On the market: Villa well suited to spectacular waterfront setting

The drive down Fairfield Beach Road is familiar enough to those local residents who love the water -- until one turns into the driveway at No. 487. It's like taking a shortcut to Italy's Mediterranean coast.

Okay, so Long Island Sound doesn't have crystal-blue waters. But it does have a beauty all its own, which can be viewed from many rooms and balconies of this Mediterranean-style house called Villa Re.

The 6,759-square-foot house sits on a 0.53-acre gated property, with 83 feet of waterfront, and offers a refined beach lifestyle with proximity to shops, trains, restaurants and schools.

The side closest to the road features stone walled garden beds around the circular driveway, and the water side has stone walkways to the beach, a pebbled sitting area, and a large veranda, which allows for private relaxing and entertaining despite its proximity to the water and beach. Although the public can walk by, the house sits above the main beach, with a sea wall protecting its privacy. It also has its own private section of beach.

The house was built in 2007 to Federal Emergency Management Agency standards and it withstood a major test in October 2012 when Superstorm Sandy devastated the eastern seaboard. Construction features include Andersen coastal impact resistant windows and doors, Low "E" insulated windows -- 150 mph wind and debris proof -- and a foundation with 48 wood piles and reinforced concrete and steel beam to support 15-to-16-foot raised first floor.

And there is a lot worth protecting inside: A 6,000-bottle temperature-controlled wine cellar and cork room with a barrel ceiling and four arched wine chambers on either side, spacious chef's kitchen with a logically organized cook line and wrap-around granite counter, radiant heated porcelain tile floors throughout most of the first floor, and a butler's pantry that doubles as a coffee room. It has a built-in Miele espresso/cappuccino coffee center with warming drawers, Italian porcelain tile flooring, cherry cabinetry, granite counters, wet bar, and a dumb waiter that goes from the ground level to the third floor nautical observatory.

The observatory has lacquered oak flooring and ceiling, and an arched doorway that opens to a rooftop terrace with terra-cotta tile decking.

The stately front entrance features a glass-paned, classical arched mahogany door into the gallery entrance hall. The first-floor great room and colonnaded formal dining room both have a 10-foot mahogany coffered ceiling. The great and formal sunken living rooms share a two-sided "see-through" stucco and Travertine fireplace.

Kitchen features include tumbled marble backsplash, pot filler and granite-topped center island. Appliances include a paneled Sub-Zero refrigerator and two freezer drawers, Viking six-burner gas range with griddle, and Bosch dishwasher.

The large covered veranda has porcelain tile decking, classical balustrades, mahogany ceiling and steps down to the summer terrace, and stone walkways to the lawn and beach. The veranda is accessed from the great room and sunroom.

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On the market: Villa well suited to spectacular waterfront setting