CONTEXT

The Tasting Room at Hat Ranch is a Design-Build project by 30 students, completed over the course of 6 months of design and construction. The project doubled the tasting room to 1250 sf, added a covered entry, and a 730 sf exterior tasting pavilion.

Hat Ranch Winery and its sister brand Vale Wine Co are located , about 25 miles from Boise, ID, in the heart of the Snake River Valley American Viticultural Area. This nascent wine-growing region is coming into its own as wine tourists venture farther and farther from the know epicenters of the industry. With that has come a revitalization of agricultural-dependent towns like Homedale and Marsing, but it also brings new pressures to small family-owned vineyards like Hat Ranch and their neighbors. As the region’s wineries gain a wider audience, customer expectations about hospitality are changing, and the small informal tasting rooms are no longer sufficient.

PROCESS

Idaho Design Build worked directly with the winery owners on the design, documented existing building and site conditions, sourced materials, and prepared working drawings for permits. They pre-fabricated new casework, custom lighting, and furniture offsite, and then spent 46 days living in tents on site while they built the project.

Students sourced and finished rough-sawn pine for much of the project. Steel complements the wood, and will be left to weather over time. Old wine barrels were deconstructed and reused as a wall covering that conceals plumbing access, and the steel hoop lights over the main bar. Timber salvaged on-site and steel scrap are reused as a large tasting table in the north lounge (hidden behind a wall of rolling display cabinets in the slower winter months.)

OUTCOMES

The new patio allows visitors to grab a bottle or two, relax by the fire and drink the view. Maintaining a clear view from the interior through the pavilion to the south resulted in two unique solutions in the structure. The steel-plate west wall cuts the winter wind and frames the sunset. The eastern screw-lam wall provides lateral support and screens out the adjacent parking lot.

The overarching message presented by Hat Ranch is simple: The wine in the glass is a reflection of the work put into the land and the people who do that work. This is extended to a visitor experience that is connected and personal.

Since the project’s completion, the winery has garnered major recognition. In 2019, it was named Idaho Winery of the Year.

Katie Aiello-Coppola

Alex Albrecht

Carlos Auces

Leah Bafus

Claire Berheim

Brett Carter

Brooke Collaer

Thomas Corr

Megan Danell

Edwin Dilone-Berumen

Kayla Duclos

Chyenne Fisher

Catherine Starr

Megan Frazier

Justin Gandy

Kyle Goodyear

Matt Gonser

Austin Gutierrez

Laura Ixta

Dakota Jones

Abby Korn

Moises Montenegro

Emily Nelson

Zac Rott

Runi Sa

Jenna Shafer

Harrison Rowe

Fransisco Tovar-Moyorga

Nathan Wilde

Adriana Zamorano-Gonzalez

Scott Lawrence, assistant professor

Honor Award

AIA Northwest and Pacific Region

Student Design Awards

2019

Student Design Award

AIA Spokane

2019

Collaborators

Idaho state Wine Commission

Helen and Tim Harless, Hat ranch Winery

Canyon County, ID

Andy Paddock, - Technical Design Guidance

Elisabeth Cooper, AOR

Jay Pengilly, CAA Technical Shop Director

David Schmidt, CAA Technical Shop Assistant

Val Carter, CAA Shop Technician

Jack Carpenter

“Building Terroir in Idaho: Hat Ranch Winery”.

Lawrence, Scott.

Conference Paper and Presentation.

11th International Conference on the Constructed Environment - Calgary, AB / Virtual.

2021

“Idaho Winery of the Year: Hat Ranch/ Vale Wine Co.”

NW Wine Press

2019

“Design-Build Program Connects Students with Real-world Clients”

Fox, Tess. - Here We Have Idaho Magazine

Fall 2018