Where to Stay in Puglia, Italy: Emera Wine Resort

After a week sailing the Greek Ionian Islands last summer with 21 friends, we ferried across the sea to Puglia, the charming heel of Italy. The first stop of our five-day Puglian road trip was Emera Wine Resort, a historic farmhouse turned “resort” located in the Torretta area. We couldn’t have chosen a better respite.

Emera Wine Resort: A Charming Puglia Must-Do

As you can imagine Island hopping with our friends meant some late nights and busy days. That’s why we ready for two days of relaxing with no real plans or itinerary. With only two suites on the property, Emera Wine Resort is quiet, secluded, and comfortable.

The Emera Wine Resort Property

We arrived at Emera Wine Resort and when we say the property is secluded, there truly was no one around. Prior to arrival, we’d received a code for the main gate and once we parked at the estate, we immediately felt lighter and ready for two days of rest.

Stepping out of your car, you’re surrounded by luscious vineyards. Guided tours of the property are available but you’ll definitely need to speak Italian. More on that later!

After a peek at the vineyards, we made our way into the front office. Isn’t the front of the building so rustic and gorgeous?

You exit the office to an expansive courtyard giving you a first peek at your home for the next few days. Since we also already had the door code for our suite, we followed the instructions, entering through the bronze gate pictured below and up the stairs to the terrace you see at the top of the photo.

The Suite

We booked the “Emera Gold Superior Suite 2” which comes with a private rooftop terrace overlooking the vineyards and a heated outdoor pool and standing outdoor shower. The door to the suite opens to this stunning view and we were immediately ready for a dip. It was July in Italy after all!

We held off a few minutes on the swim to check out the suite which turned out to be just as perfect inside as out. The sliding glass door opens to an expansive living room with a coffee station and mini fridge. In the next room is a bedroom with four-poster bed, large closet, another (yes another) coffee machine, and television. And the final room in the back is a bathroom with lots of counter space, a large walk-in shower, toilet, and bidet.

It didn’t take us long to open our welcome bottle of wine from the mini fridge and head out to the patio. For the next two days of our stay, we dipped in the water, lounged on the bean bag chairs, listened to audiobooks, and drank chilly glasses of wine.

We did have to stock up on a couple more bottles from the restaurant because the welcome bottle didn’t last long!

All About The Wine & Food at Emera Wine Resort

As mentioned, the Emera Wine Resort property is surrounded by vineyards. The website notes that Tenute Emera (tenute meaning estate) is the flagship for wine production of the Claudio Quarta Vignaiolo company. The company has another Puglian winery, Cantina Moros, about an hour from Emera, and also Cantina Sanpaolo in the Avellino region.

Early evening, we got ready and headed down to the courtyard for a bottle of wine and apertivo. Of course, the wine is delicious, but the olives at Emera are to-die-for. Seriously, I like olives OK but usually don’t feel like dealing with pits for them. Not these olives; I devoured the bowl and left a few for WC haha. I still think about them! So random, I know, but I had to mention it!

Before moving inside for dinner, we decided to stroll around the tenute (with a glass of wine in hand, of course).

Everything at Emera is seriously lovely. I will say the only difficulty you may have here is the language barrier. This is somewhat true across the Puglia region which actually doesn’t get a high number of English-speaking visitors, but we had the most challenge during our two days here. The reason why this shouldn’t deter you is the staff were all so gracious and understanding. We got by with Google Translate and – for the most part – I think we communicated most of what we wanted to!

The first night we had dinner in the Emera Wine Resort restaurant which does a nightly tasting menu with honestly so much food it was hard to keep track of. For €35 per person, we had three types of antipasti, a primo course of orecchiette, second course of meatballs, and a dessert. I don’t know if we were so engrossed in the meal or just a little tipsy, but we don’t have any photos of the meal past the antipasti course!

Plate of antipasti at Emera Wine Resort restaurant in Puglia, Italy

For breakfast each morning, resort guests (there are only two suites mind you) have access to a buffet stocked with pastries, cereals, cheese and meats, fruit, and juices. The staff also makes coffee drinks to order so we each had a morning cappuccino or espresso.

We dined alfresco on the back lawn with a view of the property and vineyards. Don’t miss out on the pistachio croissants and the fresh cherries! These were my faves.

WC enjoying breakfast on the lawn at Emera Wine Resort, Italy

Pistachio croissant at Emera Wine Resort

After breakfast, we snagged a couple bottles of wine to take back to the room and started the groundhog day of tranquility all over!

Things To Know About Emera Wine Resort

We highly recommend a few days at this hidden gem but before you go, here’s a few helpful tips:

We already mentioned the most important: language barrier. If you don’t speak Italian, definitely come with Google Translate in hand. Don’t forget to be polite and patient! You are in their country after all and they did the best to understand our needs.
There are only two guest suites on the property. If you have specific dates in mind, be sure to book in advance.
Two nights in the Suite 2 Superior cost a total of €374.30 (July 2024). Breakfast and a welcome bottle of wine is included in the cost.
Meals aren’t fast (here or anywhere in Puglia for that matter). You’re on holiday — don’t be in a rush. Relax and take it in.
Emera Wine Resort backs up to another property, Tenuta del Barco. On our second night, we had dinner at their restaurant to switch things up. It was raining that evening so we had to sit inside rather than on their patio. It was quite noisy in their restaurant and a lot of kids and very bright lighting so I will say the ambience was nothing like Emera. The meal was also more expensive but not higher quality (in our opinion).
Stairs are required to access both guest suites.
There are two winery dogs on the property that may pay you a visit. This was welcomed by us as we were missing our own puppers after nearly two weeks away from home!

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