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Slideshow
Seven hotels and spas offering vinotherapy treatments
Doing Dry January? These spas could convince you to fall off the wagon in style.
While many try to give up the drink in the first month of the year in a bid to detox from Christmas indulgences, we at the drinks business believe there are much better ways to go about it.
Vinotherapy — also written “Vinotherapie” — describes a beauty therapy process where the residue of wine making (the pips and pulp) are rubbed into the skin. The pulp is said to have excellent exfoliating qualities and help reduce the problems associated with ageing.
The wine-based beauty treatment has its roots in Medieval history, when grape seed oil was especially popular among the upper class because it was known to soften the skin.
In 1999, cosmetics brand Caudalie revived the European tradition by launching the world’s first vinotherpy spa among the vineyards of Bordeaux’s Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte. Today, hotels in Europe and beyond have followed suit, offering spa treatments for oenophiles of their own.
We’ve rounded up some of the best wine hotels and spas in the world providing guests with the opportunity to get covered in wine to reverse the ageing process.
Keep scrolling to take a look at the spas harnessing the revitalising properties of vino.
Cavas Wine Lodge – Mendoza, Argentina
(Photo: Cavas Wine Lodge)
Over 70% of Argentinean wine production comes out of the Mendoza region, primarily Malbec and Chardonnay grapes. Set in its own 35-acre vineyard in the heart of wine-growing Mendoza province, Cavas Wine Lodge boasts an underground cava stacked with dozens of Argentina’s notable labels, vinotherapy baths in the spa, and award-winning bodegas just a short stroll away.
Cavas’ spa treatments combine the latest scientific discoveries involving the vine and grape seed extracts. Rich in polyphenols, these extracts combat free radicals which are responsible for 80% of aging. Choose from a range of treatments including a Crushed Malbec Scrub, Torrontés Wine Wrap or even bathing in Bondarda.
Unlike many of the hotels on our list, UK travellers will benefit from Argentina’s favourable exchange rate, with most treatments coming in under £50.
Price: Wine baths start from AR$650 (£25)
Kenwood Inn & Spa – Sonoma Valley, California
Sonoma is one of California’s key winemaking regions just north of San Fransisco, so it comes as no surprise that Kenwood Inn and Spa — owned by hotel group Four Sisters — capitalises on the region’s notoriety in as many ways as possible.
Kenwood was one of many towns and villages caught up in the wildfires which raged through California’s wine country last year, but the hotel stayed strong. It closed at the end of 2017 for refurbishment, but is due to return
The Sauvignon Massage uses grape seed oil from Sauvignon grapes and organic essential oils, but for a truly decadent experience, opt for one of Kenwood’s wine baths.
Price: Pinot Noir baths start at $69 (£51)
Les Sources de Caudalie – Bordeaux, France
(Photo: Megan Cole/Flickr)
Located among the vineyards of Château Smith Haut Lafitte, Caudelie launched in 1999 to bring Europe a Vinotherapy treatment with vignes vieilles prestige.
Unique treatments combine the virtues of natural hot spring water drawn from 540 meters beneath the earth – rich in minerals and “oligo-elements”, according to the Caudalie website – with the most recent scientific discoveries of the benefits of the grape and the grapevine.
Spend 15 minutes in an exfoliating grape marc bath, or a toxin-busting red vine bath to soak up the atmosphere, or try one of Caudalie’s unparalleled treatments including a merlot wrap, a grape seed body scrub, or the hydrating “Pulp Friction” massage which uses fresh grapes and essential oils.
Price: Red Vine and Grape Marc baths start at €70 (£62), while grape massages start from €114 (£102). Full vinotherapy packages are also available. See Caudalie’s 2018 price list for more details.
Hotel Marques de Risqual, La Rioja, Spain
(Photo: Jokin Lacalle/Flickr)
Designed by Frank O. Gehry and standing proud in the Rioja wine region, Hotel Marques de Riscal is an roughly an hour-and-a-half’s drive from bilbao airport, making it a relatively convenient place to sojourn for some red wine R&R. The spa, which is also run by French beauty brand Caudalie, offers vinotherapy of its own to match its Tempranillo backdrop. Choose between a Merlot and a Honey Wine wrap, opt for an exfoliating Cabernet scrub, or even soak in a wine barrel bath — a bubbly mix of grape pomace said to have magical rehydrating properties.
Price: Crushed Cabernet Scrubs start at €85 (£75)
The Vineyard Hotel, Berkshire
The Vineyard — a five-AA-red-star, 49-bedroom hotel in Stockcross which is the only hotel in the UK geared towards oenophiles — offers bespoke spa treatments in its own Five Bubble-awarded wellness centre, which harnesses the antioxidants found in grapes.
Founded by the owner of California’s Peter Michael Winery, The Vineyard is home to more than 30,000 bottles of wine.
The spa has no members, and is only open to guests of the hotel. The extensive list of treatments includes a selection of signature treatments, many of these use the Vineyard’s exclusive Red Grape cosmetic products, fragrant with sun-ripened fruit.
Price: The Vineyard offers two vinotherapy-focused treatments — a Red Grape Pampering Body Wrap (55 minutes, £70) and a Red Grape Body Polish (25 minutes, £45).
Can Bonastre, Masquefa, Spain
(Photo: Carla Vidal/Flickr)
Home to the Can Bonastre winery, this Catalonian resort is in the heart of Cava country, and has the spa treatments to match.
Alongside a roster of aromatherapy massages and facials, guests can treeat themselves to “Cavatherapy” for a truly indulgent detox.
Can Bonastre’s Cavatherapy facials and massages use “stem cells from the vines” which promise to rid you of those alcohol-induced crows feet, but you can also go all-out with a Cava bath, “rich in antioxidant nutrients, antiage for skin care and the relaxing effects of magnolia.” it even comes with a complimentary glass of Cava.
Price: Cava baths start at €75 (£67)
Aires de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Sometimes it simply isn’t enough to bathe in wine. True experts crave authenticify, and for some, only a cellar will do.
Aires de Barcelona is the ideal spa for those who want to truly immerse themselves in wine. The dark and cavernous spa offers a one-off wine bath treatment which uses antioxidant-rich Spanish Ribera del Duero grapes, with the rejuvenating liquid stored in a Venetian 17th-century restored marble well.
Price: Wine baths start from €115 (£102)