Why you need to hit Henley-on-Thames' Hotel Du Vin this summer

June 1, 2018

Occupying prime position in this quintessentially English market town and nestled at the foot of the charming Chilterns, Hotel Du Vin & Bistro in Henley-on-Thames has been imaginatively converted from a red-brick former brewery and now feels like a character-filled home away from home – only trendier (think deep-purple velvet sofas and original cast iron staircases) and with a much better wine collection (cue 600 varieties in the cellar and a dedicated Champagne bar).

The look: The Comtes de Champagne suite delivers all your basic needs: a king-size bed topped with luxurious Egyptian cotton sheets, freestanding roll-top baths (yes, plural: one ostentatiously resides beside the walk-in wet room; another outdoors, sensitively positioned on the private decked-terrace complete with Zen-inducing river views), plus a huge, squish-friendly leather sofa and open-plan bathroom on the second floor (we’re talking split-level suites here, people). Bragging rights aside, all rooms are individually decorated and come with a Ren-stocked, monsoon shower-clad bathroom, plasma screen televisions and an on-trend muted colour scheme worthy of your Instagram feed. Order a bottle of Perrier-Jouet for the full effect.

The food: Located in the heart of the hotel, the bistro restaurant is fabulously French, with elegant wooden tables, pristine white table linen and reclaimed floorboards. The menu comprises French and British classics (hello, Provencal fish stew and steak frites, from £16.95) but don’t leave without trying the trad French onion soup (£6.50), slightly more adventurous snails in garlic and parsley butter (six for £5.95) and superb, supersize moules marineires frites (£14.95) – a dish so rich in salty garlic, shallot and white-wine loveliness it was genuinely sad not to finish. This is hearty a la carte dining, minus the pomp, but don’t be fooled into thinking that the ingredients are less than top grade. Fresh, seasonal produce come as standard, as does an exceptionally well-stocked artisan cheese trolley if you’re not quite feeling the (devilishly indulgent) profiteroles Du Vin. A friendly sommelier is also on hand to help recommend wine through the courses, before you retire to the festoon-lit courtyard’s cigar bothy for a nightcap. See? Fabulously French.

The vibe: Famed for its boating heritage, check out Hobbs of Henley’s river cruise aboard ‘The New Orleans’. This romantic Mississippi-style paddle-steamer offers the best of both worlds: beautiful vistas across Oxfordshire’s most picturesque stretch of the Thames and premium gin tasting. Alternatively, hire your own (smaller) vessel, pack a picnic (straw hamper and crisp white wine, obligatory) and explore upstream to nearby scenic Sonning. For a more sobering experience, head to the town’s River & Rowing Museum, which is a 10-minute stroll from Hotel Du Vin along the broad riverbank and its exclusive boat moorings. Or hit Henley-on-Thames’ chic collection of independent boutiques and coffee bars, nestled among the pretty, timber-framed houses and ancient cobbled lanes. Anne Gaines Interiors, Boatique, The Independent Book Seller and Antiques And Things are all worth getting lost in for the afternoon before heading to Shaun Dickens at The Boathouse for a sundowner overlooking the water. Meanwhile, upmarket Marlow and the Chiltern Valley Winery & Brewery, which offers guided tours, are a 15-minute drive away.

Book now: Hotel Du Vin & Bistro, New Street, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 2BP (01491 877 579; hotelduvin.com/locations/henley-on-thames). Rooms start from £119; limited valet parking is available at £20 per night, subject to availability.

River Cottage: the fish lover's masterclass

October 31, 2017

Killing a crab isn’t high up on my to-do list in life. Nor is breaking up its legs joint by joint to spoon out the miniscule amount of meat left inside. But, oh THAT crab mayonnaise… At River Cottage cookery school – the 60-acre strong organic Park Farm in Axminster made famous by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s long-running TV series – knowing exactly what’s on your plate and how it got there is fundamental to its success. Every year, the school sees thousands of fans and foodies flow through its cookery school, restaurant and grounds eager to sample a slice of the good life. And, this month, I was one of them.

The sun-drenched day (yep, I lucked out) begins with a charming tractor ride down to River Cottage HQ and a much-welcome cup of black coffee and cheesy sourdough breakfast. I'm here for the one-day fish cookery course and, as the cottage’s resident moggies sunbathe beside the herb gardens, Connor – our head chef and tutor – starts by passionately telling us about the nasty world of fish farms, the UK’s treacherously trawled ‘sea deserts’ and how most supermarket ‘crab’ sticks actually contain no crab in them at all. In fact, even your ‘smoked’ haddock probably isn’t smoked – it’s just been artificially dyed to make it look like it has. Nice. The course certainly puts sustainability, self-sufficiency, seasonality and all-round ethical eating at the forefront of its teaching methods, which is no bad thing in my book.

First up, the basics: how to use and sharpen your knives, which sounds pretty patronising, but you’ll be surprised how much difference knowing how to really dice an onion makes to your culinary prowess. (It’s all in the wrist action, naturally.) Next, we move on to filleting our first fish: a huge pollock fresh from the West country coast. We’re talking head and all here, people – head and all. There’s no ducking out of getting your hands dirty with this one.

Once I’ve de-scaled, de-headed and filleted the fish (harder than it sounds), there’s nothing but the skeleton left, which, surprisingly is still useful. ‘We’re going to bake the heads with lots of herbs and garlic and make a fish broth from the skeletons,’ Connor announces. Literally nothing is wasted. And all of the ingredients, whether it be vegetables and oysters or pheasants and rabbit, are sourced locally from independent, ethically-minded businesses or River Cottage cookery school itself to maintain the authenticity of the brand.

Having mastered (or at least had a stab at) the art of filleting pollock, turbot and mullet, we turn our attentions to conjuring up something edible. Fish and chorizo stew with mussels and homemade crab mayonnaise proves to be my winning dish – the chorizo sauce is perfect, even if I do say so myself – but the shallow-fried pollock with baby gem lettuce and a generous smattering of agretti is wonderful washed down with a glass of Lyme Regis pinot, too.

Later, we experience the art of hot and cold smoking (top tip: get yourselves an unvarnished wardrobe in the garden because home-smoked fish is insanely good) and hit the famous River Cottage gardens for a final series of envy-inducing snaps.

To say I’ve learnt a thing or too about cooking would be an understatement, but it’s the passion for produce and idyllic scenery that really sets River Cottage cookery school apart. If you’re looking for a weekend away with a foodie twist, this is it.

Book: The one-day fish cookery course at River Cottage HQ starts from £240. To book, call 01297 630300 or see rivercottage.net.

Stay: Old Park Hall is a five-minute drive away from River Cottage and offers a seriously slick boutique-hotel aesthetic (think stripped wooden flooring, a velvet sofa-clad lounge and huge emperor beds) with idyllic views over the rolling Devon hills. Suites start from £140 per night. Call 01297 792763 or email contact@oldparkhall.co.uk to make a reservation.

Kick back at Dorset's hip Old Park Hall

October 27, 2017

Contemporary country piles don’t come much cooler than Old Park Hall. Nestled among the rolling hills of Devon and a stone’s throw from coastal hotspot Lyme Regis, this imposing Scottish Baronial manor house has all the usual trappings of a chic boutique bolthole – think Nespresso machines in every room, huge monsoon power showers, coma-inducing emperor beds and enough USB sockets to power up a small smart-tech army. But all that pales in comparison to the sheer sexiness of the place. It’s like stumbling upon the West Country’s hip new member’s club, sans the stuffiness or extortionate fees.

Why go?
Why not? Straddling the Devon and Dorset borders, this fashion-forward pad is a magnet for stressed-out city dwellers desperate for a slice of the good life. River Cottage, with its wealth of cookery courses and summer dining events, is a five-minute drive away, or you can hole yourself up at Old Park Hall and enjoy the honesty bar’s warm hospitality in the luxe lounge. Plus, you get to hang out with Winnie and Wednesday – the venue’s resident pot-bellied pigs who love a post-lunch belly rub.

The room
Palatial proportions come as standard at Old Park Hall, so while the décor is Scottish Baronial castle meets New York loft, the floor plan is decidedly more generous. If ‘Lady of the Manor’ is your vibe, snap up the Oriel room – a stylish blend of charming antiques and original features (Narnia-style antique wardrobes, a gorgeous marble-topped dresser and Game of Thrones-worthy bay window) with contemporary, artisan touches (hello, brass and glass accents, White Company sheets and industrial driftwood sink). All about the views? Check out the Principal suite instead, which is arguably a view with a room thanks to the stunning valley vistas below.

The breakfast
Served up on a huge rustic trestle table overlooking Old Park Hall’s pretty enclosed herb gardens, breakfast is an informal affair big on taste thanks to owner Daisy’s kitchen prowess and kickass laugh. Choose from healthy plates of smoked salmon and avo, homemade granola, and eggs-anyway-you-like, or hit the hangover head-on with a delicious full English. Daisy also offers a dinner service on demand if you fancy staying put in the decadent velvet-sofa clad lounge for another glass of Pinot Grigio Blush come sundown. Hip jazz soundtrack, obligatory.

The vibe
Stripped wooden flooring, neon artwork, a grand sweeping staircase and lashings of cool curios define Old Park Hall’s Soho House-esque interiors. But it’s Daisy and James – the dynamic duo that own and renovated the house back in 2015 – who deliver its signature cool-crowd ambience. The savvy (and seriously extensive) honesty bar seems to embody what Daisy (a former wedding planner) and James (a digital comms manager) have created here: a laid-back, super stylish hangout for professionals aching to get away from it all. Whether you’re sunning yourself on a hammock in the vintage daybed-dressed garden, wandering the paddock beyond to say hello to the pigs and chickens or shaking yourself an Old Fashioned in a sunken leather armchair in the grand hallway, Old Park Hall’s chilled-out vibes won’t fail to feed the soul. In fact, with whole-house hire available (Old Park Hall comfortably sleeps 12), booking a country-house hideaway with friends for the week has never been more covetable. You can even bring the dogs along.

The extras
It’s not all Bloody Marys and chilled beats at Old Park Hall. A one-to-one yoga session with pro yogi (and fabulous Italian) Barbara Mella is also a must-do. Hosted in the garden’s light and airy summerhouse, Barbara delivers a bespoke Ashtanga workout to nix your 9-5 stresses and strains while the honeybees hum in the rose garden outside. Not inclined to break a sweat? Indulge in a full-body massage or facial in the wonderfully serene treatment room instead. Holly, Old Park Hall’s resident beauty therapist, has been working her magic in Axminster for 12 years and her back pummeling is second to none. Ask for the Sage, Rosemary and Lavender L:A Bruket body oil for the most divinely scented 60 minutes of your stay.

What else?
If you can bear to tear yourself away from the house, head to Lyme Regis’s independent boutiques for a spot of retail therapy – Ryder & Hinks is your one-stop shop for homeware hero buys. Or check out the Jurassic Coast’s wealth of heritage sites and popular Hive Beach Café, which serves up locally sourced ingredients and delicious organic fare (don’t miss the Lyme Bay hake fillet). The Tytherleigh Arms – a rustic, family-owned Coaching Inn – is a short drive away and perfect for a trad pub-grub refuel, or hit Castlewood vineyard to quaff a UK-grown sparkling tipple or three. Serious foodies can also book up a cookery course at nearby River Cottage, which offers everything from wild foraging and fish masterclasses to bread making and meat curing. Our tip? Try to extend your stay over a Sunday night, when Daisy and James often light up the barbecue, invite the neighbours round for an alfresco drink, and recall stories of Winnie hiding out in the laundry basket. Sounds idyllic, right? Well, that’s because it is.

Room prices start from £140 per night; whole house hire costs from £2,740. To enquire, call 01297 792763 or email daisy@oldparkhall.co.uk