Relyon Somerton dunlopillo latex mattress review: A supportive pocket sprung pick

Relyon Somerton dunlopillo latex mattress design and features

Designed exclusively for Dreams, the Somerton is a traditional no-turn pocket-sprung mattress that boasts an impressive 1,122 springs for a double. Unlike a lot of brands, Dreams offers the Somerton in sizes small double and super king, along with the conventional UK bed sizes of single, double and king, scoring points on versatility. A small double bed can be a great choice for a compact guest room, and you’ll certainly want to impress your overnight guests with a high-quality, comfy mattress. Equally, it can be difficult to source a mattress to suit your super king bed without waiting weeks on a made-to-order product, so this one’s a relatively affordable “off the peg” mattress that’s available for speedy delivery for those who like to go large.

It’s worth noting that Relyon has its own on-site spring manufacturing company, as well as its own wood mill. In keeping every element of the mattress’s production in-house, the level of quality control, and the attention to detail, is reassuring. We’re promised a mix of the finest natural fillings and perfectly engineered calico (read unbleached cotton) cover the pocket springs.

The mattress is topped with a 2.5cm layer of dunlopillo latex, which offers both breathability and pressure-relieving qualities, is antibacterial and antimicrobial, meaning you can rest easy and move around in comfort. Some of the best hybrid mattresses on the market come with a top layer of innovative memory foam, which counters the firmness with cosy softness, and in many ways, the latex layer here does the same job.

In keeping with Relyon’s use of all-natural materials, the latex is sourced from the sap of rubber trees that have been responsibly grown in managed plantations around the world, awarding the Somerton points on sustainability. This one’s also traditionally tufted and boasts a luxurious Belgian damask surface.

Relyon Somerton dunlopillo latex mattress comfort and performance

Save for the plastic wrapping and corner protectors, which needed a careful cutting away, the mattress arrived pretty much ready to use. It was surprisingly easy to handle, unlike previous products we’ve bought that seemingly have minds of their own – in fact, this one proved far more civilised. The branded fabric handles on the sides are a helpful addition when you’re hoicking a large double mattress onto a bed (unless you’re built like The Hulk, the super king is definitely a two-person job).

At 26cm in depth, the Somerton made our bed a little higher than we’re used to but that only added to the luxurious feel, and we became accustomed to the loftiness in no time. For a firm, conventional pocket sprung mattress the Somerton is seriously comfortable, with no tendency to sag in the middle. Equally, there’s firm and even support when sitting on the edge of the bed. We love a firm mattress but this one never feels hard. In fact, having suffered with niggling back pain over the years, we felt our spines perfectly supported and we found that our sleep improved in no time.

The top latex layer allowed us to shift around easily, and we didn’t have any sense of the mattress feeling too hot when sleeping – even when the time came to switch to our winter duvet. The latex adds just enough softness to feel wonderfully cosy without losing any benefit of the supporting springs. We found that the mattress distributed our unequal body weights evenly and provided comfort and pressure point relief, whether we slept on our side or back. Some mattresses can be particularly uncomfortable for back sleepers so we were pleased to find our sweet spot here. And, thanks to its edge-to-edge support, the comfort is extended across the whole sleep surface.

A small detail – and one that didn’t really matter once we had the sheets on – is that the mattress is finished in a silky, soft-to-the-touch, pure white fabric that gives it a feeling of hotel-level luxury. Suffice to say, the sheets simply glide on, which allows for a more pleasurable experience when making up the bed.