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Hotel Review of The Vineyard at Stockcross, Newbury, Berkshire - Spring 2020
As a place to visit, what conjures more delightful thoughts than a name of a restaurant/hotel called The Vineyard? Personally, as a wine devotee, I imagine a whitewashed manor house surrounded by row upon row of vines laden down with juicy grapes basking in the midday sun, and although The Vineyard in Stockcross is neither whitewashed or surrounded by vines (and no sun in the UK in March!), it did however, exceed all my expectations.
The Vineyard is situated just off the A4, near Newbury, and is about an hour from London and only 45 minutes from Heathrow. The brainchild of Sir Peter Michael, Founder and Chairman of Classic FM and the Peter Michael Winery in California, The Vineyard was created around a nineteenth century hunting lodge, and opened in 1998 as a luxury hotel and restaurant that has continued to develop an unenviable reputation for quality and style.
It styles itself as ‘a restaurant with luxury suites and a spa attached’, but although strictly speaking it is, it is so much more, and if you found just one of these of such quality as The Vineyard’s you would be delighted, but to find all three in one place is exceptional.
You can, however, understand the emphasis on the restaurant, and the recent arrival of Tom Scade, Executive Chef, has taken the restaurant to even greater heights.
Essex-born Tom Scade studied at Bournemouth and Poole College, in partnership with The Academy of Culinary Arts, graduating in 2004. During his studies, he worked at Langan’s Coq d’Or in London as an Apprentice Chef, progressing to Chef de Partie (2001-05).
Tom then moved to The Ritz Hotel in London as a Demi Chef de Partie, working for Executive Chef John Williams, where he rose to Premier Chef de Partie during his four years with the hotel (2005-08). In 2008, he left London to help launch The Bee in Surrey (on a six-month contract) and the pub was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand within its first six months. Tom was then appointed his first Head Chef role in 2009 at The Mariners Rock in Cornwall, also overseeing the kitchens at Tides Restaurant and The Kensington Arms which were both part of the restaurant owner’s portfolio. In 2011, he was promoted to General Manager of The Mariners Rock and Tides Restaurant. He was responsible for both restaurants and seven luxury self-catering apartments, during which time he was named South West Chef of the Year by Taste of the West.
In January 2014, Tom was appointed Head Chef by Martin Blunos for the launch of Blunos in Bath, then in January 2015, he launched the Crab and Boar in Chieveley as Head Chef. He then moved back to London in October 2016 to re-join John Williams at The Ritz as Sous Chef. He competed in Le Taittinger Prix Culinaire in 2017 and 2018, winning the UK finals both years, and placing third in the international finals in 2018.
We had the pleasure of meeting Tom after our first course, and he is as charming as his food is delicious.
Personally, to me the dining experience is so much more than just the food, and special food should be served in a special place, and The Vineyard creates just that. The bar is warm and welcoming and sitting around a roaring fire you can make the extremely difficult (because everything sounds so delicious) choices from the menu, before moving to the more contemporary dining area dominated by a sweeping staircase leading to a lower area that looks out over the picturesque garden where in the summer you can relax.
The restaurant offers the choice of either the à la carte menu or a 7-course tasting menu, both of which can be accompanied by a wine flight (more of that in a minute). We decided on the tasting menu as we really couldn’t decide what to have. We also selected the wine pairing which is based on the story of the high-profile blind tasting held in 1976, where unknown wines were chosen over some of France’s finest known as the Judgement of Paris. What this means is that with every dish you are provided with a French and a Californian wine and you blind taste them, (yes, be aware there are many glasses of wine!!). Deciding which you prefer and guessing which is which is great fun and only adds to the pomp of the occasion, but the dishes are still the main event.
Our amuse bouche set the scene with a wafer thin korabi radish encasing octopus, ginger and coriander, served with an onion broth that combined a light pickle with a rich broth expertly. The first 3 dishes were fish courses, with outrageously fresh Porthilly Oysters from North Cornwall adorned with wafer thin grapes, and this was followed by Chalk Stream Trout with cucumber, caviar and horse radish and Cornish Turbot with an aromatic crayfish bisque. The ingredients are sourced locally from the UK, and the taste combinations tantalised our taste buds. There was just enough heat from the horse radish and creaminess of the bisque to compliment rather than overpower the delicate fishes which were cooked perfectly. Not only were our taste buds stimulated, the presentation was exact and the dishes were almost works of art, which would not look out of place with the art work on the walls.
The next two dishes were Veal Sweetbreads with mushroom purée in a rich warming sauce, and Roast Hogget with asparagus and wild garlic purée. (There is a prize for those who know that hogget is the meat from sheep aged between lamb and mutton), and the desserts a Blood Orange infused with Rhubarb and hibiscus, then a Dark Chocolate Cremosa. Each dish was a delight and combined tastes and ingredients expertly and cooked to perfection, and served with style and panache.
We took the wine flight but at ‘a vineyard’ wine is never far away from things, and the owner Peter Michael provides a number of the 30,000 bottles that are available from his Californian winery, all of which are stored in a vast glass walled cellar which dominates the entrance area to the hotel and restaurant.
The Vineyard has 32 suites and 17 bedrooms and are named, wait for it, after iconic wines, and although they are all individually decorated and are different shapes and sizes, they all have large beds dominated by perfectly plumped pillows and soft luxurious duvets which guarantee a perfect night’s sleep. Our suite had a real homely feel and whilst sitting in our connected lounge we could almost feel that we were at home. I am also a devotee of fluffy towels and the towels here tick all my boxes as does the large marble bathroom which had one of the best power showers I have had the pleasure of being in.
Whether The Vineyard is a superior restaurant with a hotel and spa, or a hotel and spa with a special restaurant, I don’t think really matters, as all you need to know is nestling just outside London and Heathrow is a perfect retreat with first class facilities with a top class restaurant. All of this with the largest selection of wines I would guess in the world. What a delight to be able to indulge all of your vices in the same place. As a well-known advert says, Priceless.
For further information please visit: www.the-vineyard.co.uk
