Nothing about the entrance to Le Mas gives away the utter luxury that lies within. You might even miss the gate on the main drag of Rowland Flat, in SA’s Barossa Valley.
But cruising down the tree-lined driveway – with a vineyard to your right – you’ll find a boutique stay as bold and full-bodied as the shiraz for which this wine region is revered.
The 1857-built farmhouse was completely gutted, then gussied up, before opening in 2020 as a fancy four-room hotel emulating the mas, or farmhouse accommodation of Provence, in the south of France.
“What the French do beautifully is this coming together of old and new,” director Geraldine Frater-Wyeth tells Broadsheet. She does it beautifully, too, marrying heritage features (like the painstakingly preserved brick wall in the den) with modern flourishes (like the floating Oblica fireplace and dramatic oversized chandeliers).
Each of the four rooms (which means a maximum of eight guests at any one time) is complete with silk curtains, Hermes toiletries and house-baked madeleines, while the two deluxe king rooms have the added benefit of stone bathtubs and garden vistas.
But perhaps what’s most indulgent about the Le Mas experience is the team’s hospitality – never overbearing, but never missing a beat. And always just a text message away.
Be welcomed in the greenhouse-like orangerie with an arrival G&T, then mosey out the French doors and down the hill to the heated outdoor mineral pool for an afternoon of dips and sips – of Le Mas’s own rosé, made with grapes grown on the property.
While you can leave your Barossa itinerary – from wine tastings to restaurant bookings to helicopter transfers – in the hands of Frater-Wyeth, there’s also no pressure to venture out. “It’s quite intimate here ... and guests often get to know each other.”
The whiff of freshly baked croissants will coax you out of your room to the all-inclusive continental breakfast, while there’s cheese and charcuterie available daily (a perfectly acceptable dinner). On Friday and Saturday nights, there’s also a full menu of French classics such as steak (or moules) frites, coq au vin and duck à l’orange.
An expansion is also in the works at Le Mas. Set to open in a year’s time are six more rooms, a poolside day spa (with an infrared sauna) and an elegant events space.
Stays start at $1100 per night for a maximum of two people. Book online.
