At the end of a long drive past rustic cabins, a helipad and a forest-fringed meadow, this 21st-century rebuild of a Georgian lodge is a ‘highly professional, near faultless’ modern country house hotel. ‘We were greeted warmly as we climbed out of our car at the entrance,’ reports a Guide insider, before being shown around, with bags taken to the room. A range of ‘light, tastefully neutral’ or earth-toned accommodation includes cosy rooms, overlooking garden and forest with a king-size bed, robes, minibar and Bamford toiletries. Two-storey lodges include one with a four-poster, open fire and stand-alone bath in a bay window surrounded by trees; wooden cottages with kitchenette suit a family. Public rooms, including a marble-topped bar lined with leather chairs, have a bright, uplifting mood, eclectic artwork and ‘many quiet spots for afternoon tea’. The spa is ‘slick and beautiful’. In the ‘elegant, relaxed, slightly dimly it’ restaurant, Luke Holder and Angela Hartnett’s seasonal Italian fare includes Parmesan gnocchi, morels, wild garlic; lamb chops, garlic, sweetbread Bolognese. ‘Perhaps wait until you have eaten to study the dining room’s Tracey Emin nudes.’