Virunga Mountain Spirits
Sitting in the shadows of the majestic Virunga volcanos, in Musanze, the Northern Province of Rwanda, this distillery and agro-tourism site is home to Virunga Mountain Spirits, a women-led company with deep experience in Rwandan women’s economic empowerment.
The 1,100 sqm facility is situated along a well traveled road frequented by farmers racing downhill on their bicycles loaded with goods, and tourists caravanning up to see the world famous mountain gorillas. This facility aims to support local farmers, while also catering to the vibrant tourist economy.
The heart of the building is the distillery room, centrally located in a transparent / semi transparent volume providing abundant natural light, and showcasing a beautifully engineered 10 meter (30 foot) tall copper and stainless steel vodka still. In contrast, thick hand-shaped volcanic rock walls wrap the central distillery space and house all other supporting functions for staff and visitors, including offices, a bottling room, storage, a kitchen, a bar, a tasting room, a reception, and a gift shop.
The building’s geometry honors the strength and significance of the surrounding volcanoes, and reflects traditional Rwandan patterns of the lmigongo art form that adorn the neighboring structures along this busy road up to the Volcanoes National Park.
The distillery was constructed with the vast majority of materials being locally sourced. With the firm's long time building partners, the project employed a local workforce and maintained an average 35% female representation, providing on-site skilled labor training, good income, and savings accounts, and marketable construction skills leaving a lasting positive impact in the area.
