Looking out onto a floodlit Duomo, Brunelleschi’s famous dome and arguably the most prominent symbol of Tuscany, streaks of magnificent, curvaceous, white and ochre hues frame a royal blue, warm, October sky. We are on the top floor of recently opened five star La Gemma, a new addition to the last word in luxury accommodation in the beautiful Italian city of Florence.
A well-kept secret, like her etymology of ‘jewel or precious stone’, La Gemma’s cosy rooftop terrace, only accessible to hotel residents, is a cool escape away from bustling streets below, while still affording views onto the city as her nightlife revs into extended summer action. We sip on glasses of chilled Tenuta Montenisa Franciacorta, Italy’s answer to Champagne, from the hills that roll above in the country’s most northerly province of Lombardy. The winery is owned by Marchesi Antinori, a well-known noble family who have made vinous home and history in Florence since 1385.
A little way over from the famous wine family’s Piazza, this building is owned by a more-recently arrived, seemingly equally-ambitious family – the Cecchis. Their background, in fashion, is now fronted by hospitality, tucked away in neighbouring Via dei Cavalieri, aptly named after Knights whose temperament is perhaps reflected in the service experienced here.
Gold-framed doors welcome guests into this beautifully adorned Renaissance-era building that speaks of sleek modernity within a more classical setting. Once inside, the colour scheme of this hotel, opened last year, is the first thing to grab anyone’s attention. Decorated in a prism of deep velvet greens and ceramic pinks, the overall aesthetic has been designed to reflect the colour of the Duomo’s impressive body – the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral itself, stealing artistic licence from her stunning white, pink and green grades of Carrara, Prato and Sienese marble.
Once inside we are guided upstairs towards the intimate cocktail bar for a welcome drink where the colour follows us not only in the shades of the walls, the plush gold footed seats, chequered marble flooring and table tops, but also in the signature drinks. Choosing from a list that provides locally sourced libations, our dextrous head bartender offers us a gin-based cocktail made with ginger beer and matcha tea – a refreshing sour-styled tipple topped with crystallised lime, quenching our thirsts. This chromatic introduction mirrors an innate artistry, found further in each of the communal rooms here, as much as deeply intertwined within the city itself.
Transported further north in a renovated elevator that is expectedly, traditionally slim, we arrive to the top floor of the hotel where the most ritzy of the 39 bedrooms are to be found. We cross the threshold into our suite-petite sitting room, complete with original sloping whitewashed wooden ceilings, and wallpaper of jungle or oasis motif, adorned with parrots, eagles and great ferns. A proper Faber, gold espresso machine sits adjacent to the sofa-side ‘bar’ offering coconut rum liqueur to continue the tropical notes, Italian Angiolini chocolates, a further array of Tuscany’s best wines and a bottle of Peter-in-Florence Gin – a London Dry, distilled in a Tuscan farmhouse, so the label tells us.
Two large bedrooms lie between a compact internal terrace, complete with large stripy cushions and a wide opening onto the sky. If you hold your phone aloft your head, shorter guests will be rewarded with a view. Away from the steamy streets, we chose to bury our noses instead into the fashion books that sit on glass shelves, and the array of superior scented Votary toiletries – a british brand, bathed in yet more glowing green, set up by former makeup artist and entrepreneur duo Arabella Preston and Charlotte Semier. The spacious gold and white marble bathrooms are an additional luxury feature, designed by Devon & Devon with ceramics by Gio Ponti; elegant yet practical.
Culinary delights at La Gemma are served in Luca’s Ristorante, tucked away beside the bar on the first floor. With a large window allowing beady eyes into the kitchen, you can watch authentic dishes being prepared by Italo-Argentine, much-Michelin-star-rated Head Chef Paulo Airaudo. Tonight we sample Tartare di Chianina, Carpaccio di Gamberi, Spaghettone and Calamarata pasta, followed by fish of the day, and then a rich and creamy Panna Cotta, all served by our waiter from Iran who is here to study Computer Science.
We sample a Le Macchiole’s ‘Paleo’ white wine from the list, one of Bolgheri (another sub zone of Tuscany)’s most applauded, while another famous Italian wine family’s olive oil, Laudemio, sits on our table from Marchesi Frescobaldi. Breakfast the following day is served with similar gusto – where menus guide your choices between ‘Eggs or Charcuterie’ alongside fresh fruit, cornetti (croissants) and cups of indispensable Italian caffè.
Not quite yet open at the time of visiting, the hotel also now boasts an Allure Spa, located in the cellars of the building, offering massages, facials and other indulgent treatments using Biologique Recherche products to be enjoyed before or after time in the hydro pool and saunas.
For a city so rich in practically everything, La Gemma stands firm as a modern jewel in a Renaissance era crown.
For more information about La Gemma Hotel, including details of the Golden Key Club and Bespoke Offers, please visit www.lagemmahotel.com.
