Introduction
The Devon Wine School is just a wonderful place to stay and enjoy good wine and
food, with 5 very comfortable en-suite double rooms named after 5 villages in
the Beaujolais wine region, all offering Gold Award 5 Star VisitBritain
accommodation. There is even a hard tennis court to offset all possible
indulgences.
The School, run by Master of Wine Alastair Peebles and
his wife Carol, is in a slightly forgotten but delightfully rural spot between
Exmoor and Dartmoor, just 10 miles north of Exeter and 25 minutes from the
Tiverton Junction 27 of the M5.
The 17th century farmhouse sits in the middle of 3
acres in absolute tranquillity, with no near neighbours. The school, connected
to the barn, has a stunning open plan dining and lecture room with lovely
wooden floors and leather chesterfields in front of the wood burning stove,
with 2 bedrooms on the 1st floor. The adjacent Old Dairy has just
been converted into 3 very comfortable en-suite bedrooms, giving the total of 5.
The school offers fun tastings, midweek suppers and a
range of lunches and dinners, with some very special weekend and midweek deals
when you come and stay with us. Devon Wine School is an Approved Programme Provider
for the Wine & Spirit Education Trust’s internationally recognised wine
trade qualifications at Intermediate and Advanced Levels.
All the tastings and courses are a thoroughly relaxed
way to explore the great diversity to be found in wines from around the world. The
Tastings and Lunches, which are limited to a maximum of 10 people, also make
terrific presents.
Jonathan Ray of the Daily Telegraph
identified the Devon Wine School as one of the top 10 places in the UK to learn more about wine.
Pre-Arrival
You can get in touch with us by telephone, e-mail or mail. Details are:
The Devon Wine School,
Redyeates Farm
Cheriton Fitzpaine
Crediton
Devon
EX17 4HG
Telephone: 01363 866742
E-mail: alastair@devonwineschool.co.uk
Web: www.devonwineschool.co.uk
Directions of how to get to us:
From bitter experience, it is much safer to use the directions below as you
get closer to us, rather than relying on satnav which is likely to abandon you
in a local field.
From M5, via Tiverton (allow 25 to 30 minutes)
Take exit 27 off the M5. Follow signs to Tiverton on A361 dual carriageway.
Take the exit to Tiverton and follow signs for A396 Bickleigh. Follow this road
to Bickleigh, past the Trout Pub on your right and just before the bridge turn
right past the Fisherman’s Cot, signed to Crediton.
Go over the little bridge and then immediately turn right to Cadeleigh. Follow
this road up through Cadeleigh and straight out the other side for 3 or so
minutes till you come to a left turn called Postbox Cross, signed to Cheriton
Fitzpaine.
Turn left and follow this single track road
as it bears sharply to the left down the hill, keeping on it all the way until
you come to a crossroads called Redyeates Cross (approx 10 minutes). Turn
right, signed Way Village, and we are 100 yards on the left, down the end of
the track.
From Exeter (allow 25 minutes)
Come out of Exeter on the A377 Crediton Road. Go through Cowley, with the
garden centre and BP garage on your left, into the 40 limit, then take the
first right signed to Langford and Shute. Follow this road through Langford
until you come to a junction with a house facing you. Turn left then
IMMEDIATELY right, go through Shute and then Efford, continue straight on up
over the hill and down the other side until you come to the main
Crediton-Bickleigh road (the A3072).
Go straight across, follow the road past the farm shop on your right until you
come to a right turn by a thatched cottage, signed to Way Village. Turn right
and follow this road up the hill until you come to another crossroads. Go
straight across, down the hill and up the other side until you come to a
crossroads called Redyeates Cross on the brow of a hill. Go straight ahead and
we are 100 yards on the left, down the end of the track.
From Crediton (allow 20 minutes)
Come out of Crediton on the A3072 to Tiverton/Bickleigh. After approximately 3
miles, you will come to a crossroads called Coffin Tree Cross. Turn left to
Cheriton Fitzpaine, there is also a sign to Thorne’s Farm. Follow the road past
the farm shop on your right until you come to a right turn by a thatched
cottage, signed to Way Village. Turn right and follow this road up the hill
until you come to another crossroads. Go straight across, down the hill and up
the other side until you come to a crossroads called Redyeates Cross on the
brow of a hill. Go straight ahead and we are 100 yards on the left, down the
end of the track.
From South Molton (allow 40 minutes)
The quickest way is usually via Tiverton, see above. If you would like the more
scenic route, take the B3137 to Witheridge, then towards Tiverton. 4 miles
after Witheridge, turn right to Pennymoor, then follow signs to Poughill
(pronounced Poyle),
from Poughill follow signs to Cheriton
Fitzpaine. After a mile and before you get to Cheriton Fitzpaine, take left
turning to Coddiford, follow this road for 1 mile to Redyeates Cross
crossroads. Turn left and we are 100 yards on the left down the end of the
track.
Our closest railway station with a good service is Exeter St Davids, some 20
minutes drive away. With prior notice, we can arrange collection and return.
We have a very good local taxi firm called Arrow Cars, telephone number 01363
777714. Local bus service is too infrequent to recommend.
We have good shopping in Crediton (15 minutes away by car) and Tiverton (20
minutes away by car).
We do not have any disabled facilities in the school because of the steps and
design of our building, but we do have disabled access by ramp to the recently
converted Old Dairy which is separate single storey building some 30 feet from
the front entrance of the school.
Arrival & Car Parking Facilities
· There is a sign by the road, which is lit at night. Access to the school is down a 500 yard single track non-tarmac lane, but with a good even surface.
· As you arrive, you will see the farmhouse and barn, where the school is located, in front of you. Drive past the farmhouse and around the back of the barn, where there is a parking sign.
· We have ample parking for 6 to 8 cars on our level gravel drive.
· There is lighting in the car park and over the front door at night.
· When you arrive, you will see the Old Dairy, a separate single storey building with three bedrooms, accessed by a ramp.
· For reception and booking in, you will need to come to the main building, the school itself. Access is a short walk across our gravel parking area and up 4 wide steps formed from cement paving stones.
· We see it as part of our service to carry your luggage in, which we can do once we have you safely booked in.
Main Entrance, Reception & Ticketing Area
· Rooms are normally available from 4.00PM, but as we live on the premises, we are flexible and with notice are able to welcome you at a mutually convenient time.
· The main entrance is reached by 4 steps from the car park - the step widths from bottom to top are 15 feet, 13.5 feet, 10.5 feet and 7 feet respectively and the height of each step is 6 inches.
· You will be welcomed in the car park or at the front door which is side hung and is 2 feet 8 inches wide. Once inside, there is a small hall with a table with brochures with details of local interest, a chair but we have no formal reception area.
· You will be taken from the hall through a very short corridor 3' 2 wide and doorway 2' 6 wide to our wine room to register. Once signed in, we will show you the ground floor layout.
· Our office, the wine room and the downstairs cloakroom are all at the same level and are accessed from the entrance hall. Access to the dining and sitting areas is through the wine room. The dining area is reached from the wine room by 2 steps up 4'11 wide and 7 high, leading through double doors of the same width, which are normally kept open.
· From the dining room there is access through double doors to our terrace which is at the same level as the dining room.
· Access to the sitting area with its log burner is down 5 steps each 4' 4” wide and 7” high, with a handrail down the left hand side.
Public Areas - Hall, Stairs, Landing, Corridors etc.
· Floors in the hall, downstairs cloakroom, our office and wine room areas are a high quality oak laminate, with a Persian rug in the hall. The dining area and sitting room have a wood floor with Persian rugs, the 5 steps down to the sitting area from the dining area are also wood.
· Lighting throughout is a combination of spot, recessed, side lights and wall lights. There is safety lighting which comes on in the event of a power cut.
· Heaven for some, hell for others, the mobile telephone reception here is very poor. Our guests are welcome to give our telephone number 01363 866742 as a contact point. We are also happy for our guests to use the phone for quick UK calls.
· Access to the 2 bedrooms on the 1st floor of the school is by staircase only. There are 4 steps to a small landing, then a 90 degree turn to the left, then 1 step to the second landing, a 90 degree turn to the left and 4 steps to the 1st floor. The width of the staircase is 2' 8” and the height of each step is 8 inches. The steps are carpeted and there is an oak handrail the whole way on the left side as you go up.
· There are 3 further bedrooms in the single storey Old Dairy, which is approximately 30’ from the front door of the school, across the gravel car park.
· Access to the Old Dairy is by ramp from the car park. The ramp is 4’ wide and 8’ 6” in length, leading to a flat area outside the double doors measuring 5’ by 4’ and approximately 1’ above the car park level. The ramp and area outside the entrance doors is surrounded by a dwarf retaining wall. To enter the Old Dairy, there are 2 sets of double doors at right angles to the ramp and both sets open inwards. Between the two sets of doors there is a small hall measuring 4’ deep by 7’ wide, with a matting floor. Each door measures 1’ 11” wide, providing a total access width of 3’ 9” when both pairs of doors are opened.
· The 3 rooms are off a 4’ wide corridor, with laminate flooring and a Persian runner rug. There are no steps within the Old Dairy. The bedroom doors and doors from the bedrooms to the en-suite bathrooms are all side hung and are 2’ 9” wide.
· All 3 rooms have access to the garden. Saint Amour has double doors each measuring 1’11” wide and providing an exit width of 3’9” when both are opened, going out onto a small gravelled terrace surrounded by a dwarf wall. Fleurie and Moulin-à-Vent have single doors, each 2’9” wide, leading out to the garden, with a small step down to a gravel path.
Public Areas - Sitting room, lounges, lobbies etc
· We have a ground and first floor in the wine school. We do not have any lifts. Our floors in the hall, downstairs cloakroom, our office and wine room areas are a high quality oak laminate, with a Persian rug in the hall. The dining area and sitting room have a wood floor with Persian rugs, the 5 steps down to the sitting area from the dining area are also wood.
· We have a loo downstairs with a small hand basin.
· Lighting throughout is a combination of spot, recessed, side lights and wall lights. We have safety lighting on the ground and 1st floor which will come on in the case of a power cut, but these are mercifully rare.
· Access to our 2 bedrooms on the 1st floor is by staircase only and both are off the same small landing. There is also a door with a hot cupboard behind and a further door for a small twin bedroom.
Public Areas - Restaurant / Dining Room
· We offer dinner by arrangement from £29.50 per person for 3 courses. Carol is a professional cook and we offer good food using local ingredients, wherever possible.
· We are fully licensed and offer a good range of wines, beers, ciders and spirits at reasonable prices. We reserve the right to charge corkage on any wines, beers or spirits brought into the school from outside.
Outdoor Facilities
· We have a hard tennis court which is available free of charge for our guests.
Conference & Meeting Rooms, Banqueting
· Our sitting and dining areas are ideal for private parties, lunches and dinners. We can cater comfortably for 6 to 12 people.
Bedrooms & Sleeping Areas
· We have five double en-suite bedrooms, 2 are on the 1st floor of the school, 3 are in the single storey Old Dairy. All bedrooms have good quality cream fitted carpets, rugs, radio alarm clocks and TV with Freeview and DVD players. There are kettles for tea and coffee making, with a good range of teas, plus homemade biscuits.
· There is mini-fridge with jugs of fresh milk on the 1st floor landing of the school and below the mirror in the inner hall of the Old Dairy.
· The two rooms on the first floor of the school have super kingsize (6 foot x 6 foot 6 inches long) beds, one (Morgon) has an en-suite shower enclosure, basin and loo, the other (Juliénas) an en-suite bath with electric shower above, shower panel and loo.
· The three ground floor bedrooms in the Old Dairy also have super kingsize (6 foot x 6 foot 6 inches long) beds and are all en-suite. The largest, Saint Amour has 25 foot high windows, beautiful views over the local countryside, a roll top bath, separate electric shower enclosure and loo.
· The middle bedroom, Fleurie, has a separate electric shower enclosure with hand rails and loo.
· The third bedroom, Moulin-à-Vent, has an en-suite bath, with electric shower above the bath, shower panel and loo.
Bathroom, Shower-room & WCs
· Our rooms are all en-suite, see details above.
· All bathrooms have waterproof laminate flooring.
Self-Catering Kitchen
· We offer guest accommodation with breakfast and, by arrangement, lunch and dinner. We do not offer self-catering and it is not possible to bring food or drink in.
Grounds and Gardens
· We are in the centre of about 3 acres of ground, mainly lawn with orchards, which our guests are very welcome to use.
Additional Information
· We have an updated fire alarm system throughout the school and the old Dairy. The school system is also connected to the farmhouse where we live and will therefore tell us immediately if there is a problem.
· The school and Old Dairy have a back up lighting system which activates automatically in the case of a power cut.
· We have out own dogs. Guests are very welcome to bring dogs but, like our dogs, they are not allowed into the bedrooms as we do have guests who are allergic to animals and they prefer bedrooms to be allergy free. Well-behaved dogs are welcome to sleep in the hallway or wine room.
· Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the buildings.
·
We do play music quietly but this can be turned
off as required.
Our Address and contact details are as follows:
Redyeates Farm
Cheriton Fitzpaine
Crediton
Devon
EX17 4HG
Telephone: 01363 866742
Fax: 01363 866742 (by arrangement as it needs to be switched
manually)
Email: alastair@devonwineschool.co.uk
Website: www.devonwineschool.co.uk
Grid reference: CP879072
We welcome your feedback to help us improve what we do. If you have any
comments, please phone 01363 866742 or email alastair@devonwineschool.co.uk
Created: 20th July 2010