THE CARNEROS INN

Napa, CA

 

The Carneros wine appellation is the backdrop for the final phase of this luxury resort. It includes a destination restaurant, market and post office, pools, a fitness center, conference facilities, administrative offices and 17 luxury cottages that embrace outdoor living. The architecture reflects the agricultural buildings and country farmhouses of the surrounding area with contemporary simplicity.

 

The client’s unique goal was the creation of a public ‘town square’ to provide an identity to the residents of the former town of Carneros. Without adequate program to create a thriving outdoor square, the key spaces such as the market and post office were strategically located around the square, with the restaurant and bar stretched around as much of the perimeter as possible. A long covered roof structure encloses one side of the square and provides a variety of comfortable seating areas along with a contemporary fire pit that helps to activate the public space. Al fresco dining and an outdoor fireplace along with stone-walled bocce courts breath life into the square.