Project: Westland Rackhouses

Architect: Upward Architecture & Interiors

Location: Burlington, WA

Status: Completed in 2020

The Westland rackhouses are designed to support large-scale whiskey aging through passive environmental control, built on the idea that the regional climate and landscape should have a direct hand in shaping the whiskey itself.

The buildings rely on unconditioned, naturally ventilated interiors, allowing the air, climate, and seasonal temperature fluctuations to directly shape the aging process. Tilt-up concrete walls provide thermal mass to moderate daily temperature swings, drawing from centuries of Scottish rackhouse tradition.

Entries at each end are sheltered beneath roof overhangs, protecting workers during barrel loading and unloading while marking the threshold. The site strategy organizes multiple structures in response to topography and solar orientation, maintaining efficient circulation for barrel storage and handling. Each building accommodates over 4,000 barrels, with spatial proportions and layouts designed specifically around barrel dimensions and operational requirements.

The layout is designed to grow over time, with additional rackhouses planned over the next two to three decades as production scales.

Portions of the surrounding property are also being used for sustainable agriculture research and organic barley farming, deepening the distillery’s connection to the valley’s agricultural economy.

My work spanned schematic design, design development, and permitting, including site planning studies to position buildings within the landscape and coordination with the client to develop spatial layouts that serve barrel operations and aging requirements.

Learn more at Upward Architecture & Interiors.

Project Team:

Architect: Upward Architecture & Interiors

Structural: Swenson Say Faget

Civil: Jacobson Consulting Engineers

MEP: Coffman Engineers

Geotechnical: Associated Earth Sciences

Builder: TRICO Construction