Juicy pickings at Blackberry Cottage offers plenty food for thought

WOODS inside and outside distinguish Blackberry Cottage.

Built 10 years ago, this brick-faced dormer home is set in a dense, private woodland off the Crosshaven/Carrigaline road in Co Cork, It’s a scheme of serviced sites called Brookwood.

And, as the house name suggests, its rear boundaries each summer are a jam factory in waiting: fruit-bearing brambles are on the encroaching move from farmland behind, literally food-to-go.

Now all fully developed with about 10 houses delivered, Brookwood itself is about to get that final badge that says ‘exclusivity, we’ve arrived’ – electronic gates at the development’s entrance.

The setting here is of course the star, mature mixed woodland of mostly deciduous trees, which means you have water views in winter, when trees are bare, and encroaching cloaks of green in summer.

Brookwood’s sites look over the estuary towards the large Colmore estate, and in fact it is from that estate sumptuous woods such as ash and maple were harvested for floorboards in this family home.

As floorboards, they jump out for attention over and above mass-produced brand name stuff, full of warmth and character. They set a bit of a quality tone in the interiors, matched by other hardwoods such as teak joinery, stairs and doors, and by kitchen units in Windor pine, as well as a pitch pine feature (decorative only) beam in the kitchen, salvaged from Greenmount school in Cork city.

Blackberry Cottage, with some 2,200 sq ft of living space on 1.1 acres of woodland grounds and lawns and elevated decking is a new market arrival with Johnny O’Flynn of Sherry FitzGerald, who asks €730,000 for the chance to be its second occupants.

The vendors, here from day one, are trading down, with an eye to buying in Crosshaven and their house is traditionally built, by Crowley builders of Midleton, with an exterior that is virtually maintenance free. The colours, brown brick, dark dash, wood-grain pvc double glazing, brown roof tiles and dark fascias and soffits, all blend the house into its sloping, rich greenery site.

Inside, this is a four-bedroom detached property, with a southerly aspect, very well kept and with loads of space for an active family to colonise: the site’s mature trees have several examples of swings and rope challenges dangling from them.

Although the site is fairly large, there’s not that much upkeep, however, as the wild woodland look suits and has been worked with, not against, while the more tamed side lawn section is overlooked from the back of the house, from an elevated stand-alone deck, looking vaguely maritime with stainless steel tensioned wires between its rails.

Rooms include study/small playroom, sitting room with bay window and fireplace, kitchen/dining with family room off, good utility and guest WC. There’s a ground floor en suite bedroom.

Overhead are three bedrooms, one with a west facing seat, plus a big walk-in hotpress.