La sangiovesa – sustainablility personified

The big and beautiful heart, soul, memory and taste of Romagna – a meal in La Sangiovesa is much, much more than a culinary experience.

You could describe Santarcangelo di Romagna is the undiluted essence of Romagna. Not only is it a thriving and historic hilltop town with its share of cobbled streets, hilltop walks and castles. Not only does it have great restaurants and larger than life characters but also it has the biggest and most colourful and least politically correct of festivals!

The city is a ‘Slow City’ but visitors won’t find anything except the wonderful food and wine slow at all!

In July the ‘Festival Internazionale del Teatro in Piazza’ takes over the historic town a wild and very upmarket festival of theatre and dance. But not just in July – there are related theatrical events all through the year.

And as a result of the town’s historic Fiera di San Michele in July – popularly known as the Fiera degli Uccelli (Birdfair)- lots and lots of tweeting birds singing (plus hundreds of local farmers and producers arrive in town displaying and selling fantastic food and wine) – of course – it’s Romagna.

And the big one – Known locally as the "Fiera dei Becchi" (Fair of the Cuckolds) the traditional ‘Fiera di San Martino’ takes over Santarcangelo mid-November and features massive horns under the triumphal arch (if they wobble when you are under it – you are a cuckold!). Naturally, too, at harvest time the fair features hundreds and hundreds of stalls selling every kind of fabulous foodstuff possible. Plus a storytelling section (learning for the long winter nights?) and a massive and well-supported competition to create the best Piadina (typical Romagna flatbread).

Against this background of festivals, food and culture, some extraordinary characters have grown up. One, in particular – a real ‘Renaissance Man’ had a sense of a Romagna as exemplified in great food and culture. And he shared this vision with a group of friends.

The idea – to create a place where the very best of all that was Romagnolo would be enjoyed, understood and extolled. Naturally as Romagnolo culture is based in the land – this place would be a restaurant.

So thought Tonino Guerra, wartime resistance hero, poet, artist and obviously bon viveur.

So where would this temple to Romagna taste be? Luckily Tonino’s friend the publisher Maggioli had recently purchased the eighteenth- century Palazzo of Count Nadiani, right in the historic centre of Santarcangelo.

Now reconstructed and renovated, the centuries- old cellars and deep caves used to store the wine and food of the Nadiani family.

The massive palace was ideal and here you will now find the best of Romagna food and wine, culture and art.

Even to the extent that Tonino Guerra, an admirer of historic Austrian ceramic stoves, brought the concept to the restaurant, redesigned them and covered them in mosaics – so works of art even in the restaurant’s heating.

In this warm exemplar of Romagna what else can you do other to eat, drink and talk with joy!

And we did on a recent visit to a restaurant.

Our antipasta was sublime – after an amuse- bouche, we shared a starter which included a massive platter of cold meats (including Mora Romagnola – local pork) and salamis cured in the slaughterhouse of the restaurant’s own Tenuta Saiano estate http://www.tenutasaiano.it/en  with delicious cheeses created there too – naturally with confit figs and ‘Savor’ – a typical sweet local condiment. With, of course totally perfect piadine.(local flatbread)

As a perfect accompaniment to the piadine, we were served delicious fresh, soft Squacquerone cheese, plus a cheese made in the Taleggio style with goat’s milk and cow’s milk, which were delicious with the seasoned sausages and coppa di testa (perfect slices of cured pig’s head)

Naturally a glass or two of Sangiovese (the local rich red wine) started the conversation!

Moving on to more local specialities – two pastas – a very local Cappelletti in a capon broth was perfect, rich, warm and scented of the countryside. This came with a portion of traditional Romagnolo Strozzapreti (‘Strangled Priest’ pasta) with a little cinnamon in the making and a rather unusual but delicious sauce of rabbit and artichoke.

Our main courses were of Guancia di Vitello (veal cheek) on a bed of spinach and other strong aromatic greens – a rich and comely mixture of the sweet succulent meat and the slightly bitter vegetables. And a speciality of chef Massimiliano Mussoni – his legendary Trippa di Vitello (veal tripe), perfect, rich, subtly tender and spiced to perfection.

Finally the selection of desserts included a ricotta cheesecake, two superb fruit tarts and a whole bowl of gelato from the Sangiovesa’s artisan gelato range, naturally with perfect ‘Langues de chat’.

Service was informed, warm and friendly and typically Romagnola, but from a warm local Sardinian!

What more can you say? The best of Romagna food on a plate, the best of Romagna wine in a glass and the best of Romagna ambiance, art and culture all around. A vision of total Romagna come true in a very special restaurant.

http://www.sangiovesa.it/

Further information at http://www.bestofromagna.com

Valere Tjolle

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