Slideshow

Images of Bordeaux’s Cité du Vin – 40 days till launch

22 April 2016 By Richard Ross

With just 40 days to go until Bordeaux’s museum of wine culture, the Cité du Vin, opens to the public, images reveal the finishing touches and some dramatic features.

After three years of construction, Bordeaux’s Cité du Vin is due to open to the public for the first time on June 1st. Described as “an immersive and cultural journey into the heart of the living and universal heritage of wine”, the attraction will be a major part of the city’s tourism landscape. The curving and fluid exterior of the building is reminiscent of the swirl of wine in a decanter or glass.

External curves

The complex curvature of the building, designed by XTU Architects, reinforces the fluidity of wine and will catch the Bordeaux sun at all sorts of angles.

External shell

Seen up close, the fluidity of the curves transform into individual reflective scales, referencing the glint of sun through a glass of wine, highlighting the colours and opacity of the wine.

Interior space

The internal courtyard shows something of the scale of the building, which will have exhibition space, performance and gallery areas, a wine shop, and several restaurants spread across eight floors.

Molecular structures

The interior of the restaurant “Le 7”, on the seventh floor of the building, with a cellular honeycomb structure reflecting the molecular makeup of the compounds in wine.

Dramatic chandelier

In the Belvedere, the panoramic viewpoint on the 8th floor of the building, visitors will conclude their tour with a chance to taste a glass of wine from a choice of 20 options from around the world. The ceiling is constructed as a giant chandelier made of glass wine bottles, which will light up the space to dramatic effect.