Sacromonte, Craft Wines & Landscape Hotel

A blend of pleasure, respite and beauty in the hills of Uruguay

By Jimena Martignoni

In October 2019, Decanter —the world’s leading wine media brand— described Uruguay as “South America’s under-discovered jewel: a patchwork of predominantly boutique-style and family-owned producers” and, among other few images, it featured this striking panoramic view of Sacromonte, Craft Wines & Landscape Hotel. Later, at the 2022 Decanter World Wine Awards, the Sacromonte Vineyard won both Gold and Silver Medals and was presented as “a sustainable luxury wine and hospitality project located in Uruguay’s most vibrant wine region”.

The luxury, in fact, is the landscape of the Eastern Sierras where this vineyard and hotel shelters are placed; as carefully and beautifully crafted as its medal-winning wines, the site offers a blend of pleasure, respite and the most amazing views of gently rolling land at the highest location (Sierra de Carapé, 500 MASL) of the smallest nation in South America. With an area of 176,215 square kilometers and a population of about 3.5 million, bordered by the largest countries in Latin America —Brazil and Argentina—, Uruguay definitely is a jewel.

Both the country and the sierras region were chosen by Peruvian entrepreneur Edmond Borit to revive his family viticultural tradition, originally started in France by his grandfather, to create not only the greatest local vineyards but also a hotel that would not be a hotel but a short number of “shelters” dotting the green local setting. In 2013, subsequent to an in-depth research on the most adequate conditions for growing wine grapes in Uruguay, which revealed that the sierras’ soils were indeed the best local terroirs, he acquired a 100 hectare-site. After further in-detail studies and once he defined he would only use five hectares for the entire vineyards’ area (and actually discarded the idea of also growing olive trees because that would mean a huge change in the local natural environment –with 25 hectares as a minimum size required), he hired landscape designer Roberto Mulieri with the intention of developing a holistic and unique master plan. In 2015, they started visiting the site on a regular basis and the site’s survey was carried out over a whole year.

“When we started conducting the site visits — says Mulieri— the area was almost inaccessible, the hillsides were covered with dense and shrubby vegetation and the only way to get there was through a dirt road. But the owner’s objectives were very clear and the potential of the site was fantastic”. Based on these existing conditions, the landscape design team —in close collaboration with specialists such as geologists, biologists and agronomists— conducted a geological survey, a flora and fauna census and also a study on the local cultural context and history. As a result, an overall data analysis established the basis for the master plan and the landscape planning main decisions, considering and including both the natural conditions of the site and the local cultural knowledge of the area. Past overgrazing had caused high levels of soil degradation; in this regard, all possible references obtained from locals meant a good source of information for the land restoration practices that the design team established as an initial stage.

From a landscape concept perspective, the productive character of the site had been originally and essentially defined with the incorporation of the five hectares of vineyards, thought out to be the soul of the project; personally chosen by Edmond Borit and especially brought from France, the plantation includes six different grape varieties. However, offering a unique wine tourism destination and a relaxing rural experience for travelers was also a main condition for the project. With this idea in mind, Roberto Mulieri explains that after

Craft Wines Landscape Hotel

Cno. La Guillermina Km 7 Sierras del Carapé Maldonado, Uruguay 34º31’14.2”S 55º03’31.1”W T.

the land clearing and grubbing, the road construction and the design of an accordingly consistent access to the site, the landscape proposal’s focus was about creating an itinerary or a “journey” through different key spots in the Sacromonte grounds. In this way, the landscape project would bring back to life the nature of the site and would enhance some of the existing scenery, allowing the visitor to have a dynamic and very vivid experience; the incorporation of viewpoints and productive-related “stations” such as the orchard and the henhouse, would add some specific new small areas of interest and natural places of contemplation. (Thoroughly planted and with a great and precious variety of vegetables, the orchard supplies the on-site Sacromonte restaurant where Chef Tupambaé Cámara creates daily unforgettable multi-course meals using seasonal ingredients).

In line with the conceptual layout of “discovery trails” and special areas opening onto the landscape, the project incorporates the shelters at four very diverse locations on the hill slopes. Named after the exact area where they are placed and crowning four plateaus with different attributes —Lake, Vineyard,

Sierra and Horizon— every one of the current shelters overlooks a specific natural scenario with respective stunning views. The sunset time with colorful changes in the sky and the night hours, ideal for stargazing due to inexistent light pollution, turn into additional great possibilities for landscape observation and relaxation.

Another important aspect of the landscape project was water. On the one hand, two water reservoirs shaped as lakes were incorporated into the site, both for aesthetic and functional purposes. On the other, a stream that was concealed by the existing woodland was added as part of a different walking circuit, separate from the main road that connects all shelters and with the reception area. The lakes, known as “tajamares” in Uruguay, were constructed at existing lowland areas in the site, in order to respect and take advantage of the natural slopes as much as possible. Following topographical studies and local precipitation measurements, these earthen reservoirs implied a five meter-deep excavation and the use of local clay for waterproofing. The “Lake” shelter is placed on top of the largest reservoir and offers a particularly bucolic view that changes at sunset, when the water becomes a mesmerizing mirror and reflects the evening sky, commonly referred to as the golden hour; regarding functional needs, the water supply for the irrigation of the vineyards is the main objective.

On a romantic note, the existing brook was actually found while working on the site, at initial stages. “We heard the sound of water flowing and we kept exploring the area until we discovered this charming creek surrounded by pristine vegetation” —explains landscape designer Mulieri. Based on the research that was conducted with the aim of knowing and listing the local flora, the project for the stream does not add any new planting and only works on the recovery of existing species found both at the bed and the shores of the water body. At some points, where the stream finds its way downhill or at some natural clearings where visitors can make a short stop, the design team included a few pieces that serve as marks and as outdoor furniture. The “rumas” are vernacular constructions made of piled logs that were discarded during pruning and clearing processes and afterwards reclaimed; this traditional technique was used both by the landscape designers for the construction of the bench backrests alongside the stream and by the architects for the back façades of the shelters.

The architectural layout for the “landscape shelters”, which provides guests with a one-of-a-kind type of accommodation, made part of the final stage of the planning process. The Montevideo-based office MAPA Arquitectos was in charge of the design and implementation of these box-like pieces that appear to be floating above the landscape.

“At the time we stepped in and we visited the site, we knew that the design proposal should be thought out from a very integral perspective —states Mauricio López Franco, a partner at MAPA Arquitectos—, considering the overall site conditions and the guests’ preferences for this kind of niche tourism.”

Originally, the owner’s plan envisioned two 120 m2houses; however, the architects presented a proposal that not only partitioned the buildings’ areas but also created an alternative design intimately integrated into the land. First, they decided to have four buildings, every one of them covering 60 square meters and offering a more suitable scale for wine-loving tourists looking for a relaxing vacation and an all-embracing nature experience; second, they created one single piece that would be repeated across the landscape, meeting construction and transportation efficiency needs and, primarily, offering a consistent language and one that would make the surrounding landscape the project’s protagonist.

In order to find a highly sustainable project’s implementation method the architects’ team carried out a comprehensive cost benefit analysis and weighed different options; having studied also the access road possibilities and average dimensions of local industrialized architecture, they chose a 12 meter x 6 meter-module that always presents the exact same interior design and the same appearance on the landscape.

The modular metal structure introduces two very different façades: the main façade, composed by a one-way mirror sheet that covers the cabin while generating an unreal and magnetic reverberating effect, and the back façade which is made out of a system of piled logs that recreates the regional “rumas”. Offering both state-of the-art technology and a methodology that honors traditional construction techniques, these shelters become both a sensory experience and a design statement.

As a final key component of the architectural design, there is a transitional piece that mediates between the prefab architecture and the soil, responding to technical needs and to the poetic idea of creating a flowing conversation between the two very different elements. Built onsite with local stones, one meter above gradelevel, and shaped with organic lines that relate to every one of the four natural scenarios and wind/sun exposure conditions, these raised decks that fully open onto the landscape provide guests with a more tailored outdoor design. In this manner, the balcony-like pieces give the visitor the ultimate chance of becoming part of a breathtaking natural enclosing while inhabiting a human scale space: a sense of natural order.

Indeed, not only is Sacromonte about tasting and visual pleasures but it also brings an energetic and spiritual feeling that comes with the possibility of becoming one with nature.

From top to bottom:

•A transitional piece mediates between the prefab architecture and the soil and offers a more tailored outdoor design for guests.

•The main façade is a one-way mirror sheet that reflects the natural surroundings.

•The back façade is made out of a system of piled logs that recreates regional construction techniques.

•Due to inexistent light pollution, stargazing becomes a great possibility for landscape observation.

Opposite page:

The design of the terraces changes according to the shelter’s location.

Completing the holistic development plan for Sacromonte, one last but invaluable characteristic of the project is the implementation of local hiring. Creating employment opportunities by hiring people living in the nearest towns and rural villages has been a relevant objective from early stages of the master plan and, in fact, one of the key subjects of preliminary surveys. Edmond Borit explains that the Sacromonte grounds include housing for up to fourteen people that work and live at the site, most of them from Uruguay and Peru. Also, neighbor peasants are employed for specific tasks that require a great deal of local knowledge, such as horse caretaking and sheep grazing. “We don’t use mowing machinery —says Edmond— because we want to remain sustainable in as many aspects as possible. With this purpose, we hire neighbors that need ample space for their flock of sheep and we use the animals to cut the grass, so it’s a win-win situation.”

This integrative sustainable approach for both the planning scale and that of the smallest details is what makes Sacromonte, Craft Wines & Landscape Hotel an outstanding comprehensive design and a timeless memorable experience.

Location: Eastern Sierras, Uruguay (514 meters above sea level)

Site’s Area: 100 hectares / Site’s Altitude: 300/360 meters above sea level

Date of completion: 2017/2018

Landscape Architects: Estudio Siempreverde-Roberto Mulieri

Architects: MAPA Arquitectos (Luciano Andrades, Matías Carballal, Andrés Gobba, Mauricio López Franco, Silvio Machado)

Client: Edmond Borit

Photography: Tali Kimelman; Leonardo Finotti