The Vineyard review: a retreat for lovers of fine wine, dining and art
With its spa and new Tasting Room concept, this Berkshire five-star hotel is ideal for a relaxing weekend away
In the 18th century The Vineyard, just outside Newbury in Berkshire, was a hunting lodge, and after a brief conversion to flats in the 1960s, it became a hotel and restaurant, which was then relaunched by Peter Michael in 1998. At its heart, off the foyer, is that rare treat in places to stay: a sitting room you'll like to linger in, with generously proportioned sofas, a blazing fire, and a view over the lawns through enormous sash windows.
Why come here?
For lovers of fine wine, fine dining and fine art, The Vineyard is a taste of quiet luxury that's just an hour-and-a-half from central London, with activities and outings to tempt you away from the table – and the wine list – to plan a satisfyingly refreshing and relaxing weekend. Family-owned and with high hospitality standards, this five-star hotel is part of the Relais & Chateaux and PoB Hotels collections.
It may take some time to make your way to your room here, not because the layout is confusing – in fact, signage is very clear – but because you'll want to take a closer look at the artwork along the corridors. Boris Smirnoff, a Franco-Russian watercolour artist, is a recurring name on portraits and nudes, and there are works by Impressionist painters Edgar Degas, Camille Pissarro, George Clausen and Philip Wilson Steer, while standing casually in the grounds is a Henry Moore sculpture, "Locking Piece". There are also temporary exhibitions of local artists' work – and if there's a QR code by a piece, you can buy it…
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The award-winning wine cellar has more than 30,000 bottles
The wine list and cellar
Other decorative elements pay homage to the grape: vine wreaths, sculptures made of corks, framed antique corkscrews, arty black-and-white photos of workers tending the grapes, oh, and 30,000 bottles of wine in the cellars, some of which you'll see beneath a glass floor on your way in. So, given that, and the name of the hotel, it's easy to assume that over that hedge there, or behind those trees here, rows and rows of grape vines must be growing. However, the owner's vines are actually in the Napa Valley, California, where the first grapes were planted in 1983.
Peter Michael's background is in engineering, and he founded Classic FM, but his real interest, wine, came through his father, and he's keen to share his enthusiasm, to make drinking wine enjoyable for everyone. The very long wine list – around 2,000 in total – from the award-winning cellar of more than 30,000 bottles, features entries from all over the world including Turkey and Japan as well as, of course, wines from the Peter Michael Winery. There are more than 100 available by the glass, and you can also buy a bottle to take home.
The Tasting Room launched at the end of October 2023
Eating and drinking
Before dinner we had a wine tasting of two whites and two reds: Corazon del Sol Luminoso RMVG 2019, a Rhone blend from Argentina; Pahlmeyer Jayson 2019 Sauvignon Blanc, from the Napa Valley; Brezza Vigna Santa Rosalia Nebbiolo d'Alba 2020, from Italy's Piedmont region; and Eymann Gönnheimer Spätburgunder 2021, from the Pfalz region of Germany. Sommelier Romain Bourger told us about each one, explaining its origin and characteristics, and encouraging all of our group, with varying levels of wine knowledge, to offer our opinions, with no pomposity whatsoever.
The Tasting Room launched at the end of October 2023 in the three AA rosette restaurant. For the opening weekend, award-winning executive chef Tom Scade created an exquisite, innovative and seasonal tasting menu, incorporating wines and olive oil from the Peter Michael Winery, all paired with wines chosen by Bourger, the 2019 UK Sommelier of the Year, with some off-menu fun along the way.
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When we sat down we noticed three glass bowls on the table, containing petrol, peppercorns and camomile oil. Bourger had chosen these to represent notes detectable in a mystery wine served in black glasses. He talked us through his wine pairings for the meal, offering interesting detail without over-complications, and explaining that he never wants to overwhelm guests.
Each dish was described in the contemporary way, simply stating the ingredients, such as "salt-baked turnip, quince, onion and timur pepper" or "hedgerow blackberries and calamansi" (Philippine lime) but this belies the kitchen's creativity with these ingredients and in their presentation.
Around the table quiet sighs of contentment, and appreciative "mmms", greeted each new plateful. As a mix of vegetarians and meat-eaters, we all appreciated how all the courses were closely aligned to both dietary preferences, only diverging a couple of times, with York ham added to the first course of smoked beetroot, sour cream and pickles, and turbot and prawn substituted for pumpkin, but both featuring hazelnut, apple and red wine, blackberry and chocolate sauce, sprinkled with fresh bergamot zest at the table.
The final oenological flourish was a box of trompe l'oeil corks: in reality "Dulcey" blonde chocolate with apple with a pistachio vine leaf and a crisp, fresh apple sorbet on the side. And finally, fresh mint tea served theatrically on a cloud of dry ice.
Breakfast is also served in the dining room, or via room service, with a buffet of dried and fresh fruits, cereals, bread and pastries, and juices, along with menu items including my avocado on toast (happily for me, without the seemingly ubiquitous poached egg, but with chimichurri, toasted seeds and radish), and my tablemate's full English (two sausages, bacon, two fried eggs, black pudding, tomato and a Portobello mushroom).
The hotel's 49 bedrooms are all named after a wine
The rooms
Fittingly, the 49 rooms feature a design scheme based on red wine or white wine, but executed with a light hand. This is reflected in the room names: mine was Château Montelena, a Napa Valley wine that won the white wine section of the Judgment of Paris.
Atrium suites are large, split-level and decorated in soft, calm tones, with the king-size bed and wardrobe (interior-illuminated, containing white robe and slippers, a trouser press and safe) on one level, and the seating area, with a sofa, desk and swivel chair and wall-mounted flatscreen TV one step down, and opening onto a balcony with table and chairs.
The bathroom had a powerful rain-shower in a cubicle and a long, deep bath with an edge wide enough for a plate, glass, book, or for someone to sit on, with a Boris Smirnoff nude on the wall above. The sink is inset with plenty of surrounding surface to spread out your essentials, along with the supplied mini soap, tissues and vanity kit (cotton wool pads, emery board etc).
Relax at the spa's swimming pool
Things to do
Soak, sweat and steam in the light, airy and spacious mosaic-tiled spa. The circular swimming pool, with water massage jets, and a current option for extra exertion, is below a round glass roof, through which you can watch the clouds scudding across the sky, or perhaps the stars. Loungers, ready-stocked with towels and magazines on hand, are set out around the water, and there's also a Jacuzzi and sauna.
You don't need to stay at the hotel to enjoy the spa facilities, there's a day or half-day package. Choose from a full range of treatments and therapies, from the two-hour face and body ritual to an eyelash tint. Spa products by Irene Forte, with its roots in Sicily, and natural skincare brand Elemental Herbology.
I enjoyed a back, neck and shoulder massage, in the treatment rooms on the first floor, after an initial consultation, and discussion of my Achilles tendon problem. You know within the first few strokes of a massage whether you're in good hands. And therapist Marelle's hands were deft and fluid, judging the perfect pressure for me. She expertly zeroed in on my tense, knotty shoulder muscles, leaving me relaxed, soothed, and sitting with a big smile on my face as I sipped detox tea on the reception-area sofa afterwards.
Adjoining the hotel is the Deanwood Park nine-hole golf course. Beyond, the village of Stockcross is on the edge of the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with rolling chalk downs and pretty villages. Nearby is the All Angels Vineyard; Bombay Sapphire Gin Distillery for a tour, walk or masterclass; Highclere Castle, the filming location for "Downton Abbey"; and the moving paintings of First World War artist Stanley Spencer at Sandham Memorial Chapel, looked after by the National Trust.
Adrienne Wyper was a guest of The Vineyard. Rates for a luxury double room start from £295 ($362) per night including breakfast. The Tasting Room is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and with only 28 settings per evening, booking is essential. Prices start from £95 ($117) per person for five courses, with paired wines for an additional £75 ($92) per person. Stockcross, Newbury, Berkshire RG20 8JU; the-vineyard.co.uk
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Adrienne Wyper has been a freelance sub-editor and writer for The Week's website and magazine since 2015. As a travel and lifestyle journalist, she has also written and edited for other titles including BBC Countryfile, British Travel Journal, Coast, Country Living, Country Walking, Good Housekeeping, The Independent, The Lady and Woman’s Own.