and furniture. These materials were chosen to help the building blend into its surroundings and to prevent its clashing with nature. Both inside and outside, contrasting textures --- such as that of flagstone walls above travertine marble floors, coarse rock near to smoothly polished surfaces, bright stainless steel and rough stucco, and also emphatic yellow next to neutral hues --- are a remarkably potent feature. 

In the centre of the building, over a wide circular stairwell, a lucarne skylight, actually a great glazed cone shape with an observatory planned at the top, allows sunlight to penetrate otherwise dark areas. On the ground floor are the reception area, a few offices, a shop selling wine to the visiting public, and the very modern, shiningly spotless laboratories. 

Nicolás Catena’s own office, a private reception area, a small library devoted to wine-related literature, as well as a dining area for around 15 or 16 guests, are on the 1st floor. When all sliding doors enclosing these areas are opened up, there is sufficient room for 150 or more people at a reception. Further up, the view from the top affords a clear impression of the straight lines, including diagonals, of the vines, planted according to the best sunlight conditions. The imposing Andes foothills are ruggedly visible beyond.

Sturdy, straight arms, attached to the main `Mayan’ pyramid, house the rooms containing wine casks. There are six cellars storing, for instance, thousands of some very heavy, unlabelled bottles containing the top 2000 vintage, while it is being allowed to age. Entrance to these vaults is through Mayan style straight arches in the rock walls. There is an area with a stout wooden table and benches, for holding small, private tastings. An exceedingly long, beautifully solid and simple table --- the table top made out of one huge centenarian ‘lapacho’ board --- has been placed in the main wine tasting room, with has window openings onto a large, curved vault. Here, in this vault, the oak casks --- containing wine while it absorbs, over three years, the aroma and flavours contributed by oak --- are laid out, for all to see, in several wide, curved rows, forming a large semicircle.

The remarkably thick, sloping, flagstone covered walls, do not actually meet; thus leaving a narrow space in every corner, which creates an interesting effect. Edges of columns are covered in metal, which is coated in a protective copper patina, with the banisters on the main stairwell also in these metals. Doors and the sparse, wooden furniture were also designed by the architect: simple, sturdy, straightforward, with careful attention lavished on certain details, such as the furniture legs and handles in metal.

Mayan temples were presumably erected in homage to the gods. In Agrelo, Mendoza, there is now a splendiferous, spectacular temple to premier local wines.