Peramangk and Kaurna Peoples
South Australia
Vinteloper is an architecturally re-imagined ruin: a 1920 farmhouse in Lobethal, devastated in the December 2019 Cudlee Creek bushfire and rebuilt as a cellar door and tasting room in 2024. Rather than erase the event, the project treats the scar as narrative—honouring what remained while creating a “brand home” that invites connection and celebration. The surviving red-brick shell became the underlying principle for a contemporary sleeve, nestled within the existing walls and clearly of its time, yet deliberately secondary to the farmhouse presence. Inside, a light-filled tasting room balances clean lines and natural materials with a calibrated domestic softness—places to pause, gather and linger. The retained masonry holds the memory of fire; the new work expresses renewal through precise, legible intervention. Supported by a close consultant and maker team, the project prioritises reuse, durability and long-life detailing—an act of architectural care that enables the farmhouse to rise again.
A wine business that owns its land, grows the grapes, produces the wine, and sells directly to the customer is a perfect example of full vertical integration. This “grape-to-glass” model isn’t just a production method; it’s a powerful business strategy centred on control, profitability, and brand equity. The design’s quality is evident in its materials, which tell a story of survival and renewal. Original red bricks that withstood the blaze remain visible. Charred timber beams salvaged from the fire stand as totem-like markers at the entry, honouring the past. This isn’t just design; it’s a testament to resilience.