Design Details: Wine Room That Looks Like a Wine Basket

Project Del Mar Tortuga 
Architect Anne Sneed Architectural
Interiors, Del Mar, Calif.

Located in the California city of Del Mar, this coastal “cottage” exudes the beach vibe of its location. “Del Mar takes the beach life seriously, so we wanted to design a coastal cottage to reflect that,” says Todd Brown, principal at Anne Sneed Architectural Interiors.

The owners asked the architects for a casual, laid-back home with indoor/outdoor living and spaces for entertaining. Local height restrictions forced the architects to add a basement, complete with three bedrooms, a TV/game room, and a room to store wine. But they didn’t want just any ordinary wine room.“The clients are not serious wine collectors, but they wanted something nice to display wine and a feature element for when they entertain,” Brown explains. “They wanted something unique, something eye-catching.”

Drawing inspiration from traditional millwork, the architects ordered seven out-of-service oak barrels from a Napa vineyard. They disassembled the barrels and arranged the staves on the wall to look like a giant wine basket.

A barrel-vaulted ceiling continues the look, and leather straps hold special bottles. The room provides enough wall and shelf storage for 350 bottles.

“The owners didn’t need to maximize storage because that wasn’t a priority,” Brown says. “Plus, because some of the wine labels feature great art and some are collector bottles, we felt it would be nice to show them off. When there is no bottle in the straps, there still is a texture to them.”

Because the wine room is right off the staircase, visitors can always catch glimpses of the space from different parts of the basement. “It’s quite the showpiece,” Brown says.