The tasting room design of the recently opened Caymus-Suisun winery adds to the allure of great grapes.
The design team didn’t use a hint of blue anywhere in the decor, as they believed it would detract from the natural environment and sky.
The Bureau (thebureau.design), led by Sarah Giesenhagen, recently collaborated with Thad Geldert (@thadgeldert), along with architects Bohlin Cywinski Jackson (bcj.com) and general contractors Cello and Maudru (cello-muadru.com), to create a masterpiece of light and space in Suisun Valley.
Thad Gelert and Sarah Giesenhagen
The new Caymus-Suisun Winery (caymus-suisun.com), nestled among rolling hills Cooled by the Pacific Coast breezes, was founded by the Wagner family—the multigenerational vintners who first established Caymus Vineyards in Napa over 50 years ago. The tasting experience, complemented by a 5,500-square-foot glass tasting room pavilion with retractable walls and operable transom windows, allows the building to open entirely to the surroundings. We chatted with Giesenhagen about this stunning space.
Natural light pours into the tasting room.
When you made choices for the various spaces—from decor to the artisans you chose—how did you consider and think about visitors to the winery?
We encouraged the connection to the surrounding environment—never blocking your view. We did this by utilizing colors in the surroundings so your eye moves seamlessly indoors to out and back. We kept the center portion of the volume clear, so you have clean site lines through the building.
Exquisite woodwork frames the main hallway.
There’s not a single hint of blue. Why?
We didn’t use blue or finishes with cool undertones because the sky is so present in the glazing and large oculus in the center of the main tasting room. We wanted that to remain center stage. Anything blue in the color palette would pale in comparison.
The chandelier sculpture in the east tasting area of the main tasting room is by Tanya Aguiniga.
What pieces do you love in the room?
One goal was to [help visitors] understand the value of artisanship and what creating something custom, new and sometimes perfectly unpredictable can bring to an experience. The mural in the arrival area is by Dean Barger (deanbargerstudios.com). There are five generations of [the Wagner] legacy represented within it. The chandelier sculpture in the east tasting area of the main tasting room is by Tanya Aguiniga (tanyaaguiniga.com). It represents the vineyard burn piles you see seasonally in wine country—a beautiful and metaphorically rich aspect of the process. The 15 custom planters are by LGS Studio (lgsstudio.com). Each one feels like rocks embedded in the fields or on the northern coast.
Even the tilework reflects the area.
What is your favorite space in the new tasting room?
The east tasting room—the smallest space. It’s narrow, tall and surrounded by 16-foot high glazing with a gold-dusted mirror. The color palette is a bit darker and moodier than other spaces. It is a mix of fire char and rust tones surrounding the building during the fall and harvest seasons. Aguiniga’s chandelier sculpture hangs low above the tables, allowing you to get close and providing a sense of intimacy. At night, the sculpture resembles a glowing organ within the building, akin to a heart. [Inside the sculpture] is the nine-light chandelier by Nate Cotterman (natecotterman.com); it’s smoked and resembles embers.
Photography by: YOSHIHIRO MAKINO
