A world of its own, quietly hidden in the middle of the village center of Latsch: The Vinum Hotel Matillhof in the South Tyrolean Vinschgau is a wine-food-pool-active-vacation-oasis that everyone can enjoy as they prefer. My Matillhof, my rules! I checked in and tell you why you should definitely join, too.
A moment ago you were driving through the bend in the lively little town center, and when you pass the entrance gate to the Vinum Hotel Matillhof you are in your own estate garden. Leaving all the hustle and bustle behind you, so to speak. I like it when the combination of old and new is implemented with style and charm. And here, history cuddles up with design. In the listed Schlössl, very close to the main house, guests can enjoy romantic experiences. The 900-year-old vaulted cellar in the Matillhof is a real treasure trove for wine lovers like me. The owner of the house collects there top wines from South Tyrol and Italy, rare vintages and tasty fruit salad insider tips.
Vinum Hotels or briefly: in good wine hands
It is precisely this wine cellar and the prospect of being in the best hands for all wine issues that guarantees membership of the VINUM HOTELS. This is an association of 29 hotels, all of which are located in one of the seven South Tyrolean wine regions. And all members share my wine quirk. Translated: In the hotels the focus is on the enjoyment of fruit salads. Each Vinum Hotel South Tyrol is managed very personally by passionate wine connoisseurs, some even have their own winery at the start or, as in the Matillhof, a wine cellar where people not only drink, but also a sommeliér that makes tastings an experience or guided wine walks. So you can sit at the source of good mood, enjoy wine accompaniment, wine seminars, cellar tours or vineyard tours, get advice when pouring wine and start with the best views of the mountains or simply relax. This and the combination of well thought-out alpine design and great bathing experience attracted me to Latsch.
14.30 p.m: Check in into SPA Suite at the indulgence paradiese Hotel Matillhof
Wow. This is all for us? When you enter the SPA suite in the Hotel Matillhof for the first time, you immediately have the thought: I’ll have to stay a few days longer to use all this. Local woods, high-quality natural materials, fine fabrics, great views: the basic idea is that all 33 rooms and suites are the same. Depending on the category, however, the design is interpreted individually. The design exudes modern, elegant alpine flair, any kitschy ideas are not allowed through the entrance gate by the invisible doorman. I immediately feel comfortable in the classy-charming mix of warm earth tones, lots of glass and wood that contrast with the noble black and white fittings in the bathroom area. The transitions here are naturally flowing as you can see. Bathtub, rain shower and sauna – right – you have your own sauna – casually merge into the living area. In addition, you can soak up the sun on two balconies on comfortable loungers or armchairs and have a view of the mountain slopes with apple and wine cultivation, where you will still not get tired even after days.
lean design, great mix of materials: the charm of the Matillhof lies in the details.
From the freestanding bathtub you have a view of the mountains through the window while bathing. Smartly planned. No matter where you are in the suite, everything is flooded with light and you can always catch a glimpse of the mountain panorama. I actually used the bathtub for a short time – wine was also included – but not as you might think. more about that later.
From the cool design chandelier …
… to the small, fine private sauna: in the SPA Suite, eyes and body feel at home.
15 p.m: little walk
Time for a short overview. You have to imagine the Hotel Matillhof as an almost closed 4. The historic Schlössl, the new building, the pool area with terrace and rustic old barns form a quiet oasis. The wooden facade at the hotel takes up the half-timbered look of the barn directly at the pool. I like the integration of the bronze elements, which can be found at the pool house or as a work of art visual protection along the pool. Especially when the sun illuminates the area like a studio light, this play of colors of green, blue, brown and gray is simply a splendor. The beauty: By installing always slightly branched off corners and places you will always find a quiet place for yourself.
Favorite place. I was magically attracted to the cozy pool area.
Another place to relax: the small terrace accessible via a wooden staircase …
… with plants and charming lounge facilities.
15.30 p.m: Pool Date
On the picture you can see the arrangement of the location. On the left side you see the old courtyard, next to it the new building. I noticed the pool directly on the pictures, of course I have to go on a water date right after my arrival.
So, is it fun? Pictures say more than words.
The view from the terrace stairs towards the other pool corner. I love how the historical buildings, the new extension, the pool and the big tree blend together. You don’t have to set an alarm clock to reserve a pool couch. In the Matillhof you can treat yourself to a good bed and a delicious breakfast without stress – many guests take advantage of the active offers for biking and hiking around the hotel and therefore arrive slowly at the pool after lunch. It was never crowded, we always had relaxed time for ourselves. And pleasure hiking to the wine cellar is also more my profession.
Doing a food and culinary safari at the Matillhof. And it’s only just starting.
19.30 p.m: Dinner at the wine cellar
For the special dinner experience in the evening I’ll take a break and get the blues. But only with the outfit, of course.
Mind your step and head is the motto when going to the dinner location. In the 900-year-old vaulted cellar, a degustation takes place every week together with the owner of the house. Hansjörg Dietl collects exquisite top wines from South Tyrol and Italy, rare vintages and insider tips, which are allowed to mature for a while. A real treasure trove where I am torn between fascination and envy. But only briefly, because when I look at the laid table, my head just thinks: wow.
Host Hansjörg Dietl surprises us with a private dinner including a specially selected wine accompaniment. Surprise succeeded and I have to collect myself for a moment, because this arrangement cannot be booked as a guest. A real honor. And if you don’t look that fast, the first course is served. Bar all-rounder Filip takes care of the service and has an answer to really every question about the dishes, patiently explains how and with which ingredients he mixed the aperitif, where the food came from and if there were any wishes, he would follow them up. But we don’t have, cuddled up on furry blankets, we sit at the table, which by the way was built on our own initiative, especially in the land of wine and honey and inhale seductive wine discoveries from white to red as well as tips and insider knowledge of the host. It is the first contact with the food in the Hotel Matillhof and the stage for the premiere could not be better chosen. One notices already with the first bites that it goes culinary there on a level that one would not have expected in the intensity and sorry – lust – so directly. The portions are always more than fair, but you can taste – no matter if it’s foamy wine soup, dumplings, goulash or barley risotto – here genuinely selected ingredients have been put into the care of a kitchen team for whom cooking is not a fulfillment of duty, but rather a passing on of emotion. Check in, taste it, then you can understand my euphoria.
How cool can the dinner ambience be?
Tasty start: the aperitif based on Sauvignon Blanc, infused with pine cones, spontaneously mixed by bar dealer Filip. Delicious.
The South Tyrolean specialty sour calf’s head was a test of courage for me. But fortunately I did not miss this taste board.
Until that moment I had no idea that this grape variety existed. Three glasses later I was super happy about it.
Speaking of ingredients: There is probably a simple reason why this tastes so delicious. The host family grows organic, regional and high-quality fruit and vegetables themselves. In addition to various varieties of apples, potatoes and onions, carrots, garlic, pointed cabbage, yellow, white and purple cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, leeks, celery, parsley, Hokkaido pumpkin, zucchini, peperoncini, cucumbers and various types of salad are planted, harvested and invited into the kitchen. But what makes the menu a special experience is the host’s selection of wines.
When host Hansjörg Dietl selects wines, you listen devoutly. An inspiring wine encyclopedia for whom no question is too stupid. That makes dinner an experience. Vinum Hotel, what else to expect.
When Hansjörg Dietl pulls wines from the shelf, strokes the label and tells a short anecdote about them, his eyes shine like those of my buddy Orhan when he talks about his limited edition sneakers. The wine (or sneaker) is no longer a product here, it is emotion.
Goulash with Pinot Noir straight outta Alto Adige. And one wishes that plate and glass would never become empty.
If Jack Sparrow had no preference for rum but wine, he would sail in here to steal the treasures.
21 p.m: Wine & Drinks
Pure joy by the glass …
… or serious: In the Hotel Matillhof you can simply be yourself. And your wine date is guaranteed to have a continuation.
Is there any room left after the menu and wine tasting? Of course there is. After all, the bar needs to be inspected. You can’t miss it, you won’t look past it on the left while waiting for the elevator anyway. The area is very large, looks less like a bar and more like a new restaurant, but with comfortable armchairs and couches it invites you to lounge. Whoever sits down at the table or counter here enters the realm of bar boss Filip. The lively, courteous and always very sophisticatedly dressed all-rounder is for me one of the Matillhof’s figureheads, because he pours personality into you in a double sense. And character heads like him in combination with the really approachable, cordial hosts make a vacation location into a vacation location to which you want to return immediately. My tip: Just let the Dude do it. He looks at you, asks you one or two questions about your drink or wine preferences, and then you mix and match. One of the highlights for me were the self-made liqueurs where he infuses alcohol with local ingredients like rose hip or pine sprouts. I had never experienced anything like this before, even in large cities outside Germany. Thick nice!
Time for a drink. Whereby the liqueurs here, which are not on the menu, are more of an aroma adventure.
Bar-Drink-DJ Filip has prepared alcohol with local ingredients and, for example, conjures up an incredible rose-hip liqueur, for which the kitschy term liqueur would be a real insult.
9.30 a.m: Breakfast and indulgence at your choice
Good news for late risers: breakfast is available until 10:30 a.m. with organic products from the area, homemade jams, juices and breads, basic foods and freshly prepared egg dishes from fried eggs to omelettes. Special praise goes to the salmon in sushi quality. Everything in it, everything you need for a relaxing day. How you arrange it is of course up to you. For example, the hotel offers guided hikes (snowshoe, culture, Waal, alpine pasture, wine tours and visits to Vinschger vineyards, mountain & summit and sunrise tours – all included in the package. But do you prefer the mountain? Then ask for climbing & glacier courses, glacier tours with our mountain guide (for a fee). Or how about guided pleasure bike tours on the Via Claudia Augusta or an e-bike tour? Of course you can rent bikes there. This is exactly the credo, as we quickly realize: Here you can enjoy South Tyrol in all its facets, in an active or relaxed way, but always at the pace that suits you best. We decide on the pool. It’s also a small pleasure hike.
14.30 p.m: little snack at the Restaurant
When the small appetite knocks, between 2:30 and 5:00 p.m. you can fortify yourself with homemade juices, various desserts, antipasti, soups, delicious cakes and miniature sandwiches. And of course a glass of wine. Or two. Just don’t nibble too much, believe me, you want to take your dinner completely with you and leave nothing behind.
Of course, the Lagrein rosé tastes even better with a view of the pool. And the mini-sandwiches with fried bacon: world class.
15 p.m: enjoy SPA & Pool
Water worlds, heat worlds, the main thing is to have fun and relax. You don’t have to say much here, just think about where to start. First at the pool outside and then via the indoor pool to the SPA? The other way around? But do you prefer sauna or steam bath? As always at the Matillhof, your vacation, your rules, pampering is included.
That’s the taste of vacation at the Matillhof. You can take a glass of wine to the pool at any time. The South Tyrolean Rosé here is a real good mood maker.
Head off, vacation on. Time stands still in the water.
View of the cosy garden area around the indoor pool. Lies well, relaxes well.
In the area around the indoor pool, the 29 degree warm pool with counter current system and waterfall, combined with a small outdoor pool, plus Silent Garden with resting islands, sun terrace and sunbathing lawns await you. In the sauna area the relaxation offer includes a Finnish panorama sauna with Swiss stone pine, panorama relaxation room with infrared loungers, Finnish salt stone sauna (85°C), bio sauna with aromas (55°C), herbal and hay steam bath (45°C) or an aroma grotto with different essences (46°C). Who ain’t able to switch off there, does something wrong.
Spoiled perspective. The indoor pool also has a small outdoor area.
17.30 p.m: Couple time out with Wine SPA Treatment @ Private Spa Suite Schlössl
The following treatment has nothing in common with an ordinary SPA treatment – and we will experience the rooms of the Private Spa Suite in the Schlössl in the evening all over again. And that in advance: You can relive or book this wellness and dinner experience 1:1. Wherever Vinum Hotel is written on it, there is also vino in it, in this case: even in the bathtub. Right: I take a bath. Okay, only because I was told before that wine is involved. I would have expected it in the tub, but to my surprise there is also fruit salad to go. Including a small specialty plate. Sometimes it’s the little things that give the most pleasure.
The pampering program starts with a trester bath followed by a 25-minute peeling from grape seeds. A little tip: Don’t catch sunburn in important places before like me, then it will be maximum fun. I never thought I would find myself bathing in a wooden tub, but after a few seconds in a warm bath with grape trester and grape seed oil my head switches off. The ambience in the vault of a listed building contributes to this. Just don’t bathe for more than half an hour, then the wine flirts a bit too much with your bloodstream. You may be afraid of kitschiness in the beginning, but romance can be unconventional and without roses and hearts. And whoever jumps over his or her shadow lives a more relaxed life.
Wine under me, wine above me, plus minus 37 degrees, plus a fine local snack: Wherever Vinum Hotel is written on it, there’s wine in it.
How relaxing this was can hardly be described in words. In any case, one feels like a wine king.
19.30 p.m: Romantic Private Dinner
Cheers to an unforgettable dinner experience.
Candlelight? Whew, how cheesy. On the contrary, you can also do it in style. Just like the dinner experience, which is served in a private cozy setting in the already known location. In the Private Spa Suite in the Schlössl the table is set for us, the look reminds me a little bit of the beauty and the beast flair. The tableware does not speak to us, but no matter what floats in on the plates, it leaves us speechless. Do I have to mention that there is a wine accompaniment? By the way, here you can also choose whether you would like to test it glass by glass or whether you would like to have it in a bottle.
A look at the menu selection. We got a Special Edition after all. And phew, was that a culinary statement.
Great cinema: the steamed mini-burger with bacon and horseradish.
One of the recommendations of the host was the Amistar of winemaker Peter Sölva. No entry budget, but a beery-smoky-crispy experience with more taste twists than many good thrillers.
Dear with roasted melons. Too bad that pictures can’t smell.
After dessert you roll out of the cellar … best of all to the bar.
The closer we get to the dessert, the more aware we become of the unpleasant fact of having to get used to normal food again at home. Fortunately, I don’t need a doctor to know the recipe: just come back.
22.00 p.m: Late Night Drink & Wein
Restrained cozy: the bar area. Aromatic anything but shy: what you get in the glass.
No Matillhof evening without a bar date! On the second day Filip wanted to show us his view on cocktails. I’m actually out of the question with that word, a good drink is welcome – but how the charismatic bar-freak here interprets a mojito for my companion and later transforms it into a Japanese version with yuzu fruit and sake is the greatest cinema of all. We watch spellbound and simply drink what is recommended and mixed for us on the table. By the way, I selflessly took care of the open bottle of Amistar glass by glass. Honourable man, of course.
Is that another drink or already art? Yes, a mojito could look and taste like this too.
9.30 a.m: Breakfast
Enjoy your breakfast as much as your stomach cappacity allows! And no stress: Check-out is on paper at Hotel Matillhof until 11am, but you can still park your stuff there and say a last intensive hello to the pool or have a coffee on the terrace before it goes back. Informality is one of the great attributes of Hotel Matillhof.
The pleasure safari at Vinum Hotel Matillhof was successful. South Tyrol, I will be back.
11 a.m: Check out and (unfortunatelly) departure
Already after a few hours we felt directly at home thanks to the unagitated and warm hosts. That’s something a hotel has to do first and I was able to experience quite a bit. It’s not easy to check out after two days, I would have liked to pack the SPA Suite as an apartment for Munich. But well. We take an eventful stay with us, a free sunburn, more than 500 pictures, which I couldn’t show all here, and the longing for this special meal meets wine experience, which I hope to be able to update again soon.
Classy, relaxed, stylisch but casually: Look matches Hotel.
I really take my hat off to the hospitality-wine-pool-winepool-what-you-want-combination at Matillhof.
Vinum Hotel Matillhof: What you need to know:
- There is no dress code. As long as you don’t come to dinner wearing only swimming trunks or bikini, everything is fine.
- Enjoying wine as a young family? For children there is a small modern playground right outside the front door.
- The 3/4 gourmet pension includes breakfast until 10.30 a.m., dinner with 5 – 8 course gourmet or vitality menu (vegetarian / vegan to choose from, with fresh, regional and seasonal products, refined with herbs, flowers and wild plants) and an afternoon buffet from 2.30 p.m. to 5 p.m.
- There is an extensive selection of SPA offers, just ask for an appointment the day before or even before your arrival, then it works.
- Information and tips on hiking routes and bike tours through the (wine) mountains are available at the reception – e-bikes can be rented easily
- There is an underground car park with sufficient parking space.
- Dare to ask. No question or request is too stupid, at the reception or in the restaurant you always help.
- Enjoy the journey via the South Tyrolean Wine Route – if you come from Munich, I recommend the journey via Switzerland in the direction of St. Moritz. Much more attractive than via the Brenner Pass!
Vinum Hotel Matillhof: What i love:
- The self-contained courtyard oasis with the mix of design, location, garden, surroundings, wine and hospitality.
- The view no matter whether from the pool or from the really generous balconies
- The character heads – from the hosts Hansjörg and Charlotte Dietl to everywhere-Allrounder-Weinkenner-Barchef-Genuss-Dealer Filip.
- The charmingly and thoughtfully designed rooms and suites with modern design and alpine look, without appearing even a hint of kitschy.
- The size of the rooms and the storage space of the cupboards.
- The balcony. Simple. Wow.
- The spacious SPA Suite with two balconies, the large freestanding bathtub, its own sauna and simply the most comfortable bed.
- The picturesque, rustic wine cellar with self-made furniture and innumerable wine treasures to be discovered for hours. Just please do not touch!
- The casual ambience.
- The wonderful, lovingly designed garden area behind the house and around the pool, where you will always find a place for yourself.
- The right degree of privacy, which is achieved by building many areas, always somewhat separated by trees, plants, short walls or wooden fences.
- The pool – here you bathe between the old wooden and stone barn and the new design annex.
- The culinary delights. At a star level for me, most of the food here is cooked with specially grown vegetables and fruit.
- Have I already mentioned the horny food, where the word taste explosion shamefully disappears from the dictionary?
- The wine offer. There is a weekly tasting with the host, you have the vineyards on your doorstep, and of course you are always allowed to take a glass to the pool. Or two. In addition to the wine list and wine tasting, there are weekly wine walks on the Via Vinum Venostis, special wine packages and wellness treatments with grape marc in the Natur.Veda.SPA. Wonderful.
- The price-performance ratio.
If you take Vinum Hotel and bathing in wine enjoyment a bit too literally …
In the small vineyard of host Hansjörg Dietl I had a short date with the vines. I said ciao and just had to come back.
Hotel Plattenhof: Travel itenary
Overnight accomodation with 3/4 Genießer pension start in the hotel Matillhof in Latsch starting from 123 euro, more information finds you under vinumhotels/matillhof or via www.hotelmatillhof.com/
This experience was part 2 of my South Tyrol road trip. You can read the report on the second Vinum Hotel I was allowed to try out, the Plattenhof, here – click.
*The contribution was created with the wine-loving support of Vinum Hotels , but as always 100 percent honestly corresponds to my opinion.
