No ‘pour’ decisions were made by the Fiona Lynch Office when designing the Giant Steps Wines Tasting Room. Located in the heart of Healesville, Yarra Valley, the Tasting Room showcases the latest vintage and exclusive wines. Each sip echoes the tales of its origin and serves as a destination for guests to explore Giant Steps wines, offering flavour profiles ranging from the Essential Giant Steps Tasting to the Single Vineyard Experience.
The space was designed by Melbourne’s renowned interior design firm, Fiona Lynch Office, whose oeuvre features the likes of Kiln at the Ace Hotel, St Ali in Melbourne and the Lee Mathews boutiques. The design brief was simple: to pay homage to the hues and surrounding landscapes of the Giant Steps Single Vineyard sites and provoke a transformative experience.
“Our vision was to create a space where the beauty of the Yarra Valley landscapes and Giant Steps’ unparalleled winemaking expertise harmoniously intersect,” says Fiona Lynch.
Expansive steel-framed windows and doors define the boundaries of the space, framing panoramic views of the surrounding vegetation while maximising natural light infiltration. Variances in ceiling height delineate different areas on the floorplan, improving functionality, and enhancing the overall acoustics of the venue. The spatial configuration is open and communal, seemingly designed around the displayed wines, which stand against a muted green and charcoal palette.
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The Tasting Room is overlaid with a rich material palette, synonymous with the array of sensations experienced by your taste buds as you enjoy the wine. The warmth and smoothness of the timber complement the robust and tactile concrete slabs.
Meanwhile, olive-green joinery and metallic hardware elevate the luxury of the space. The furnishings and selective use of timber evoke a Japanese minimalist aesthetic, with an expansive paper lantern hanging starkly amidst formally severe timber stools and leather-draped lounges. Elsewhere, eclectic floor lamps and splashes of red and creams in the objets d’art within the space add eccentricity.
Fiona Lynch Office
fionalynch.com
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