Skywalker Vineyards has purchased Château Margüi

Skywalker Vineyards has just added the Château Margüi to its growing collection of international boutique wineries & vineyards.  Château Margüi, located in Provence, France has historic ties dating back to the days of ancient Rome.  This new acquisition positions Château Margüi among Skywalkers other estates including ‘Skywalker‘ in Nicasio, California and ‘Sommita‘ in Il Convento in the Province of Umbria, Italy.

“We are excited to include Château Margüi among our exclusive wine properties. It is the perfect complement to our magnificent Italian Estate and the scenic Skywalker Vineyards in California.” – Angelo Garcia, President of Skywalker Properties, and Lucas Real Estate Holdings

The Château Margüi is situated in the beautiful southwestern Bessillon mountain range, surrounded by natural springs, deep canyon rivers and rolling hills.  The Estate and it’s 18th Century Chateau include 40 acres of vineyards, a 7 acre olive grove, and well over 200 acres of forests which include century old trees.  Provence’s growing climate is particularly well suited for producing some brilliant Rosé. Château Margüi produces both a Vin Blanc and Rosé.  The Rosé is made up of Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah, and Vermentino; being characterized by vibrant and elegant crisp grapefruit, lemon and exotic fruit notes.   Later harvests are also highly common in the region allowing for an honest representation of the terroir.  Other characteristics of the region include a unique micro climate, which benefits from a cold wind that travels from the Rhône valley into the mediterranean region; allowing for accelerated ripening.

“In addition to wine-making evolutions, tradition remains important, as we dedicate ourselves to reproducing the biodiversity, stability and resilience of our natural ecosystem, with respect for our terroir.” —Philippe Guillanton, Château Margüi Winery Manager

Bringing the same unique vision, Skywalker’s team is set on the same high standards of organic cultivation at their newest property.  The wines of Château Margüi are a bringing together of old-world winemaking and commitment to sustainable land ownership.  In addition, the vineyard’s plots are AOP Coteaux Varois en Provence classified.  Which requires a very strict process for vine species selection as well as soil preparation in accordance with organic regulations.

Talking Architecture: Interview with Winn Wittman

Meet Winn Wittman, an extraordinary contemporary architect who with a creative mind set and ingenious approach to modern design, turns each of his projects into a one of a kind architectural marvel.  Mr. Wittman attended the University of Texas at Austin to acquire his Masters in Architecture and received his Bachelor’s degree (B.A) from Tufts University.  He is also a member of the American Institute of Architects and the Texas Society of Architects.

Recently, we were given the privilege of speaking with Mr. Wittman on what initially attracted him to contemporary architecture, his unique design process, and how being based in Austin has influenced his current architectural creations.

Where would you pinpoint the origin of your interest in architecture? When did you first realize that this was the space you wanted to be a part of?

“I like your word “space” both because it refers to the clay that architects shape, and also because I’ve never felt as though I completely fit within the confines of the “profession” of architecture or the “discipline” of architecture. Maybe the moment I realized that architecture was for me was the moment I realized that I could define the “space” I wanted, within the field of architecture.

When I got to college I really had no idea what I wanted to do. I knew I loved architecture and art and design, but I was unsure of my path initially.  I studied everything from English literature to human factors engineering and piano.  One day, my favorite professor at Tufts, Margaret Floyd suggested I go down to Austin and take a look at their graduate program in Architecture. She said: “Winn, Boston is way too parochial for you; you should go to Texas” And like Davey Crockett, who famously said: “You can go to hell, and I will go to Texas”, I set off and have never looked back. It’s funny how one suggestion, if it rings true, can impact the trajectory of one’s life.”

Talk us through your design process.

“My design process has evolved a lot over the years. It’s gotten easier, and a lot more fun. I’m less challenged by the design part and more curious about the human aspect.  I want my homes to live well, and I want people to live well in them. Designing someone’s home is very personal, and there is a lot of psychology involved. A husband and a wife don’t always have an identical vision for their new home, and people don’t always feel the freedom to express what they want. You have to draw it out of them. People usually have a clearer idea of what they don’t want. In fact, Henry Ford once said “If I’d asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”

Sometimes it’s easier to ask people what they want in the bedroom than to ask them what they want for their bedroom.

The design process itself is a process of sequential iterations. With each iteration, the design exposes itself like a photograph developing in a tray of liquid. We start 3D modeling early in our design process, and it helps our clients visualize our intentions in a way that was never possible when I started 20 years ago.”

 Which of your projects do you believe embodies your creativity to the utmost extent?

“We recently finished the Manta House, a 15,000 square-foot mountaintop home. It’s very organic and it was very challenging to design, and honestly pretty painful to execute. But we learned a great deal – for example how to create a metal roof with 5,000 tiles and compound curves that didn’t leak. For me now, creativity is not only about form, but about developing the best solution for the client and the building.”

 What do you believe are some of your firm’s standout skills?

“One is the ability to listen. The other is an ability to adapt our practice to embrace new technologies — whether they are working methods or materials.

Screen-sharing technology has opened up our ability to work with clients regardless of their location. Building Information Modeling (BIM) allows us to change one aspect of the design and the other parts automatically update. And parametric modeling uses AI to help us design.”

How has being based in Austin, Texas influenced your work?

“Austin, like California, tends to be hilly. There’s (relatively speaking) lots of space. The land is very inspiring and the strong light is relentless. There’s always been an attitude of freedom in Austin. And in retrospect, I’m fortunate to have settled in a place where there is a strong demand for great contemporary architecture.”

Can you tell us about any of the projects that you are currently working on?

“Some of the highlights are a large multi-generational home for an Indian family, a lake house with an acrylic pool which allows light into the basement, and a home for my family which is cut into the side of a very steep hillside and is barely visible from the street.”

Who are some architects that you have garnered inspiration from?

“Le Corbusier inspired me with his sculptural approach to architecture, and his ability to master both painting and architecture. Carlo Scarpa had great symbolism in his work. I learned from these two that architecture doesn’t have to be completely rational and that there can be a sense of mystery.”

Where can we follow you?

               Website:  www.winnwittman.com   

              Facebook:  @ArchitectAustin

               Houzz:  Houzz.com/winn-wittman-architecture

Photo Credits:

Images 1-3 by: Dylan VanDam

Image 4 by:  Coles Hairston

Bel Air Mansion Listed For $85 Million

Created by renowned luxury property developer and true artist Mohamed Hadid,  “Le Belvédère” located on Nimes road in sunny Bel Air, California is nothing short of breathtaking.  Situated in a walled and gated 2.2 acre estate with eight manicured rose gardens, 280 degree views stretching across Los Angeles, and multiple elegant water features.  The residence inspired by a French Chateau offers stand out features which include a cinema, grand ballroom for 250 people, 5,000 bottle wine cellar, 10 bedrooms (2 Master Suites), 14 bathrooms, spa & Turkish Hammam, fourteen fireplaces, office, game-rooms, multiple terraces, turkish inspired sitting room, and a commercial kitchen spread across the residence’s 35,000 square feet of hand finished living spaces.

Exploring the exterior areas, you will find loggia surrounding a 70-foot long infinity pool with breathtaking views of the city below, a courtyard large enough to accommodate 100 people,  and a swan pond located in the motor-court.  In true Southern California style there is an intimate al fresco dining area and outdoor kitchen with the essential pizza oven.  Le Belvédère is listed for sale with Joyce Rey of Coldwell Banker Global Luxury with an asking price of $85 million USD.

For more more information please visit:  www.JoyceRey.com

Most Expensive Home in America: Beverly Hillbillies Mansion Listed For $350M

The Chartwell Estate, better known as the residence of the Clampett family in the iconic tv show, The Beverly Hillbillies; has been listed for sale jointly with Hilton & Hyland, Coldwell Banker Global Luxury, and Berkshire Hathaway Home Services for an impressive sum of $350 million, making it the most expensive home for sale in the United States.   The residence tops its closest competitor by no less than $100 million, a luxurious $250 million modern spec house that was built by developer Bruce Makowsky.

The elegant residence was originally constructed in 1933 by the renowned architect Mr. Summer Spaulding in 18th century French neoclassical style.  Mr. Spaulding is also praised for the infamous Greenacres Estate in Beverly Hills and his work with Walter I. Webber in the design of the Catalina Casino in Avalon on Catalina Island.  The Chartwell Estate offers over 25,000 square feet (2,350sqm) of opulent living spaces including a ballroom, wine cellar, salon, period paneled dining room, and covered parking for 40 vehicles.  Situated on over 10 acres, additional standout amenities are a Wallace Neff-designed guest house, tennis court, lush manicured gardens, and a 75 foot swimming pool (dubbed the cement pond by the Clampett’s).

In 1986 the residence was purchased by the late Univision Chairman, Jerry Perenchio who recently passed away in May of this year.  After purchasing the estate, Mr. Perenchio hired design legend Henri Samuel to update the residence during a multi-million dollar renovation.  Henri Samuel was well known for ever exceeding the demands of his demanding high profile clients which included Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, the Rothschilds, the Vanderbilts, as well as Valentino.

The $10,000 Per-Night Villa Sola Cabiati on Lake Como

Lake Como is without a doubt one of the most breathtaking places and must-see destinations to visit in all of Northern Italy; with that said, the opulent hotels and luxurious villas there can make anyone’s stay a truly unforgettable one.  And the 18th-century neoclassical Villa Sola Cabiati embodies the charm of Lake Como to perfection as a highly ranked villa that is listed among the most magnificent properties in the area.  Villa Sola Cabiati was once the summer home of Milan’s Duke Gabrio Serbelloni, and is currently owned by the noble Sola Cabiati family.  The luxury villa has upheld its distinguished aura and noble atmosphere, with frescoed walls, verdant gardens, and amazing period piece furnishings such as a bed slept in by Napoleon and Joséphine, which have remained widely inaccessible to the general public for the past decades.

However, the property has recently been put under new management by the five-star Grand Hotel Tremezzo, where they now share the villa with only select guests.  The villa has become very exclusive ever since Grand Hotel Tremezzo took over management — the villa can’t even be booked on the hotel’s website.  Tremezzo’s CEO & owner, Valentina De Santis, says “It’s about providing something exclusive to our guests, in a style that’s very different from the hotel — and creating truly tailor-made experiences there.”

The hotel presents a grand tour of Villa Sola Cabiati as it showcases resident treasures like priceless tapestries, Renaissance-era majolica pottery, and a rare collection of Stradivarius violins painted black for Marie Antoinette’s funeral in 1793.  Guests visiting Villa Sola Cabiati (who are art and history aficionados) can schedule guided tours of the villa’s two museum floors, which were previously closed to the general public.  In addition, the guests of the villa can also book much more engaging activities in an array of options from sharing a romantic dinner with someone special in the Tuscan garden to doing yoga by the swimming pool.

Making your visit to the historical Villa Sola Cabiati a simply incredible one, the Grand Hotel Tremezzo offers their guests an even more extraordinary experience by letting them staying for the night, gathering a party of up to 12 as they take advantage of the villa’s classical artwork and historic furnishings.  The villa is priced at $10,000 per night, and allows the guests to live, if only for a day, a life of complete luxury while having the same sort of privacy that royal residents living in Lake Como have luxuriated in for generations.

The Luxurious $50 million Los Angeles Skycastle

Commissioned in the Hollywood Hills by David Gray Architects, the 12,000 square-foot, nine-bedroom Skycastle was designed to be a sanctuary for an art connoisseur and his or her extensive art collection to perfectly integrate with the home’s aesthetically pleasing architecture.  Constructed in the 1990’s for an art collector, the estate in itself is a true masterpiece, as it not only brilliantly exhibits the art collector’s exquisite works of art throughout the abode, but the outwards appearance of Skycastle is also considered to be a marvel of sheer architectural artistry and innovation.

Skycastle features sixty-foot ceilings and impressively-wide windows conjoining in the stately entryway, as well as skylights that enables an abundant ray of natural light to come flowing straight through, delivering natural lighting during the day and a stellar view of the the starry night sky after dark.  Designed with a Bauhaus-style, the estate is furnished with spacious rooms in concrete, stone, and steel finish.

Musician Jed Leiber bought Skycastle in 2012, where he later modified the two-bedroom guest house into a cutting-edge recording studio, and he also equipped the estate with the latest in security measures.  Each individual room inside the gated property is installed with a programmed fob to enter, which provides absolute privacy for all residents.  In addition, the master suite includes a secured room that can be cordoned off by a bulletproof door.

For an added layer of privacy, Sunset Plaza Drive encircles the half-acre estate, which in turn offers an exemplary living standard with no disturbances in sight as well as the perfect home for your one of a kind art collection.  This private estate that could very well be any art collector’s “dream home” is currently on the market for $50 million.

For more information visit:  SothebysHomes.com

$70 Million London Penthouse Hits The Market

Positioned close by Covent Garden and Soho at London’s West End, the 34-story Centre Point structure became known as one of the very first skyscrapers to emerge itself in London.  Constructed in 1966, the building is currently being reassessed as an opulent residential destination by London based development firm Almacantar.  Scheduled to open sometime this fall, the luxurious residential skyscraper will be offering 82 one-to-five bedroom apartments.  While the focal point of the building will be it’s 7,223 square-foot duplex penthouse offering a stunning 360 degree view of London with barely any towering building in the way of your pitch perfect London view.

The ostentatious penthouse residence introduces stained oak panels, herringbone oak and limestone flooring, and floor to ceiling glass windows that project a simply breathtaking view of the bustling city below.  The five bedroom and seven bath accommodation also features a state of the art kitchen with black granite countertops, dim black cabinets, and Gaggenau appliances.  In addition, the penthouse showcases a stellar, curvilinear terrace overshadowed by the buildings “Centre Point” sign, which allows residents a whole new perspective from a completely unique viewpoint.

Offering luxurious amenities such as conference rooms, treatment areas, a gym, spa, and an indoor swimming pool, the residential building won’t be shy of any luxury necessity one might need while staying at Centre Point.  This extraordinary London Penthouse gives you the opportunity to experience a view like no other and an investment that is beyond compare.  The duplex penthouse is presently listed at about $70 million.

For more information visit:  CentrePointLondon.com as well as Almacantar.com

Luxurious San Francisco Estate Hits The Market

For those looking for a place to call home in bustling San Francisco, the city’s highest priced standalone estate has hit the market.  Built this year and listed for $40 million just last April, the property (located at 2712 Broadway Street) boasts seven bedrooms and embraces 11,400 square feet.  Appropriately positioned in Pacific Heights, also known as Billionaire’s Row, the location was home to society elites following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.  After the earthquake destroyed their Nob Hill estates, residence of the area departed to rebuild them in Pacific Heights, which offered greater views and landscaping potential.  And to this day, Pacific Heights stands as a neighborhood for the wealthy and famous.

The property includes an in-home spa, panoramic views of San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, and developer Bill Campbell implemented the estate with a temperature-controlled wine vault on almost every floor level.  At the bottom floor there exists a sublime wine cellar, accessible through the house’s elevator, that has the capacity to hold up to thousands of bottles.  Additional amenities include a tasting room, a dry sauna, a spa treatment room, a gym, and a home theater.  The number “2” button on the elevator connects you to the garage, which demonstrates an automotive turntable and a one-bedroom apartment.  The third floor features the home’s main living spaces such as, a formal entry way, kitchen, dining room, and a second walk-in, glass encircled wine storage room.  While the fourth and final floor accommodates four en suite bedrooms, with simply breathtaking views that, just like wine, will be a worthy investment the longer you posses it.

For more information visit:  Sothebyshomes.com

Picassos Included

Set in the southern French area of Provence, lay the Chateau de Castille nestled in the medieval town of Uzès; with original structures dating back to the thirteenth century and containing unrivaled “built-in” modern art by the great master himself, Pablo Picasso.  Formerly the residence of the Baron de Castille up until 1950 when it was acquired by famed English art-collector and expert, Douglas Cooper, whom not only amassed one of the most significant 20th century art collections, but also fostered friendships with many of the modern masters themselves.

Pablo Picasso, who was a close friend of Douglas Cooper frequented the estate, eventually even installing five spectacular frescos on several areas across the exterior walls around the logia; subsequently these murals by Picasso have been dubbed “Historic Monuments” along with several other parts of the chateau by the French Government.  So no, unfortunately to the current & future owners dismay these brilliant murals cannot be removed from the property to be placed at auction or even just transported to your home down the road.  Although at a price point beneath 10M USD, the estate may yet prove to be the perfect investment for the right lover of Modern Art & Historic French Architecture.

The Chateau boasts two drawing rooms, two dining rooms, several kitchens, 7 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms contained in 560 sq.m. (nearly 6,000 sqft) of luxurious living space.  The creative interior was designed & decorated by famed American designer Dick Dumas.  Mr. Dumas who worked on many chateaus across the French country side, is highly respected for his career in France which spanned several decades across multiple prestigious provencal properties.

Chateau de Castille offers opulent historic park like grounds exceeding 2 hectares (nearly six acres), which make for an enchanting entertainment area; which include a magnificent private tree lined drive, a formal knot garden, and a central water feature located behind the main residence.  The opportunity to purchase this historic & artistically significant Chateau is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity, as this is the first time the property has entered the open market in over fifty years.

For more information please visit: www.sothebysrealty.com

Check Out This New Luxury Estate In Miami

Designed by architect Kobi Karp, this remarkable waterfront estate features a breathtaking view of Biscayne Bay.  When it comes to Miami Beach there is no scarcity of waterfront property, but if you take into account this glass-encased house on 6466 North Bay Rd, you can rest assured that you are getting a place that defines luxury living.  Kobi Karp (who had previously conceptualized Palazzo del Sol) employed their adept expertise on this 12,000 square foot modern estate that accommodates seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms.  Complementing the structure of the building, steel, raw concrete, and evidence of bronze and copper make up the foundation, while the glass walls bring in a ray of sunshine and warmth to fill throughout the house.  In addition the estate includes a dock with direct access to the bay, covered dining pavilion, and a swimming pool.

This waterfront abode has many exceptional features such as, an opulent master suite that spans out to and over the bay, a rooftop terrace that offers 360 degree views of the water, and a spacious walk-in closet & fully furnished master bathroom.  It also provides expansive living as well as dining areas, a gourmand kitchen, and a theater room.  Other amenities include a jacuzzi, an outdoor shower, and sunbathing deck, which were specifically designed in accordance with the summery weather.  The estate is presently on the market for $25.5 million.

For more information visit:  KobiKarp.com as well as Zillow.com for further details on this Luxurious Miami waterfront Estate.