Le Phébus & Spa No. 4

Jean-Luc Reymond offers honeys sourced directly from beekeepers in the deep south: lavender, chestnut, heather or, more rarely, rhododendron honey, to name just a few... This enthusiast also runs a shop full of Provençal treats made with honey. On a day out, take the time to taste them on the spot: there is a counter for just that purpose. Jean-Luc also assembles many hampers full of delicacies from the Luberon region, which make wonderful gifts...

There is no doubt: the building trades are highly technical professions that demand method and expertise to achieve an impeccable result; improvising is out of the question. The company “B&M Solutions” is the go-to contact for all the work needed to embellish and maintain a property.

The founder of “Bijouseat”, Valérie Martin, is today a fulfilled woman. After a career in marketing and communications, she now works with her hands. In her workshop in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue she makes armchairs, lampshades and various original upholstery items. Mindful of the environment, her online shop “Surcyclum” offers objects made from French industrial waste: lorry tarpaulins, inner tubes, silicone, fabrics… Her high-end creations are all made using traditional French craft methods.

There is no caviar without an infinite number of delicate acts of care. Only a handful of people are initiated into the ancestral expertise of the house of “Petrossian”, which holds the EPV label. Chefs love the complex, lingering flavours of the brand’s caviars, which satisfy the most demanding connoisseurs. This house, whose reputation is long established, has always worked in close complicity with the world of haute gastronomie to devise bold pairings around this ultimate symbol of refinement.

At the heart of the fine Champagne house “Colin”, the passion for vines and wine goes back to the great-grandparents, and rather more to the maternal side of the family, that of Richard and Romain Colin (the current owner of the estate). It produces very good champagnes, made in the traditional way and with the greatest respect for the environment. We love the “exclusive” cuvée, close to the reference cuvée “Blanche de Castille”: a beautiful 100% Chardonnay champagne with a pale gold colour, a persistent mousse and very fine bubbles, releasing aromas of white flowers and notes of citrus. Its little hints of lemon tickle the taste buds and make you want another sip.

For forty years this company has been making authentic, natural dry sausages in its workshop on the banks of the Durance, facing the Luberon. It makes, matures and packs more than 20 kinds of sausage, from the traditional to the exotic, including regional specialities.

The “Château la Canorgue” is a family estate that has farmed organically and biodynamically for more than 40 years, as a pioneer in the field. This respect for nature encourages and enhances the expression of the estate’s terroir, and allows Nathalie and her father to produce exceptional, medal-winning cuvées. Take the “la Canorgue” rosé, an expressive wine with notes of raspberry, redcurrant and strawberry, very fine and pleasantly tangy, with lingering fruit. Or the red cuvée “Coin Perdu”, a wine of exceptional aromatic complexity with notes of stewed black fruit, spice and praline, with supple, silky tannins. This estate is a classic on the wine lists of fine restaurants.

Interior design is the ideal way to create a genuine atmosphere of well-being, yet it is difficult to choose in this prolific sector without the support of specialists. We like this true partner in home decor, with its 7 welcoming showrooms in the south of France.

We admire the ethos of this association which, since 1967 and thanks to Mr and Mrs Tourville, has worked to help people in difficulty find their place in society through vocational training. Chef Xavier Mathieu and the ceramics workshop have designed a unique creation reserved for the gastronomic table. Each craftsman makes his or her pieces from start to finish, giving free rein to their creativity, so every piece is unique. Come and discover their work at the Ramades shop, where it is made.

François Busi created the “Domaine Alloïs” in 2008 on the family land at Caseneuve, between Ventoux and Luberon. A lover of his land, he tends the vines using organic farming and biodynamics, paying particular attention to the planetary and lunar cycles that set the rhythm of the farming calendar. The “La Roussanne” cuvée, which we are especially fond of, comes from a fairly round, structured grape variety and gives a wine of fine quality, with aromas of coffee, honeysuckle, iris and peony.

The “Domaine de La Citadelle” needs no introduction: Yves Rousset-Rouard has made it one of the jewels of the Luberon appellation. This family estate produces high-quality organic wines, of which the “Les Artèmes 2017” cuvée is the finest ambassador. It wins you over with its concentration and suavity. The delicate nose offers peppery notes of ripe fruit and spices. The ample, balanced palate lets fine tannins express themselves, with aromas of black fruit (cherries and morello cherries). The long, harmonious finish is elegant: a great wine not to be missed.

Benjamin Tourbillon, a winemaker born and bred and passionate at heart, strives to perpetuate tradition while bringing his own sensibility. Sommeliers are particularly fond of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape cuvée “Confidentiel” in white, which delicately reveals aromas of white fruit and toasty notes, and of the “Or” cuvée, whose pale rosé, with its bluish glints, gives off freshness and fruitiness. The avant-garde architecture of the cellar and shop is worth discovering on site, where a wide range of products and new releases around wine is on offer.

Everyday object or exceptional work of art, ceramics remain an inexhaustible source of inspiration. At the “Galerie Zubrycki” in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, we love the ceramic fruit sculptures made by the artist through a skilful marriage of metal and a glossy enamel glaze. The gallery is a destination for art lovers, where you can also discover bronze sculptures.

This family-run market gardening business, “Un Coin de Jardin”, has built up a very fine network of small local suppliers, where freshness and seasonal vegetables are guaranteed. The rapport established with many chefs in the region is a source of inspiration for their dishes. A new vegetable garden of a thousand square metres on the property also adds to the supply of “organic” vegetables.

The oils of the Moulin du “Clos des Jeannons” come from olives grown in Gordes. The oil is made on site in the purest tradition, crushed with stone millstones to extract the subtlest aromas. An AOC Provence Extra Virgin oil with a deep green colour, it wins you over with its freshness and herbaceous notes. It meets very strict specifications, notably on the time between harvest and pressing, which is three days at most. The mill invites you to visit its shop and its twelfth-century cellar, where you will find oils, a fine range of products and cosmetics. Visits to the mill are free.

“Le Château du Bois Provence” is a brand of organic cosmetics and natural perfumes at the heart of the “Musée de la Lavande”. A specialist in cosmetics in harmony with nature, it creates each product with the rarest of lavenders, prized for its relaxing properties. It offers a fine range of products, including the fine lavender essential oil of Haute Provence AOP. A walk through the museum is a must, to discover its whole world, its tours and workshops, its organic products and its fragrances, and to stock up on well-being for the year.

In the Vaucluse, in the heart of the town of Carpentras, the largest truffle market in Provence is held every Friday morning from mid-November to the end of March. Chefs love to work with “la Rabasse” (the Provençal name for the truffle). To do so, they turn to “Provence Truffes”, seasoned truffle growers who offer a choice of fresh and preserved truffles all year round. Come and meet them at this market, which showcases the flavours of the region, the traders and also the private buyers who come to learn the ropes.

The “Phébus & Spa” sits in the heart of nature, so it made sense to play with it, and open, transparent spaces were called for. Yet the privacy that guests need in the villas’ outdoor living areas also had to be fully respected. The company “Savoir Fer” made bespoke wrought-iron privacy screens, and we love the work of this art ironworks in the Apt region.

Improving the guest experience by keeping in touch before, during and after their stay, managing the web application’s content, automating messages, exchanging with the guest, processing their order and creating forms from the administrator interface: this is the innovative concept offered by the company “Utelys”. We like these professionals for the quality and reliability of their products.

An Innovation Prize winner, “Végétalement Provence” cultivates botanical science, the foundation of its professional expertise in skin and hair. Its treatments draw their technical sophistication from botanical active ingredients and the mastery of nature’s chemistry, acting deeply on the tissues of the dermis and epidermis while awakening our senses through scent and the sensuousness of their textures.

We love the gentle range of rowing machines from “WaterRower”. Why this choice? In a single session on this rower, nearly 84% of the body’s muscle mass works at the same time, faithfully reproducing the motion of an oar gliding over water. Its benefits remain unrivalled when it comes to burning the maximum number of calories and making the most of your effort. Its technical sophistication, build quality and design make it a fitness machine like no other in the world.