Albergo dell'anno: Casa Pavesi
...Casa Pavesi è entrata in lizza, superando tutti gli altri candidati a fine anno. Posizionato ai piedi del castello di Grinzane Cavour, questo hotel è caldo e accogliente, con una bella vista sulla Langa. Camere avvolgenti di legno e di stoffe.
Due bonus: uno per l'ironica simpatia di Paola Drocco e uno per la colazione, ottima e abbondante...

Come straight away, come right now. Don't wait till the high season, when this area fills up with tourists who have come for the truffles or wines and the Easter goatlings; come in the heart of winter, when this surprising little building will welcome you with all its charm - now even greater than ever.

You are in the heart of the Langhe and Barolo area: just a stone's throw away, a little higher up at the top of the road, the now-naked rows of vines are overlooked by the imposing mass of the medieval castle, home to the "Ordine dei Cavalieri del Tartufo e dei vini di Alba" (the Order of the Knights of the Truffle and Wines of Alba) that was presided over by Luciano De Giacomi and Renato Ratti. A few steps down, in the little square where you can park your car without any problems, a family of local wine producers has saved, transformed and revitalised an anonymous old house. A cast iron handrail offers protection from the little traffic that there is, then as you're admiring the façade with its flower-filled balconies adorning the large windows, a stately wooden door will swing open to let you in.

The warm, soft light filtering in from the outside creates an even more intimate atmosphere in the evenings. The reduced number of out-of-season visitors, and the incomplete and perhaps superfluous site, are counter-balanced by the friendliness of the personnel and the charm of the rooms. The guests in the dozen rooms and suites will find themselves in an atmosphere that, despite having been created so recently, has an air of bygone times. Significant investments, made with good taste and loving care, have produced dream-like corners: warm and welcoming furnishings, antiques, soft colours and shades, wood and velvet, the ancient renovated fireplace, the reading or conversation corner...
Beautiful bedrooms and fairytale suites with magnificent dream-like views over the vineyards of the King of wines and the wine of Kings.