Last month, I bumped into a hotel in Yountville, CA called the Bardessono (www.bardessono.com/), which was being touted as the greenest hotel in the US. Self-proclaimed claims by hotels of being greener than a drunk and painted Irishman on St. Patrick’s Day isn’t anything new to me, so I thought maybe they’re just hyping it up.

But then I find that Toyota is holding their 2010 Toyota Prius media avail at the Bardessono. If Toyota thinks that it’s eco-friendly image will get a boost by staging the launch of a new car at this hotel, then surely there must be some fire behind all the smoke.

Turns out the Bardessono Inn and Spa, and their restaurant, has opened a new chapter not only for Yountville hotels, but also set a new bar for every wannabe green hotel aspiring to offer eco-friendly Nirvana for travelers.

Developer Phil Sherburne is aiming for Platinum LEED Certification, but the undercurrent which I got is that it’s not just about getting certified and then using that as a marketing tool. The thing is that these people genuinely believe in pushing eco-friendliness as far as they can take it.

And it shows up - in the 82 geothermal wells which heat and cool the place, powered by 900 photovoltaic solar cells. The 62 guest suites have furnishings made from steel and reclaimed wood, along with ultra-modern energy saving gizmos like motion sensors to detect room occupancy and motor-controlled venetian drapes. The fountains outside are made from elemental materials. Chef Sean O’Toole’s restuarant makes use of the area’s most esteemed organic gardeners and sustainable fisheries. Most of the building materials have been locally sourced within a 100 miles of Yountville.

“Everything at Bardessono, from the building materials to the foods we serve, will create a connection between our guests and the earth,” says Phil Sherburne. But it’s not just about the numbers and the science of being environmentally conscious. There’s several other aspects which set the Bardessono apart from the previous generation of LEED certified green hotels like San Francisco’s Orchard Garden Hotel.

For starters, anyone who sets eyes on the luxurious Bardessono with a 75 ft rooftop swimming pool, in-room air-jetted soaking tubs, spa butlers and suites which double as a private spa, will forever give up the notion that staying at a green hotel involves some kind of sacrifice or inconvinience. In fact, Sherburne says that he intends for his idea of 21st century luxury to erase any notion that being green involves wearing a sack-cloth coat.  He believes the highly personal nature of Bardessono hospitality may be nurturing and restorative. 

Secondly, they have taken great care to ensure that the entire project meshes seamlessly with the surrounding environment and culture in Yountville. They asked for, and incorporated, suggestions and feedback from locals. Bardessono architect Ron Mitchell says that it “captures the colors of Yountville.”

The resort is located in Napa Valley’s “walking village” of Yountville on the 6-acre, 80-year old Bardessono family homestead. The Bardessono family came to the wine country from Italy and retain ownership of the land and reside adjacent to the hotel.

Places like the new site of the California Academy of Sciences have previously achieved this kind of an eco-friendly mind-meld with the surroundings, but as far as I know, the Bardessono is the first hotel I know of which has done this. Which is why I won’t dispute their claim to be the greenest hotel in the United States.

Info: 6526 Yount Street Yountville, CA 94599; Tel: (707) 204 6000; Reservations: (877) 932 5333; www.bardessono.com/; Photo credit - Sam Todd Dyess, courtesy Studio-707.

Posted on March 18th, 2009 by PLing
Filed under: Hotels, Spa Vacations, Sustainable Travel