GOURMET GETAWAY

Some hotels truly raise the culinary bar. Here’s to those offering the best epicurean experiences

TILLINGHAM, EAST SUSSEX

Savvy gourmets with a hankering for homegrown wines have long been flocking to this beautiful, 70-acre, vine-stitched estate, quietly content with their Sussex secret. Nature is the star of the show here, with livestock and a walled kitchen garden brimming with fruit and vegetables. Most enticingly, perhaps, are those all-important vines that have already earned Tillingham a solid reputation in the wine world, tended to by founder and winemaker Ben Walgate, who produces an array sustainable, biodynamic-led bottles. Menus are similarly steeped in locale, with charcuterie, orchard fruits and South English cheeses all playing starring roles (alongside oven-charred pizza). And best of all? There are now 11 blissful rooms in the former hop barn, where guests can drift off after an afternoon spent wine tasting. From £165, B&B. tillingham.com

INIALA HARBOUR HOUSE, MALTA

Awarded a Michelin star months after opening, Iniala’s restaurant ION – The Harbour is a marker of the island’s growing culinary clout. Fine dining chef Alex Dilling has arrived from London for a residency, although things are more casual at breakfast: try the ‘Full Brexit’, a playful nod to Malta’s links with Britain. From €250 (£212). Two nights minimum. inialamalta.com

VENTOZELO HOTEL & QUINTA, PORTUGAL

All the decadence of the Douro is decanted into this historic, 1,000-acre farm in wine-rich northern Portugal. The highlight is the farm-to-fork restaurant, where the menu is dictated by nature’s changing seasons. From €115 (£97), B&B. hotel.quintadeventozelo.pt