Unfathomable really, to think how the pandemic has hit the hospitality industry. This is why, with great gusto, I took the first opportunity I had when rules and regulations made it possible to visit the latest Cotswold retreat, for a reviving weekend away.

The Double Red Duke, a wisteria-clad 17th Century coaching inn pocketed in a small Cotswold village, is the latest venture of husband and wife duo Sam and Georgie Pearman.

The Pearman’s are experts at what they do. They are responsible for the success of The Lucky Onion (a chain of boutique restaurants and hotel establishments which they previously founded and owned) and now they are rolling out equal success with a new smorgasbord of retreats and inns under the Country Creatures name.

Georgie Pearman is responsible for the interior decor and design of each of the properties and she hasn’t put a step wrong, in my humble opinion, with her approach to The Double Red Duke.

The red and white stripe parasols which pepper the terrace outside are just the right side of Puglian chic to add (not subtract) from the traditional 17th Century architecture. It’s humble, but it in an effortlessly bon vivant sense. One might say, casually elegant? When I visited, the weather was a warming 28 degrees and sunny, so the stripes were in full swing shading the weekend residents.

Inside is a welcoming warren of Ground Floor bar and restaurant rooms. The layout, low ceilings, and room-to-room architecture really evokes the charm of the building’s century-old roots. At the heart of the ground floor layout is a neat little reception desk, tucked into the nook of the stairwell. Georgie has decorated the rooms in bold tones of Emerald Green and added contrasting pops of red velvet bunket seating. It’s the kind of environment you seek out after a bracing autumnal walk through the surrounding countryside. The open fires - I imagine - will be the icing on the cake when the winter months approach.

Georgie’s own home, which she is currently re-decorating, is being approached with a neutral palette. Her husband Sam felt like bold colours - as much as the couple both love them - would remind them too much of their work environment. A distinctly different colour palette gives them that much-needed break away.

Our bedroom didn’t disappoint. Sisal carpets keep the rooms feeling informal but smart and the presence of not only a freestanding roll-top bath, an Emperor bed, but also a sizeable walk-in shower room with its own window overlooking the woodlands, really heightened the experience and stay.

The food and drink? well, I’m no expert in this field, but I will say that we thoroughly enjoyed the Classic Champagne Cocktails served up in little crystal coupes. They fuelled us into a long, sunny, Sunday evening sitting in the garden. In a word - delightful.

Really though, what’s so lovely about The Double Red Duke, is that it feels independent and very much part of the community. The stone garden walls are low - you feel part of the village community and unlike some nearby farmhouse establishments there’s isn’t the feeling that you’ve entered into a locked compound. After all, what is the point of being in the countryside if you don’t feel part of it? I beg the question.

Discover more at countrycreatures.com

Feature: Rory Robertson

Images: as individually credited.

The Cotswolds’ latest retreat, The Double Red Duke

© Rory Robertson 2023