La Cité du Vin

La Cité du Vin is a contemporary cultural centre at 134 Quai de Bacalan in the Bacalan district of Bordeaux, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France, devoted to the wine cultures of the world. It opened in 2016 on the banks of the Garonne in a former dockland area that has since been regenerated. The building was designed by the architects Anouk Legendre and Nicolas Desmazières of the firm XTU, and its curved, gilded and glass form is meant to evoke the swirl of wine in a glass, the eddies of the river and the vine. The building rises to about 55 metres, with a belvedere on the top level. The permanent exhibition is immersive rather than a classical collection of objects. Spread over several levels, it contains some twenty themed spaces that explore the history of wine from antiquity, the geography of vineyards across the continents, and the senses involved in tasting. Visitors use a handheld guide that triggers films, sounds, scents and digital displays as they move between zones, including a section on the journey of wine across oceans and one on the relationship between wine and the arts. The approach is thematic and sensory, and it draws on work by historians, wine specialists and designers. The upper floor includes a belvedere where a glass of wine from around the world is included in the ticket, along with a panoramic view of the river and the city. The building also hosts temporary exhibitions, a library, a restaurant and a shop. As a modern building, its preservation is a matter of maintenance and technical updates rather than restoration. The quarter around it, with the Base sous-marine and the Bassins de Lumières nearby, has become a cultural hub. The ticket price is relatively high, but covers the guide device and the belvedere tasting, and visitors usually allow two to three hours for the experience. Audio content is available in many languages, including English.