Dave Provost is a caveman. He spent two decades in mining — his first underground job was in Venezuela, when he was a teenager, tunneling to divert water.
“My dad thought it would be good to put me on the other side of the shovel, so to speak,” he said. “It was a great time being underground, and it never left me.”
Since 1997, Dave has been the self-described “ringmaster” of Bacchus Caves, building whatever his clients dream up.
“We love it when people get really creative because it challenges us further,” he said. “I like having an involved owner. You might have thought you wanted one thing, but it starts to feel different once you get into the flow of the space. It’s different than looking at it here on paper.”
Bacchus Caves takes its name from the Roman god for wine. Its first work was in northern California wine country, building underground storage for vineyards. At the time the Provosts lived there. Later they moved to Houston, and after their children grew up, they relocated to Comfort, where they can easily serve clients throughout the Texas Hill Country and beyond. In Leakey, they created 10,000 square feet of underground storage for Frio Canyon Vineyard.
“It’s a lot better environment to age the wine in. You get pretty constant temperature and humidity,” Dave said. “Sometimes people plant grapes over the top, so there’s a vineyard over the cave rather than making a giant cut in the hillside.”
Provost has worked on commercial and private jobs building underground space as big as 42,000 square feet and as small as 66. He’s worked with folks who wanted a simple, no-frills refuge from the summer heat, and he created the world’s first underground spa — The Meritage Resort and Spa in Napa.
“The spa was 22,000 square feet, with treatment rooms, a restaurant, a wine tasting area, locker rooms, gift shop,” he said.
Clients come to Bacchus Caves with different ideas in mind: a unique living space, a secure spot for equipment or valuables or rare cars, a bunker, a music studio, an art gallery, a pool, and of course, wine storage.
“The client may have an idea of what they want, but not what can really happen underground. This is what I want — to show them how I can make this work,” Dave said.
His wife, Roxanne, works with Bacchus as chief financial officer and designer. Before she met Dave, she had no experience with caves.
“Being underground evokes so many of your senses. It’s like being under deep depths of water. The clarity, the peace is overwhelming,” Roxanne said.
One client began with the idea of building a workout room, but then the project grew.
“Once we got underground, they wanted to have a bedroom too,” she said. “So many of their friends have come from out of town to experience it overnight.”
Dave added, “It’s the best night’s sleep they ever had.”
The Provosts say anything that can be done above ground can also be done underground — Venetian plaster, Carrara marble, chandeliers, sconces, audio-visual systems, a waterfall where there wasn’t one before. Bacchus Caves can even make it possible to have Wi-Fi. Or not.
“One of our clients, he called it his ‘eye of the storm,’” Dave said. “No matter what’s going on, he can go in his cave and sit down, have peace. His phone doesn’t work in there, so no interruptions.”
When meeting with a potential client, Dave says there are several things to consider.
“Think about how you want to access the space. Do you want it to be close to the residence? Far away? What’s it going to be used for? What are your security concerns?” he said.
Roxanne observed, “Clients feel like they could have always had a little more square footage,” she said.
And Dave agreed. “If you’re planning on expanding in the future, plan on it now — especially if you’re building a venue, something that’s gonna grow. Remodeling is pretty expensive,” he said.
His Bacchus team will study the land and the topography before breaking ground. But the land itself does not limit the possibilities. There does not even need to be an existing cave.
“Someone might reach out and say, ‘I have a hillside, and I don’t know what to do with it.’ We can build a cave,” Dave said. “Or if they want a hill, we can build a hill over an existing cave.”
Bacchus Caves prefers to work with a general contractor the client already has a relationship with. Dave’s experienced team of lead miners then can work with subcontractors and local artisans to put together an underground treasure that seems impossible.
“We’re kinda fond of caves,” Dave said. “Anything you can do in a cave, we’d love to see you do it.”