You don’t need a passport to find great rum and even better company. This summer, Vapoura’s being sipped at a few of our favourite staycation spots around the UK – places where we while away those precious days of English sunshine and switch off, eat well, and drink something decent.
These aren’t name-drops, they’re places we genuinely rate. Each one’s got its own vibe, but they all share the same attention to detail we pour into every bottle. So if you see a Vapoura Old Fashioned on the menu… order it. We’ll see you at the bar.
Founder / Staycation
Olly • The Zetter, London • A Spirited Slice of British Charm
You know when you walk into a place and immediately feel like the script’s been flipped in the best way possible? That’s The Zetter. A love letter to British eccentricity with a tastefully rebellious edge, each hotel room has its own character: part Wes Anderson set, part timeless London townhouse.
The service? If warmth were currency, they’d be outrageously wealthy. From check-in to your final espresso, the staff make you feel like a long-lost friend and do it all with a level of calm and professionalism that stands above its competitors. The kitchen delivers a menu that feels familiar but walks with a little more swagger. Elevated classics, handled with grace and confidence.
And then there’s the bar, the cocktails. This is where things go from great to “hold my glass.” Anas Behraj, the quiet genius behind Zetter’s bars, doesn’t just craft drinks, he builds moments. From concept menus to liquid alchemy, the man’s got more range than a Netflix drama. He’s created a cocktail with our Chapter Two called The Breakfast Club which you sometimes wish could be served in a pint glass. Decadent, rich but smooth at the same time and part of a very slick menu concept that I’ll leave you to discover for yourself.
Ed • Daylesford Stays, The Wild Rabbit • A place you feel, not just stay
Tucked into the calm of the Cotswolds, it offers something we too often forget to look for – stillness. It’s rural luxury done with intention: beautiful but never showy, relaxed yet refined. The rooms feel like a warm exhale, the kind of space that invites you to switch off and breathe a little deeper.
The menus are a quiet triumph – rooted in the land and led by the seasons. Every ingredient has a story, most of them beginning just a few fields away. What goes on behind its bars is no different. Sam Brown, Daylesford’s forward-thinking head of bars, has built one of the most impressive selections of boutique spirits and craft ales I’ve come across. Thoughtful choices, expertly handled.
If you find yourself at The Wild Rabbit, don’t leave without trying the Vapoura Espresso Martini. Made with the warming spice of Vapoura’s Chapter One, it’s a perfect example of what happens when craft and creativity meet.
Daylesford Stays imprints as a gentle reminder to savour more. The place, the produce, the people. It all stays with you. And after a long day exploring the beauty of The Cotswolds, you’ll find me putting my feet up with a Vapoura Old Fashioned in hand.
Ross • Babington House, Somerset • The Spirit of Vapoura, Bottled in a Place
Some places mark time. Babington House has done that for us – again and again.
Nestled in the rolling Somerset countryside, it’s not just a country house hotel, it’s a kind of refuge for us and many others. Elegant without ever trying too hard, timeless yet always evolving. For us as founders, it’s been the backdrop to some of our most pivotal moments. Big ideas, late-night decisions, our first tasting, a few wild nights… Babington has been quietly present through it all.
It embodies everything we love in a space – laidback luxury, design that feels lived in, and an atmosphere that shifts effortlessly from calm to electric. Morning swims and slow coffee turn into candlelit dinners and dance floors. It’s rural escapism, elevated with just the right amount of party. Which is probably why it’s always felt like a home for Vapoura.
The bar program, like everything here, is done with care. It’s where the Vapoura Negroni was born. That balance of bold and smooth, tradition and edge—it just fits here. There’s an alchemy between the space and what’s poured into the glass. Babington House isn’t just a setting – it’s part of the story. Of Vapoura, and of us. Winding down or just getting started, you’ll see me with a bold and smooth Vapoura Negroni.
