Wollaston Estate Winery
CONCRETE AND METALS of Motueka have played a mojor part in supplying concrete for the construction of Woollaston Estates' new $6 million underground winery in the hills at Mapua.
By
late August the project was well advanced with a 15m-high wall of
concrete slabs that will eventually be mostly hidden underground when
the project is finished.
The winery is
part of the planned $15 million vineyard complex owned in partnership
by Philip and Chan Woollaston and American investor Glen Schaeffer.
Philip Woollaston, Managing Director, said construction of the winery
was about a month behind schedule after a wet winter but was still on
target for the 2005 vintage at the end of the summer.
Resource consent was granted for the gravity-operated winery, the first
of its kind in New Zealand, that includes more than 2000 cubic metres
of insitu concrete plus precast panels.
The winery includes concrete beams weighing 30 tonnes each. It will
have room for seating for 200 if needed as a function venue, when not
being used as the working area for the barrels.
Mr Woollaston said while the concrete walls were high and imposing at
this stage, they would soon be largely hidden.
“Only the roof will be exposed and it will be covered with soil and planted with
tussocks and grasses to blend in with the landscape,’’ he said.
This roof will also be constructed from concrete which will include Golden Bay
Cement’s Microsilica 600 additive.
Once completed, the winery in the hills behind Mapua would include a
sorting and crushing area at ground level then a drop to the
fermentation area and barrel hall which would be held at about 12
degrees Celsius by the cooling underground effect. It would also
include a tasting room with an arched roof.
Concrete and Metals have provided all the insitu concrete which has been used for
the foundations, flooring and general construction. They will also be providing the concrete for the roof.
Thelin Construction have provided the precast using Allied Concrete.
Kidson Construction are the main contractors on the Woollaston winery
project.