Abasolo distillery 

The commission was the creation of an industrial space to produce whiskey by reusing a rural facility with history and a consolidated landscape in Jilotepec, Mexico, a place with a long agricultural tradition of corn, the main raw material for production. The agricultural buildings of the complex, such as the stables, warehouses and workers’ houses, were rehabilitated. In this context, a new modern warehouse was inserted in the old corn drying yard to carry out the most sophisticated processes such as nixtamalization, milling, fermentation and distillation. The nave is a steel factory bay whose long sides are open to light and to the landscape through a glazed façade that is both the supporting structure and the device that filters the sun and provides natural ventilation. The repetitive character of its members refers to the simple structures of the silos that in the region were used to store corn and that allowed to contain in one compact volume but keep the air flow. From the inside these transparent facades allows to maintain the visual and scale connection with the trees that surround the building and provide natural light for the operation of the plant. The short sides of the nave are closed with industrial laminated panels of corten steel, giving it character and color through a natural patina closer to the materiality of rural buildings in the surrounding landscape. The access patio cuts the nave to separate the distillation area from the rest of the nave and offer an exit to the main patio that articulates the rest of the buildings. A visiting area with a terrace and a kitchen complete the complex, the existing buildings are solved with small interventions that respect its simple and functional nature.

Photography by Onnis Luque