Fodor's Expert Review Black Rock Inn

Owner Jeff Orlik provides his guests such a gracious, thoughtful experience that they tend to gush poetic about his suites and gourmet breakfasts but most of all his passion for ensuring a memorable time for everyone. His inn consists of four good-size suites inside a Queen Anne–style house built at the foot of Glass Mountain in the 1970s. There's also a private guesthouse. Orlik's knowledge of the local wine scene is extensive; he pairs guests with the right wineries with the same finesse with which the region's chefs pair food with wine.

YOU SHOULD KNOW It's wise to make reservations as far in advance as possible for summer weekends, which book up months ahead.

room

The landscape and the inn's facade evoke the 19th century, but the suites and the guesthouse are furnished with upscale-contemporary beds and sofas, and lamps and mirrors with distinctive designs. Topped with down comforters and fitted with 750-thread-count sheets, the beds are large and comfortable. The guesthouse, which has two bedrooms, and all the suites except one have flat-screen TVs with a good selection of channels. The alarm clocks have charging stations for phones or tablets.

The guesthouse, which sleeps six, has a full kitchen, a large whirlpool tub in one of the bathrooms, and indoor and outdoor fireplaces.

Photo: Suite 1

Photo: Suite 2

Photo: Suite 2

bathroom

Each of the suites has a different bathroom setup. One has a double shower but no tub, two have soaking tubs (one of them claw-foot), and the fourth has a spa tub with whirlpool jets. All are clean, have handsome fixtures, and are furnished with luxurious towels and bath products.

Photo: Suite 2

lobby

The main house's primary public spaces include a sunroom near the front and the dining and tasting areas. Guests often assemble in the sunroom for late-afternoon wine and cheese. An outdoor gathering spot is a gazebo behind the main house. Often in shade from the surrounding trees, it's a placid spot to sip wine and contemplate.

dining

Fresh fruit, scones, omelets and other egg dishes, home fries with onions and mushrooms, and hash with red onion and organic carrots are among the breakfast items guests swoon over. In addition to baking his own scones—including apricot-mango almond and blueberry-cherry pecan—Jeff corns his own beef, which might find its way into an egg dish or the hash.

drinking

Every afternoon, Jeff pours top-quality wines, some from his vast cellar, with the selection often based on the interests of his guests. There is no on-site bar, though.