Signor Canepa has lived by Lake Como for 45 years. His previous home was Villa del Balbiano, a 16th-century Cardinal’s palazzo, still the largest private residence directly on the lakeside. A property befitting the Canepa family name as one of the most important signatures in Como’s haute couture silk industry.
In 2011—after viewing a total of 70 other properties, he tells me—he exchanged the glitter of the lake for the quietude of seclusion on a forested hillside above the town of Como. Here stands his current residence, Il Campaccio, which now in its own time comes to market for sale.
What it’s like to live here begins when we leave the village of Capiago Intimiano and drive a one-kilometer single-track road up a tree-bedecked hill to where even Google Maps do not intrude. And we arrive at the entrance to an estate of 23.5 acres. (How big is that? A quarter the size of the Vatican City).
The enormous grounds and gardens are filled by avenues with planned perspectives, lawns, paths, native vegetation. Over 600 glowing camellia and rhododendron bushes were planted by Sig. Canepa himself. Mature trees donate an encyclopedia of species, including the regional pines and chestnuts planted on instruction of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria in the 1700s.
A tennis court, a swimming pool, a football field with a wooden clubhouse merge into the landscape waiting to be discovered on one of a hundred strolls. Diversion isn’t really the point of Il Campaccio though (campaccio, depending who you ask, is either a ‘rough field’ or a highly regarded Super Tuscan red wine). The point is being absorbed into the natural beauty and the priceless peace and quiet of this privileged spot.
We’re a mere 40 minutes from Milan’s Malpensa airport and 30 minutes from the town of Como, full of tourists of course but also a lively local life of Lombardy charm. Yet up here hardly a sound infiltrates the noble trees that surround the estate.
The villa itself is basically a village. Beside the three-story, 9-bed, 11-bath, 1,900-square-meter (20,450 square feet) main property sit good houses for the gardener, the caretaker, various garages, even a small consecrated church. Views give down into Como and across the lake.
Designed in 1950, the property benefited from a complete collaborative renovation in 2013 by noted Milan architect Matteo Thun & Partners, a regular fixture on the AD100 list. Their reputation for engineering advanced green technologies into older buildings has created a sustainable living model of A-class energy efficiency, future-proofing the villa for its new owner.
Practically every room is lit by floor-to-ceiling windows. Terraces and balconies abound. Enormous stone fireplaces wait for winter.
The surprise for potential buyers seeking a large secluded property in Italy may be that these modern technical touches extend into the interior design. The typical dark heritage furniture, thick woven upholstery and heraldic nooks that characterize ancient palazzos are not present here.
Instead, walls have been removed so rooms float into other rooms following a bright and spacious open-plan design. Walls are painted a subdued, warm matte texture, grounded by a continuous through-run of polished walnut flooring and paneling. Practically every room is lit by floor-to-ceiling windows or wide, open glass doors. Terraces and balconies abound. Enormous stone fireplaces wait for winter.
Sig. Canepa’s move from Como’s lakeside throng to this hillside retreat has brought immeasurable pleasures. In this vast verdant hideaway, fresh cooling air and birdsong prove that privacy is present from dawn to dusk. A new owner will soon find the same.
Il Campaccio is on the market for €28,000,000 (around $32.5 million), represented by Forbes Global Properties member agency Majeli Vassart Properties. Forbes Global Properties is the exclusive real estate partner of Forbes.