On the
600-acre property you’ll find organic grapevines spread out in lush sun-baked
rows and a shimmering olive grove, a gorgeous hotel and spa, restaurants (from casual to
Michelin starred), a state-of-the-art winery, a wine shop, a book shop and a
world-class Art & Architecture Park. You
need at least three hours to do it justice but you could easily
spend a whole day.
If you haven't been to La Coste in a few years, there are plenty of new things to discover. It's definitely a work in progress!
If you haven't been to La Coste in a few years, there are plenty of new things to discover. It's definitely a work in progress!
While the newest
incarnation of Chateau La Coste is roughly 20 years old, there's been
agriculture and winemaking here as far back as Roman times. On the property are
cobbled Gallo-Roman pathways, dry stone walls, bridges, underground wells...and
the vestiges of an intricate watering system currently undergoing restoration.
A lovely Venetian-style villa in a rosy pink hue has stood here since 1682.
It was in 2002 that the
current owner (the Irish art collector, real-estate developer and hotel
investor Patrick “Paddy”
McKillen) bought the property and
decided to transform what was a fairly nondescript wine domaine into a
world-class destination where art, architecture and agriculture would blend
seamlessly. The idea had already been successful in the Basque city of Álava,
headquarters of Vinos del Marqués de Riscal, where Frank Gehry had been commissioned
to build a hotel. Here in France, McKillen and his family expanded on that
idea, inviting artists and architects from all over the world to “visit,
explore and find a place...that inspired them to create.”
Today this "starchitect winery," roughly 20 minutes north of Aix, has a large visitors' center designed
by world-famous architect Tadao Ando, plus numerous installations and buildings
crafted by other luminaries such as Jean Nouvel and Frank Gehry. Viewed from the country road that winds into the
agricultural village of Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade, the rounded aluminum Jean Nouvel
winery glints silver in the distance and is joined by a Frank Gehry-designed
music pavilion, two more buildings by Ando and sculptures by Richard Serra,
Louise Bourgeois and many others.
The
list of artists with work on view here grows every year and currently includes sought-after
names such as Alexander Calder, Michael Stipe, Andy Goldsworthy, Paul Matisse,
Tracy Emin, Ai Weiwei and many others. A
Renzo Piano-designed gallery opened in 2017; 2018 welcomed a permanent piece (“Dead End”) by
Sophie Calle and a permanent installation (“Komorebi”) by Japanese architect
Kengo Kuma. See the full list of current artists and architects here.
Ongoing and future projects include a
piece by Tony Berlant and Frank Gehry, a sculpture by Per Kirkeby and a “massive”
project by Louise Bourgeois and Jean Nouvel. A Richard Rogers pavilion is
also being planned.
To see
the major features of the Art & Architecture Park, plan for a two-hour stroll with some gravel
and gentle hills. To do it on your own, you'll be given a map of the 30-some
installations. Guided tours are also available and can be public or private;
more info on that is below.
A gorgeous
five-star hotel called Villa La Coste was completed in 2017 by the
Marseille architecture firm Tangram.
It has 28 "villa suites," spectacular views, an elegant spa, art by
Damien Hirst and Andy Warhol (among others), a tapestry by Fernand Léger… and
not one but two restaurants from Michelin three-star chefs. An ornate 19th-century tea pavilion was shipped over
from Vietnam.
If the timing
is right, you should definitely start or cap your visit to Château La Coste
with a meal. Be sure to check the website or phone ahead for winter hours and
reservations.
The one-star
restaurant Louison
from Marseille-based chef Gérald Passedat currently serves lunch (during the weekends) and
dinner (every day); expect to pay 100€ or more for lunch or dinner, beverages
excluded.
The second restaurant is
the Salon, which they describe as
"bistronomic" (blending gastronomic and bistro). The Salon is open
every day for lunch and dinner; expect to pay from 38€ per person for lunch and
from 50€ for dinner, without wine.
In 2017, Château La
Coste also opened the first Francis Mallmann
restaurant in Europe. Serving "New
Argentinian" cuisine, it's open for lunch (Friday, Saturday and Sunday)
and dinner (every day); expect to pay roughly 80€ per person for lunch or
dinner, beverages excluded.
For more dining options,
Le Restaurant de
Tadao Ando in the main reception center is open every day for lunch (but again, check the site for seasonal hours). Menus start at 34€; seating is indoors and
out. My friends and I loved everything
about our lunch here last November: the sunshine on the terrace, the soothing
calm of the reflecting pool, the excellent food and wine and the gracious
warmth of our server.
La Terrace, open from
10 am to 9:30 pm every day in summer and on weekends in winter, serves a
lighter menu of fresh salads, chilled soups,
home-made tarts, farmers cheeses and organic charcuterie, accompanied of course
by Château La Coste wines. The Terrace often has live music.
When you plan your visit, make sure to also leave time for wine tasting in the
pretty wine shop...or a tour of the winery ("chai"), available by
appointment only. And definitely save time for perusing all the art and
architecture titles in the bookshop.
And what about those
wines after all? Château La Coste makes wine using biodynamic principals which
strive to preserve the fertility of the soil and the terroir in general. The
first harvest was in 2008 and the wines earned the organic "AB"
distinction the following year. Today they make a wide range of extremely
popular reds, roses and whites (from
Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Grenache, Vermentino, Sauvignon
Blanc, Chardonnay and Cinsault grapes) which range in price from roughly 11€ to
120€. Learn about the wines here and see the
wine tasting schedule here.
Château La Coste hosts a
number of open-to-the-public events each year including outdoor movie
screenings, art exhibits, workshops and classes for kids and adults, concerts,
evening visits, wine workshops and more. For the schedule, click here and see the current art
exhibits here. You
can also sign up to receive a newsletter with alerts about upcoming events.
The Art &
Architecture Park is open for self-guided visits year round (you'll be provided
with a map; current entry price is 15€ full price and 12€ for students, job
seekers, seniors and groups, free for kids under 10 years old).
Guided visits
are available in French and English, on a set schedule, seven days a week. In
Winter, tours are offered in both French and English at 10:30 and 2:30. In July
and August, tours are offered in both French and English at 10:30 and 4:30. Private
tours are also available by reservation and groups are welcomed. Seasonal
opening times,
admission prices, directions and more can all be found on the bi-lingual
website.
Chateau La Coste
2750 Route de la Cride
13610 Le Puy Sainte Reparade
France
chateau-la-coste.com
contact@chateau-la-coste.com
+33 (0)4 42 61 89 98
Photos: (1) You've arrived! The entry gate by architect Tadao Ando. (2) Working the vines. (3) The restaurant Louison, from chef Gérald Passedat, who has held three Michelin stars at his restaurant Le Petit Nice in Marseille since 2008. (4) Restaurant Francis Mallmann. The Michelin-three-star Argentinian chef has restaurants around the world and is known for cooking over live flame. (5) The hotel surrounded by grape vines. (6) A dish from the restaurant called The Salon. (7) In the hotel, a Pavillon Suite with views of the Luberon Mountains. (8) The hotel spa. (9) Jean Nouvel designed the corrugated-aluminum winery buildings, each 10 meters high. Together they're known as the Cuverie or Chai. (10) New this year: a sculpture called ''Komorebi” by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma. (11) The Music Pavillon by Frank Gehry. (12) An installation by Liam Gillick. (13) The sculpture "Drop" by Tom Shannon. (14) An art gallery called Bastide opened this year. (15) A section of Ai Weiwei's ''Ruyi Path.'' (16, 17). Sculptures by Hiroshi Sugimoto and Louise Bourgeois have become iconic images of Chateau La Coste.
Photos: (1) You've arrived! The entry gate by architect Tadao Ando. (2) Working the vines. (3) The restaurant Louison, from chef Gérald Passedat, who has held three Michelin stars at his restaurant Le Petit Nice in Marseille since 2008. (4) Restaurant Francis Mallmann. The Michelin-three-star Argentinian chef has restaurants around the world and is known for cooking over live flame. (5) The hotel surrounded by grape vines. (6) A dish from the restaurant called The Salon. (7) In the hotel, a Pavillon Suite with views of the Luberon Mountains. (8) The hotel spa. (9) Jean Nouvel designed the corrugated-aluminum winery buildings, each 10 meters high. Together they're known as the Cuverie or Chai. (10) New this year: a sculpture called ''Komorebi” by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma. (11) The Music Pavillon by Frank Gehry. (12) An installation by Liam Gillick. (13) The sculpture "Drop" by Tom Shannon. (14) An art gallery called Bastide opened this year. (15) A section of Ai Weiwei's ''Ruyi Path.'' (16, 17). Sculptures by Hiroshi Sugimoto and Louise Bourgeois have become iconic images of Chateau La Coste.
