Napa has no shortage of polished tasting rooms. But few are hidden inside a steel-and-concrete bunker built into the hillside, channeling equal parts James Bond lair and modern art gallery. Even fewer have been described by their owner, French Canadian vintner and former tech entrepreneur Patrice Breton, as “punk-rock chic.”
Vice Versa’s new estate winery and caves, designed by Lundberg Design, is a deliberate departure from the predictable wine country aesthetic. There are no farmhouse lanterns or weathered beams here. Instead, Corten steel panels age into burnished armor; poured concrete arcs into cavernous tasting spaces; and bold works by Brazilian artist Bruno Leonardo Franklin de Melo hang where Tuscan landscapes might normally be found. It’s fire-resilient, minimalist, and as intentional in its design as the micro-production Cabernets that built the Vice Versa cult following.
Breton, who founded the label in 2003, has spent two decades refining a style of winemaking rooted in precision and purity. Guided by Philippe Melka and Maayan Koschitzky since 2015, and now with day-to-day winemaker Spencer Kelly (formerly of Eisele Vineyard, Colgin, and Seavey) at the helm, Vice Versa has earned multiple 98–100-point scores without ever courting mass production. The new Calistoga home is less a monument and more a manifesto; proof that a winery can be both high-design and high-function.
A Manifesto in Steel and Stone
The 10,000-square-foot winery all but disappears into the landscape. Its rust-hued steel panels will weather into a deep patina over time, while poured concrete gives the interior a sense of permanence and cool elegance. A central axis leads visitors from the sunlight into the subterranean calm of the caves, 5,000 square feet of underground space for both barrel aging and private hospitality. The choice of materials is as practical as it is aesthetic. With Napa under a seemingly consistent threat of wildfires, building into the hillside with non-combustible materials is both a design statement and a safeguard. Yet the look is anything but utilitarian. This is modern Napa minimalism with a pulse.
From Cult Label to Estate
Breton’s Cabernets are made from some of Napa’s most celebrated vineyards—Beckstoffer To Kalon, Beckstoffer Dr. Crane, Beckstoffer Las Piedras, Steltzner, and Ecotone. The wine style is consistent and shaped by meticulous attention to vineyard expression. The Vice Versa estate vineyard, home to the new winery, is farmed by Matt Hardin and is planted primarily to 30-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vines rooted in rocky white tufa soils. At 500 feet elevation, it sits in one of Calistoga’s cooler microclimates thanks to the afternoon marine breezes funneled through the Chalk Hill Gap. That temperature drop—often 8 to 12 degrees cooler than neighboring areas—translates into wines with freshness and a seductive, lingering richness.
Since 2012, all Vice Versa wines have been sold as futures, reinforcing the brand’s direct relationship with its collectors. The 2024 vintage of Cabernets is already available for pre-sale, a reminder that while the new winery may be built for the long term, the wines themselves remain as rare and in-demand as ever.
Engineering for Precision
Inside, the winery is a masterclass in form meeting function. Twenty custom, double-walled Lejeune stainless steel fermenters, each with automated pump-over systems, allow for fine-tuned control and gentle extraction. Four Nico Velo Tulipe concrete tanks promote natural micro-oxygenation and add textural finesse, while three large foudres enable extended aging with a subtle oak influence. Even the crush pad is a design element, framed between two cantilevered barn-style wings that echo the surrounding vineyard rows.
Art, Wine, and Experience
Breton’s deep interest in contemporary art is reflected in the winery’s atmosphere. In the private tasting salon, large-format Vice Versa bottlings share space with Franklin de Melo’s work—pieces that are as bold and layered. Hospitality is by appointment only, with each visit hosted by Director of Sales and Hospitality Jeffrey Geil. The $250-per-person experience (waived with a three-bottle purchase) includes a private tour of the winery and caves followed by a seated tasting of four to five wines. Tastings run daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the conversation tends to wander from winemaking to architecture to art, a reflection of the brand’s layered identity.
A Napa Original
Vice Versa’s fireproof construction isn’t just prudent; it’s a forward-thinking model for the region. The design isn’t just striking; it’s functional in a way that supports the winery’s precise, low-intervention style. And the vibe—equal parts art gallery, subterranean refuge, and high-tech wine lab—is unlike anything else in the valley. The estate feels less like a winery launch and more like a declaration—that Napa can still surprise, that design can serve both beauty and necessity, and that great Cabernet can speak for itself without the typical winery trappings.
Photos courtesy of Vice Versa