Le Relais de Franc Mayne

Mr & Mrs Smith have just got back from an anonymous review trip to this boutique hotel near Bordeaux, and just as soon as they’ve unpacked their bags, a full account of their stay in southern France will be with you. In the meantime, just to whet your wanderlust, here’s a quick postcard from boutique bed and breakfast Le Relais de Franc Mayne…

St-Emilion is a name never far from the hearts of the world’s wine lovers, so where better to book a boutique-hotel stay than at one of the very châteaux that produces the vintage? Ensconced in seven acres of rolling green vineyards, Le Relais de Franc Mayne has been built in classic 16th-century Girondine style – an imposing building in smooth grey stone with a whiff of the medieval about it. Inside, the hotel’s nine bedrooms share space with the trappings of viticulture, the eye-catching renovated vat room where guests can learn about wine-making from the château’s expert vintners, and the underground caverns where barrel upon barrel of the lush liquid is stored, as well as taste some of Franc Mayne’s finest vintages. Each bedroom’s decor is different, with some rooms, such as the spacious Capagne Française evoking quiet rustic comforts, while others tend towards the endearingly eccentric – for instance, the hot pink motifs of British Landscape, or the zebra print and elephant portraits of safari-themed African Lodge. The hotel has something for all tastes, usually served by the glass.