How a Mumbai architect rebuilt a vineyard in France’s Rhône Valley

On a visit to the Château de Beaucastel in France years ago, the first thing that struck me was how wellintegrated it was with its surroundings, how minimalistic. It is deliberately so. As Charles Perrin, fifth generation co-owner, Château de Beaucastel, explains, “Beaucastel’s identity is rooted in two things: respect for the land and quiet, patient innovation.” The reimagined Château de Beaucastel, which was inaugurated in May after an extensive renovation by Mumbai-based architect Bijoy Jain, is still rooted in that philosophy of sustainability. Château de Beaucastel is the flagship winery of the Perrin family, located in Courthézon in southern Rhône in the appellation of Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

The “new palace of the pope”, as the name translates, was France’s first wine appellation (which is like a tag or label to identify the region a wine originates from) given at a time when the papal seat moved from Rome to southern France from 1309-77. Famous for their discerning palates and extensive cellars, the popes sought quality and found that the rugged terroir of the region produced extraordinary, powerful wines. Besides their own extensive wine estates that include Beaucastel (since 1909) and La Vieille Ferme, the Perrins have partnered with Brad Pitt to produce super-brands Château Miraval, Champagne Fleur de Miraval and Gardener gin. But Beaucastel remains closest to their hearts.

The Perrins’ commitment to organic viticulture is well-documented with Jacques Perrin being one of the earliest adopters of organic farming in 1950, and biodynamic viticulture from 1974. As the Perrins’ business grew, so did Beaucastel’s reputation and it needed a structure that would accommodate the practical requirements of future expansion. So, in 2018, the family announced an international competition to select an architect for the renovation of the Château de Beaucastel winery.

They received 1,200 entries from architects of 32 nationalities. In the end, Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai was awarded the project. Working with him would be former colleague Louis-Antoine Grégo of Studio Méditérranée, France. “Grégo was at Studio Mumbai working with us on the renovation of a 16th century convent in Nice, in the south of France.... It seemed a natural progression to make a proposal for Beaucastel with this group who shared in the same sentiments towards the making of things, spaces, materials, landscapes,” says Jain.

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ROOTED IN HISTORY

The key factor for the renewed winery was to synthesise the idea of “terroir”, the French word that encapsulates the environment in which a wine’s quality is determined. Perrin’s brief to the architects was simple: “Build with what the earth gives us. Let the elements handle the energy load. Invite dialogue, not ostentation.” The new winery had to co-exist with parts of the old structure, including the original manor house constructed in the 17th century.

Perrin explains, “Our earlier chai (the barrel room) was a workhorse but energy-hungry and too small for parcel precision (storing wines from individual plots separately before the final blending). The new wing doubles capacity yet is 80% underground, so from a distance you see vineyards and the ochre-coloured courtyard walls that mirror the old stone.” The russet boundary walls enclose the château that sits amidst the vineyards. It is constructed using the rammed earth technique—known as pisé in French—of compressed red clay mixed with recycled limestone and rubble from old Beaucastel sheds.

The walls were compacted layer by layer—the veins and pebbles visible—thus fulfilling Perrin’s brief: “The new winery must grow out of the same soil that nourishes our vines.” Close to 90% of the structure was made from materials found on-site—initially from a pit 50x50 metres and 15m-deep. When the gravel ran out, rubble from old buildings was added—so the new structure was literally “pressed” from Beaucastel’s terroir without any concrete or iron, using construction techniques dating back to ancient Egypt and China. “It was a mere displacement of landscape. No truck came in or left,” explains Jain. Grégo says, “We took terroir, which is essentially flat and made it vertical—you can see its veins in the walls. We deconstructed parts of the old buildings that were not required, crushed the concrete into gravel, and added it to the mix.”

For Jain, the challenge was to design a structure that would pay homage to the wine itself. He recalls, “The ground, soil, wind, rain, sun were resources available in the immediacy of the landscape. We needed to use this abundance to create architecture made from the physical environment to provide a quiet resting space for the wine to evolve and achieve its full potential.” This genius loci as Jain calls it, became the vision for Beaucastel.

On the energy front, electricity is generated from multiple rooftop solar panels, while cooling comes from the mighty mistral wind of the Rhône Valley, which is channelled through underground galleries via inbuilt wind towers and over an underground cistern holding gallons of water collected from the rooftops. “Water is the basis of life so the cistern is the project’s foundation and acts as a cradle for the wine,” explains Jain. “The mistral is drawn deep into the ground and circulates above the water’s surface, dropping the temperature in the cellar to an even 12 degrees centigrade through the year.” The cooled air is then distributed to the cellar spaces, while the water supplies most of the winery’s needs. “This is an integrated structure free of any mechanical device or industrial material,” says Jain.

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Winemaking capacity was optimised. Perrin explains, “We insisted on gravityflow reception, individual fermenters sized to our 13 cépages (a specific blend of grapes) and 70 parcels and circulation paths that future generations can adapt without demolition. The design incorporates 91 small concrete vats, clay jars from Impruneta in Italy and larger wooden tanks that allow each plot and varietal to be vinified separately into the classic Beaucastel blend—an old dream finally realised.”

Before the commencement, the Perrin family had taken Jain on a road trip to Burgundy to visit three wineries, the last being the iconic Domaine de la Romanée Conti. “It was a misty morning at the Domaine, and we stood on a slope in the vineyards, looking down the large stone cross that symbolises the famous winery. In the distance I could see a group of people walking towards it—as if they were on a pilgrimage. It was magical, like a painting. Then we walked deep into the cellars. I remember the walls, a rock with water trickling over its surface, a gravel floor and a barrel serving as a tasting table. Bottles of DRC were opened... This experience changed me, gave me an insight into the potential of wine through the mechanics of taste. The penny dropped,” says Jain.

PIONEERING PROJECT

For Grégo, the €16 million project was a huge learning. “We had never built a winery before like this one. We studied for three years before starting construction— that took another three-and-a-half years. Longer than expected, but this was pioneering work.” Finally, the result was a collaboration of individual skill sets, says Jain, preferring to describe Studio Mumbai as one of many collaborators.

Engineer Philippe Clement of French company Batiserf was, in his view, pivotal to the project. “He ensured the material dissolves into pure architecture, while landscape artist Tom Stuart Smith was intuitive in his interpretation of the gardens, planting indigenous shrubs and trees that needed little water… The builders, masons, carpenters—each one claimed ownership of the project.” For Perrin, the project’s results exceeded expectations.

“Visitors tell us the place feels timeless, as though it had always been there. But the renovation is a milestone, not an end.... In the new tasting cloisters, we plan to host artist and scientist residencies—continuing the dialogue between culture, craft and terroir that began when an Indian studio helped a Rhône family re-imagine its home.”

Ruma Singh is a Bengaluru-based wine and travel writer.

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