Shawback Design (shawbackdesign.com), led by Damon and Julia Savoia, joined James Jeffrey Architects (j2arch.com) to craft a masterpiece of light and texture for Seven Apart Winery's (sevenapart.com) new tasting rooms in Napa. “We took rocks from the vineyards and brought them back to our office just to get a sense of the land's textures and colors. We also explored the vineyards and tasted the wine,” says Damon. “The goal was to bring this sense of place and the winemaking experience through our design elements.”

The new tasting room at Napa’s Seven Apart Winery.

The couple, who also owns the lighting company Brightbound (brightbound.com), added large chandeliers and scaled them to the height of the rooms. “When you walk into the space, the lighting will quietly get your attention,” says Damon. The team also custom designed a table crafted from redwood pulled with permission from the Mendocino River; it's estimated the tree had been at the bottom of the river since the late 18th century. The tasting rooms are “a showcase of some of the best artists and craftspeople working in contemporary furniture and fine art today,” says Julia.