This wine visitor centre in Thailand has us itching for to sit under the cool veranda with good

glass of grape-infused goodness overlooking a beautiful 200 acre vineyard. The Sala Visitor
Centre is part of the Hua Hin Hills Vineyard, about 3 hours south of Bangkok in the coastal resort
town of Hua Hin. Designed by Sylvia Soh of Soh Design Studio, the Sala is a gorgeous traditional
Thai building with a sweeping roof that showcases local natural materials like bamboo, rattan and
wood. Efficient cooling is a necessity in the hot and humid Thai climate, so traditional passive
cooling strategies were implemented as well.
The Sala Visitor Centre introduces visitors to local viticulture and oenology by offering local
wines and fine dining. An exhibition on local wines serves as the entrance to the center, then
visitors are enticed by a wine bar & bistro, a retail shop, an underground wine cellar, and a
meeting facility. The Thai-inspired pavilion is characterized by the large curving Cedar shingle
roof a traditional design seen throughout the region that helps with passive cooling. Local
materials like brick, bamboo, rattan, and wood are also used to invoke traditional Thai
architecture.
To keep the visitor centre cool, strategies like large, open walkways, platforms with operable
windows and doors, high roofs, generous overhangs, and an elevated structure, were employed to
encourage natural ventilation. The entire structure was oriented to receive the prevailing winds
while shading it from the hot afternoon sun. Large windows are used to draw in natural
daylighting and to provide excellent views of the vineyard below. Wine is stored underground in a
cellar to keep it cool with minimal energy use.
Soh Design Studios pavilion for the winery is a beautiful piece of architecture that serves its
purpose beautifully while artfully utilizing natural techniques to achieve a low energy building.
The Sala Visitor Centre is also one of the winners of 7th World Architecture Awards.

Design Brief

Our vision was to create a building to behold the impressive vineyard against backdrop of
picturesque mountains. The design brief was to capture the beauty of traditional Thai
architecture while remaining contemporary.

Design Process
There were two design impetus. Firstly, we were inspired by local building culture in terms of
forms and materials. Secondly, we were driven by traditional passive cooling system which
was widely practiced in the region.
We travelled around central and North Thailand observing modern and traditional
architecture. The repeatedly seen sensual curvilinear roof on traditional houses and temples
caught our attention. The strong and modern curve feature not only serves as a main passive
cooling structure but it also reflects thai sensuality and elegance. During those visits, we also
admired the use of natural materials such as clay bricks, bamboos, rattan and wood.

Building Layout and Passive Cooling Concept

Layout of the building is according to the rules of passive cooling system large open
walkways, platforms with openable doors and windows, high roofs, generous overhangs,
elevated from the ground and plenty of in-between spaces for natural ventilation. Most
critically, it responds to the local prevailing winds to encourage ventilation and positions the
longest elevation away from the afternoon sun. In addition to that, all spaces have large
openings cladded with glass windows for natural daylight. Through these tall glass windows,
users always have the views of lush landscape around them. Wine storage room is
purposefully sunken into the ground in order to achieve a natural cooling effect.

Design Features
The main architectural feature of Sala are three overlapping curve roofs made of Cedar
shingles, visible from a distant against the mountainous backdrop. Each curve roof houses a
main function first and lowest curve houses a mini-exhibition to introduce the vineyard upon
arrival, second curve presents the restaurant while the last and highest curve contains the
ultimate designated experience wine tasting. Curvilinearity is emphasized by expressing all
elements that made up the roofs from cedar shingles to the strong bended steel purlins.
Another unique feature is a 3m high brick wall flowing through all main spaces in a linear way.
The brick wall gives a human scale to the tall interior and it is laid with continuous horizontal
grooves to further highlight linearity of the building. Each brick is different and the overall
appearance is highly tactile and organic.

Similarly, bamboo is an organic material aging naturally with time. We used bamboos to clad
main facades, sun shades as well as ceilings. It is a highly versatile material. Local bamboos
are small in diameter and they make intricate bamboo walls.