Review: Vocabolo Moscatelli

Why book?  Relaxed luxury is the name of the game at this intimate member of Design Hotels in a restored monastery in Umbria, Italy’s green heart. The scale is more intimate than other Italian country estates, like say Castello di Reschio or Borgo Santo Pietro, and feels a bit more laid-back and approachable.

Set the scene 
A 12th-century monastery in a rural village near the Tuscany-Umbria border. Perugia and Cortona are each about 45 minutes away. The hotel is set on a 2.5-acre estate planted with a vegetable garden and replete with manicured lawns where dogs can play. A hub for the local community, this hotel draws Italians and expats from the neighboring towns, who come to sip creative cocktails at the bar, enjoy Sunday lunch at the restaurant, or attend events hosted by the owners. And since the hotel is dog-friendly, you’re just as likely to encounter four-legged guests as two-legged ones.

The backstory 
Frederik Kubierschky, the hotel’s co-founder and general manager, and his partner Catharina Lütjens met while working at the Park Hyatt in Zurich and dreamt about one day opening their own little boutique hotel. When the opportunity presented itself to restore an abandoned monastery, they jumped at the chance to create a design-forward hotel where guests would feel welcomed into the community. 

The rooms 
There are just 12 rooms, which juxtapose the ancient monastery’s stone walls with sleek contemporary art and design. The beds, for example, are each bespoke creations in minimalist silhouettes and bold colors made by fourth-generation ironsmith Emanuele Lispi. Bathrooms feature textured tiles in vibrant hues like red or turquoise by local studio Cotto Etrusco. Some of the upper-level suites in the main building have an outdoor bathtub on a balcony with curtains you can close for privacy. An annex has a few more rooms, including the bridal suite, which has a small sitting room and spacious bathroom. 

Food and drink 
In keeping with the owners’ interpretation of relaxed luxury, there are no set hours for breakfast, so if you want to sleep in and have avocado toast at 2 p.m., you’re more than welcome to do so. Breakfast starts with coffee or tea and an étagère piled with pastries, cheese and cold cuts, and fresh fruit. Hot dishes, like shakshuka or French toast, are available to order. 

In the afternoon and evening, the restaurant transforms into a showcase for the chef, who brings Middle Eastern and Asian flavors to this very traditional part of Italy. Start with a creative cocktail or glass of wine in the lounge, which feels more like a living room than a hotel bar, and then settle in for a culinary voyage in the restaurant, where you might start with ramen in Umbrian beef broth with smoked duck breast and end with bread pudding with ricotta, pistachios, and vanilla cream perfumed with rose water.  

The spa 
There’s no spa, but there is one spa room located in the annex with a private sauna and outdoor jacuzzi in a private garden. They can also arrange in-room treatments or offer massages or yoga in the deconsecrated chapel upon request.

The neighborhood/area 
The Umbrian countryside is sometimes called Italy’s green heart and feels a bit like Tuscany with fewer tourists. There’s a casual trattoria nearby where you can try local specialties like fresh pasta with black truffle. Perugia and Cortona are each about 45 minutes away. Assisi, known for its beautiful Medieval cathedral, is about an hour away.

The service
Kubierschky and Lütjens are affable hosts who like to make their guests feel at home and draw them into the community. To this end, they can arrange activities like wine tastings at nearby vineyards, pottery-making classes with the ceramicist who made the hotel’s snack bowls and toothbrush holders, and truffle hunting in the woods.

For families 
The hotel accepts kids from the age of 14 and up. With advance notice, they will welcome four-legged guests with a dog bed and food and water bowls.  

Eco effort 
Admirable. They try to reduce waste and use recycled materials whenever possible, by offering breakfast a la carte instead of a buffet and using large refillable toiletries instead of little plastic bottles. They grow some of their own veggies and herbs in the garden as well as flowers used to decorate the hotel and source other products locally to reduce emissions. They compost and have a director of blooming who acts as an internal sustainability guide.

Accessibility
The hotel meets local accessibility standards. There is an elevator in the main building, and one deluxe room and one suite are handicap accessible.

Anything left to mention?
I visited in December, so unfortunately I wasn’t able to take advantage of the outdoor pool, but it would be a lovely place to relax in the summertime. During my stay, the hotel hosted a pop-up holiday market in the garden with local vendors selling wine, truffle-based products, leather bags, and other items. They plan to host more community-oriented events in the future.