This Jacksonville, Oregon, winery was the world’s first tasting room to achieve Living Building certification.
Design: Tasting room and wine case storage | 2,200 square feet
Certification: Living Building Certification, 2.1
Energy, Carbon and Indoor Air Quality
Predicted annual energy savings: 55%
pEUI (projected energy use intensity): 17 kBtu/sf/yr
Achieves net zero energy with a 15.96-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system
Achieves zero carbon through operational and material reductions and carbon offsets
Healthy Materials
All materials, from the quartz countertops to the cork siding, were Red List-free; all framing was FSC-certified.
Press: Portland Business Journal, June 2018; Oregon Wine Press, April 2017
Collaboration: Interior design by 2Yoke Design, photos by Claire Thorington
Cowhorn Vineyard & Gardens is a Biodynamic® Demeter-certified estate winery and commercial farm known for award-winning Rhone varieties. When setting out to build a 2,000-square-foot tasting room and case storage area, owners Bill and Barbara Steele wanted to show the world that sustainable practices could be beautifully integrated into a functional public space. So, the Steeles and Green Hammer decided to pursue the Living Future Institute’s Living Building Challenge—widely considered the world’s most rigorous building standard.
Akin to the wine it houses, the tasting room is a physical expression and celebration of the beauty of the Applegate Valley. We incorporated wood, cork, glass, steel and other natural building materials, bringing outdoor elements into this ultra-high performing building. We partnered with Sustainable Northwest Wood to source only Forest Stewardship Council®–certified wood for the project.
Sited between the winery, vineyard, pump house and sheds, the new tasting room provides stunning views of the vineyard, gardens and the surrounding hills. Furthermore, it places patrons at the center of this farm, giving them an up-close-and-personal look at Cowhorn’s sustainable approach to growing grapes and producing exceptional wine.
To achieve the standard, projects must operate for 12 continuous months and demonstrate they meet all requirements. And, in 2016, it became the world’s first tasting room—and the first commercial building in Oregon—to achieve Living Building certification.
Read our Knowledge Hub article to learn more about our efforts to achieve the Living Building certification.
It was great working with Green Hammer from the beginning to the end. They made the impossible possible and did it with professionalism and grace. The follow through after the project was completed was amazing. My questions were promptly answered years after the project was completed.
