Harvest Hangouts from i-escape.com

Sept. 20, 2011 - PRLog -- •   Langford Fivehead, Somerset, UK
Set in 7 acres of secluded parkland in the Somerset Levels, this 15th century manor house is a stunning rural retreat. Stylishly restored by owners Orlando Murrin and Peter Steggall, who once ran the acclaimed Manoir de Raynaudes in France, it has 7 cosseting bedrooms offering B&B accommodation during the week and catered country house breaks at weekends, plus a self-catering cottage for 6. Spend your days taking in the foodie haunts nearby, then return to log fires and delicious meals cooked by Orlando, former editor of BBC Good Food and Olive.
Harvest highlights: Head to local farm shops for organic meats and vegetables, visit the famous Brown & Forrest Smokery in Hambridge for smoked cheese and fish, and taste the tipple at Julian Temperley’s Somerset Distillery. And in October visit nearby Barrington Court for Chutfest - a celebration of chutneys, jams and preserves (1-2 October) - or for its annual Apple Day (22 October).
Cost: From £175 per room per night for a weekend break in low season (1 October – 31 December), based on 2 sharing for a minimum of 2 nights. This includes tax, breakfast, dinner on Friday and Saturday evening (excluding wines), Sunday brunch, Sunday afternoon tea, wine tasting, and an optional cookery demonstration. Book through i-escape and get a free copy of Orlando’s cookbook, A Table in the Tarn.
http://www.i-escape.com/langford-fivehead.php

•   Higher Westcott Farm, Devon, UK
This cosy boutique guesthouse is set in the heart of Dartmoor National Park, surrounded by rolling hills. Owners Jo and Sam escaped London to renovate the thatched 300-year-old longhouse and the result is a thoroughly homely hideaway with 3 comfy yet contemporary bedrooms, valley views through crittle windows, a magnificent granite fireplace, and tasty home-cooked meals with an organic and local lilt (many of the ingredients used come from the farm’s biodynamic kitchen garden).  
Harvest highlights: The farm organises mushroom foraging sessions in autumn and can even set up shooting afternoons in the local woods, with the yield of the day cooked for dinner on request. From 2-9 October head to the orchard at Killerton House near Exeter to help out with the annual cider apple harvest.  
Cost: Bed and breakfast from £110 per room per night based on 2 sharing, including tax. Book through i-escape and get a free jar of homemade jam or piccalilli.
http://www.i-escape.com/higher-westcott-farm.php

•   Finca Buen Vino, Andalucia, Spain
This elegant guesthouse in the wooded Aracena hills offers a relaxed family atmosphere coupled with great food and – as the name suggests – excellent wine. Scottish owner Jeannie is a Cordon Bleu-trained cook with a passion for Andalucian cuisine, so dinner never fails to delight. Fill your days with a range of activities, including walking, horse riding and fishing, and spend your evenings sampling local specialities in the candlelit dining room.
Harvest highlights: As well as cookery courses, Jeannie can arrange chestnut-harvesting afternoons, visits to Sherry bodegas, and trips to local farmers’ markets.
Cost: Bed and breakfast from £95 per room per night (plus 8% tax), based on 2 sharing.
www.i-escape.com/finca-buen-vino.php

•   Fattoria Barbialla Nuova, Tuscany, Italy
Set on a 500-hectare private estate, Fattoria Barbialla Nouva’s 3 farmhouses have been tastefully converted into 7 rustic-chic self-catering apartments and a villa, all surrounded by nothing but wooded hills and utter tranquility. Forests full of wild boar, deer and locally-prized white truffles cover half of the estate, and there's a remote wildness quite unlike postcard-Tuscany. This place is all about slow food and a slow, relaxed pace of life. Harvest highlight: Throughout autumn guests can take part in a number of gastronomic activities on the estate, including guided truffle hunting, pasta making, bread making and foraging. During the last 3 weeks of November the nearby village of San Miniato holds its annual white truffle festival, the Mostra del Tartufo Bianco. This internationally recognised fair attracts gastronomes from across the globe, with stalls offering plenty of opportunities to sample Tuscan cuisine at its finest.
Cost: From £71 per apartment per night (plus 10% tax), based on 2 sharing a 1-bedroom apartment. Book through i-escape and get a free jar of organic honey from the estate.
Special offer: 5 nights for 4 and 50% off truffle hunting – get the 5th night free in a 2- or 3- bedroom apartment, plus 50% off the cost of truffle hunting (normal price €60pp for groups of 6-8). Valid 15 October - 15 December 2011.  
www.i-escape.com/fattoria-barbialla-nuova.php

•   Lama di Luna, Puglia, Italy
Lama di Luna is a gorgeous boutique hotel on an 18th-century fortified farm, set above an olive-studded coast in Puglia, southern Italy. It offers simple and soothing bedrooms, excellent eco credentials, and pure and perfect food. Breakfast is a lovely organic affair and owner Pietro organises occasional dinners – but make sure you book into the fabulous Michelin-starred Antichi Sapori, one of the region’s best restaurants, which is located just 2km away.
Harvest highlights: During the harvest months guests can pick grapes, olives and cherries from the farm - 190 hectares of organic heaven. There’s also the chance to get hands-on with pizza making around the huge wood-fired oven.
Cost: Bed and breakfast from £121 per room per night, based on 2 sharing and including tax.
www.i-escape.com/lama-di-luna.php

•   Herdade da Malhadinha Nova, Alentejo, Portugal
This bucolic boutique hotel is located on a working vineyard with a reputation for excellent reds, rosés and whites. It has 10 sumptuous rooms and suites, a big range of outdoor activities and a subterranean spa. The icing on the cake is a gourmet restaurant where dishes are created especially to complement the estate’s wines.  
Harvest highlights: Join in the annual grape harvest, learn how wines are created, enjoy a tasting (or two!) and take part in one of the occasional cookery classes.
Cost: Bed and breakfast from £221 per room per night based on 2 sharing. This includes tax, a winery and wine cellar visit, and use of spa facilities and bicycles. Book through i-escape and receive a bottle of Peceguina wine, a bottle of olive oil and a jar of local jam.
www.i-escape.com/herdade-da-malhadinha-nova.php

•   La Vigna, Colonia Valdense, Uruguay
Uruguay’s harvest season falls in the UK spring, but this Latin-cool farmhouse hotel has a foodie focus all year round. Add in the fact that our autumn and winter is the best time to visit Uruguay weather-wise, and it makes a great base for a tasty South American break. Set on a working farm in Colonia Valdense, a town famed for its cheese, it has 5 unique rooms and a secluded self-catering house for 4-6, all tastefully decorated with a mix of antiques, original paintings and recycled furniture.
Harvest highlights: Owner Augustin is Uruguay’s only sheep’s cheese producer.  His crumbly Pecorino is gaining a growing reputation with top chefs, and all the food served is home-grown or home-reared (the farm’s lamb is particularly delicious). Sniff, swirl and taste Uruguayan wines and nibble on the farm’s finest cheeses at a wine- and cheese-tasting session in La Vigna’s cellar, book a cookery class, or go fishing for your dinner on the farm’s lagoon.
Cost: Bed and breakfast from £101 per room per night, based on 2 sharing and including taxes. Book through i-escape and receive a free bottle of wine plus one of the farm’s homemade cheeses.
www.i-escape.com/la-vigna.php

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