In Samos, an island with a rich culture and tradition in goods and winemaking, K-Studio connected the Metaxa brand to its roots.

Episode 2 – Liknon by K-Studio, Vourliotes, Greece

The Liknon project is located in a 100 year old vineyard in Samos. For its brand home, Metaxa decided to take a nostalgic look back to celebrate its origins and unique product, and to highlight its most precious ingredient, the fortified sweet muscat wine.

This story could not be told in any other place than the ancient vineyard where Spyros Metaxas developed his precious spirits. Spreading beneath the traditional village of Vourliotes, 800m from the sea level and subject to the northern meltemi wind, the vineyard sprawls down the valley on a sequence of stonewall-held plateaus. This man-made productive landscape was formed by collecting and artfully placing the rocks of the site in a manner that tamed the slope into terraces that could be cultivated.

In order to root firmly to these origins, K-Studio's proposal aimed to accentuate and preserve the dominant feature of the terraced landscape by carving out a route along the stonewalls, and by embedding enclosures throughout. As opposed to creating a building, they peppered the terraced valley with structures that stitch onto, and take a cue from, the pre-existing topography in order to guide visitors through a curated, yet spontaneous experience of sensorial activations.

The brief included the intention to offer an immersive experience into the vine’s environment for a thorough understanding of the past, as well as the direction of the brand.

Three key structures-checkpoints

TOPOS (place), a breathtaking transverse cut through the stonewalls, is an interpretation of the pre-existing paths and steps that connect consecutive terraces.

Through a deeper cut into the landscape, the visitor is brought underground, stepping into a space filled with argillic smells of the earth. A highlight of the space is the cross section of the terrain through a bespoke glass opening, where one can witness the full growth of the plant, under- and over-ground, as roots and main body are revealed, along with the terrain’s layers. Here, the qualities of terroir - intrinsic in the quality of the product, become evident in a museum-like exposition.

CHRONOS (time), a key ingredient in the aging process of the fruit after the harvest. That concept was translated into a Metaxa cellar, where special casks are kept to develop the unique products of the brand.

Visitors can taste their evolution through time and get to know the differentiated characteristics in colour and taste, from the fresh grape up to years of fermentation. It is a space where one can actually sense what 40 years may feel or taste like, in a space filled with mesmerizing smells and textures.

Metaxa Bar, an area to relax and sample the brand's finest distillations.

The outside terrace complements the experience, with its hanging pergola, woven with vines, where delicacies of Samos are generously served in order to showcase the broader culture of the handmade-craftsmanship and conviviality that infuse the Metaxa spirit.

By employing the original craftsmanship of stone-stacking, as seen in Samos, K-Studio managed to recreate the spontaneity of the landscape in geometry and materiality, blending into the valley with a roughness and dynamic borrowed from the natural and traditional productive landscape.

Photographers: Nikos Daniilidis, Claus Brechenmacher & Reiner Baumann(Breba)

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