The use of marble in Sorbetto is a masterstroke. It cools down the air, providing respite from the hot, dry Milanese summers, as well as giving it a sense of brightness and clarity. There’s also a decent balcony, which might not be huge but looks out into the trees beside the house and adds to the feeling of calm. It is, however, important to be aware that Sorbetto isn’t very central. It’s well-connected by the metro, but getting anywhere on foot will take at least half an hour.

Home truths:
*When we visited, the wi-fi was a bit patchy and we could only get 6Mbps
*There's a metro station nearby but it's too far to get to the centre of Milan on foot