Val d'Arno, Tuscany
Property 5439
14 Guests
8 Bedrooms
6.5 Bathrooms
1,660 square meters indoor
12 Hectares outdoor
Villa di Malmantile is a stately paradise of relaxed elegance, a true villa and a much-enjoyed private home that has again come alive under the watchful eye of an owner who appreciates the fine balance between old and new, refined and rustic. This is a house that welcomes all in a way that is sincerely generous and easily appreciated.
The setting of Villa di Malmantile offers guests the desirable but elusive combination of extensive, private and well-equipped grounds, with the pleasure of being able to walk to a village for coffee and the paper. The grounds themselves are a delight, offering diverse pleasures. The entrance is through a formal allee of cypress trees and lavender, fragrant and colorful all through the summer, with the olive grove beyond. Then come the woods, shady and cool with tall lecchi trees. These evolved naturally into a woodland hillside, with a network of immaculately kept footpaths meandering through the woods, this way and that, permitting a walk of some 30 minutes or more. At the lower reaches of the property is a stream with two waterfalls. Adjacent to the house is the tennis court and the lovely pool area, set in a lawn with olive trees boxed in with low rosemary hedges.
This is a house very well designed for really living and enjoying the property. What is now the pool house was once where the washing was done. The water comes up from below through an ingenious system of pipes that supplied the original cistern. Today, it is a beautifully appointed Provençal style cottage with full kitchen, changing room and bathroom. If you look closely at the rough stone floors you can see where the water once rose into the washing basins. A very wide and deep covered pergola forms an outdoor living and dining room large enough and amply furnished for sixteen people to enjoy a day al fresco. The pool is set off in the surrounding lawn, studded with handsome olive trees, each surrounded by fragrant rosemary. This is an ideal layout for those with children.
The villa itself is a true example of Florentine design from the Renaissance, square and imposing, with a formal entrance stair bringing you immediately to the Piano Nobile. The owner has a fine sensibility and has balanced the strong lines of the villa, restored and painted a characteristic shade of orangy-yellow, with the intentionally rustic finish on the lower wall. This is a detail that imparts a quality of authenticity and binds the elegant and stress-free living of a vacation in such a villa, to the verdant and productive land which spawned it. Surrounding the house is a gravel courtyard leading to the formal Italianate garden complete with fish swimming in a fountained pool, and beds of flowering annuals and potted lemon trees. Those who seek a refined vacation villa, and appreciate and welcome attentive service, will be well satisfied with all Villa di Malmantile offers.
The position of Villa di Malmantile is ideal for those who want to explore Tuscany and be in easy reach of Florence and Chianti as it offers a private and gracious setting in a central and easily reached position to the west of Florence. Once a reasonable carriage ride away, the villa is now served by train that takes you to Santa Maria Novella in 14 minutes. Add the five minute drive from the villa, and the convenience of ample parking at the local train station, and an outing to Florence can be enjoyed in any format - a day of visiting museums, a concert or dinner out or to simply enable young guests to enjoy the more diverse offerings of a city without forcing others to give up the tranquility of a country house.
Taking the quiet local paved roads also brings you to Cerbaia and San Casciano in Val di Pesa within 20 minutes or so. From here, you can take the Raccordo south to Siena, or continue on the local roads to explore the well-known Chianti hill towns; San Gimignano, Monteriggioni, Castellina in Chianti, Panzano and beyond. Lucca, Arezzo and the spa town of Montecatini Terme are also within easy range for a day trip.
Price information available upon request.
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© February 2012 by Homebase Abroad, Ltd. All rights reserved.