The Vineyard

Character and identity

Set in the Berkshire countryside about ten minutes from Highclere Castle and Newbury Racecourse, The Vineyard is a 49-suite hotel built around one man's obsession: owner Peter Michael, who also runs a Sonoma winery, has assembled a 30,000-bottle cellar with more than 100 wines by the glass. The look is California country house transplanted to the Home Counties, with four-poster beds, marble bathrooms and garden-facing terraces in some suites. A Gary Myatt mural of the 1976 Judgment of Paris hangs as a centrepiece, the 3AA Rosette restaurant works seasonal Berkshire produce, and a spa offers wine-inspired treatments alongside an indoor pool. Service is genuinely personalised: by day two, the sommelier knows your palate.

Who's it for

Bottom line

The cellar is the property, and the property is the cellar: if you don't drink wine seriously, you're paying for an experience you won't fully use. For those who do, the combination of 30,000 bottles, certified sommelier hosting and an all-suite room product is genuinely rare. Book a garden-facing suite, and pair the stay with a wine dinner or school session to justify the spend.