Camouflaging and building with the Tibetan nature. The Quzica Winery

At the foot of Dameiyong Snow Mountain, near the Lancang River, among ancient salt fields and close to the only Catholic church in Tibet, the Quzica Winery hides and becomes part of the natural majesty of the place. Highly integrated with the site, the gravity-flow winery is born to alleviate poverty in the area through the development of local activities

A winery that is a natural setting, not a building

PL-T ARCHITECTURE STUDIO, among its many architecture projects, designs the Quzika 1865 Winery Complex as if nature itself were the designer. The terraced site, crossed by streams flowing down from the mountain, is perfect for the gravity-flow winery, which takes advantage of the slopes and blends into the ground without disturbing its balance or image. Centuries-old walnut trees and vineyards already populate the area, which transitions from mountain to winery to work its fruits

Roof like a water landscape and walls in local stone

On the winery's roofs, a salt field is recreated, fed by existing streams, changing the building's image depending on the seasonal water flow in an ever-changing water landscape. The perimeter walls are made of local stone which, besides making the cellar a natural extension of the site, is cost-effective and provides excellent thermal insulation

A new space dedicated to the villagers

A museum, a restaurant, the book bar, and the welcome center made up of three rocks scattered on the salt field constitute the part of the Quzica Winery open to the public. Internally, hidden at the foot of the Snow Mountain, the gravity-flow cellar with a top-down process flow, efficient and intensive, exploits the site's differences in elevation. The overall design creates a poetic scene: the salt field extends downward to the Lancang River, and an old tree stands among the river rocks. The Tibetans who often graze their livestock here will be able to continue to do so in a new space dedicated to the villagers

Mediating Architecture as a Reflection of Equity

Architects break the boundary between the cellar and the daily life of the inhabitants, in a respectful, open, and tolerant manner, constructing a highly integrated natural setting with the site. The cellar transforms into a medium that reflects equity between artificial structures and the natural environment, and between industrial and civil lands, resolving, at least here, a long-standing conflict

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