“A delightful hotel in an exquisite building,” says a visitor. “With its thick, honey-coloured stone walls, it looks every inch a medieval manor house,” says our inspector. Now a luxury hotel owned by Françoise Faevre, this 13th-century château stands in wooded grounds in a small village amid the vineyards and forests of the Mâconais wine region (Mâcon d”Igé is an appellation in its own right). It has ivy-covered walls, stone-flagged floors and spiral stairways; corridors are dark and winding. It stands in “lovely gardens, full of corners”, with chairs, “posh loungers”, huge goldfish pond with ducks. The suites in the turrets are particularly attractive, with their circular rooms. Oliver Pons has been chef since 2002, and main courses include eg poached Bresse chicken supreme with foie gras, risotto with black mushrooms; pan-seared fillet of zander, Chinese artichoke fricassee, parsnip purée with almond oil, creamy reduction of Mâcon-Igé. Summer drinks and meals are served on a terrace by a stream. Breakfast, with fruit salad and yogurt, is in a conservatory.