Villa René Lalique: crystalline enchantment

This vast, half-timbered residence, typical of Alsatian architecture, was built in 1920 by René Lalique on the outskirts of Wingen-sur-Moder. The 61-year-old Art Nouveau giant lived here with his family to oversee the glassworks he had just set up in the Vosges mountains. Here, he creates his typical Art Deco vases, chandeliers, fountains and perfume bottles. Rehabilitated by Lady Tina Green and Pietro Mingarelli, the Villa Lalique now houses a 5-star hotel and a 2-star Michelin Guide gourmet restaurant behind its blue shutters. It is surrounded by six hectares of parkland, with chestnut, birch, beech and hydrangea trees.

Each suite expresses an aspect of René Lalique's genius. The sixth, Zeila, pays tribute to the panther motif created in 1989 by his granddaughter, Marie-Claude Lalique. All are adorned with bespoke furniture, designed by the design duo and often lacquered beige, black or ebony in pure Art Deco style. The Masques de Femme, Hirondelles, Rose and Dragon suites feature crystal pieces. In the bathroom of the "Dahlia" room, glass flower inlays recall that glass was originally René Lalique's favorite material. His credo is evident everywhere: "Better the search for beauty than the display of luxury...".

Paul Stradner's new menu is characterized by a true devotion to nature. His pared-down, precise and boldly minimalist dishes follow in the footsteps of Jean-Georges Klein. The signature potato and truffle cappuccino is still on the menu. Marinated vegetables, cured ham and mint accompany salmon trout and pike-perch, while frogs are served with tomatoes and coriander seeds. The chef makes a nod to his origins by accompanying tagine-style lamb with dampfnudel. A 100% vegetarian version is also available. As for pastry chef Nicolas Multon, he plunges into the heart of the Northern Vosges with sweets such as clafoutis-inspired Kriegsheim cherries with notes of woodruff and stone juice.

Architect Mario Botta designed a glass temple with a green roof, supported by Vosges sandstone columns. Thanks to large bay windows, hydrangeas, birches and spruces from the park join in the feast for the senses. The restaurant is a showcase for the very best of French art across the ages: carafes developed by Lalique with leading houses in the bar window, satin-finished Bacchante vases on consoles. Under a cascade of Windfall chandeliers, each table displays a pepper and salt shaker designed by the master in 1924, napkin rings inlaid with Masque de Femme crystal pieces, and glasses designed for Lalique in 2012 by wine critic James Suckling.

Romain Iltis, surrounded by two sommeliers, is in charge of the cellar, which boasts some 60,000 references, one of the finest in Europe. He unveils a wine book dating back to 1865. It's rare to see such a treasure on display for all to see! Access to the cellar is via a corridor decorated with 14 Lalique crystal panels by artist Damien Hirst. Romain Iltis is keen to discover the young winemakers who will become tomorrow's greats, and knows how to create food and wine pairings that bring out the aromatic complexity of each.

A sandstone mountain teeming with springs, the Vosges massif has always attracted glassmakers, providing them with sand, water and wood. Master glassmaker and jeweler René Lalique moved here in 1920 to freeze nature's undulations in transparency. He haunted the undergrowth shrouded by the "dame blanche", the thick mist of the massif, and experimented here with all the possibilities of glass, sculpted into monumental fountains or delicate flasks. A few kilometers from the Villa Lalique, the Musée Lalique is housed in the former hall of the Lalique glassworks. Here you can admire grandiose works such as a three-metre-high "pine cone" chandelier, as well as the world's largest collection of Lalique perfume bottles. Villa René Lalique is 35 km by train and 15 minutes by helicopter from Strasbourg.