From the splendid and elegant Piazza del Popolo in Ravenna, head towards Via Cairoli. Go down the road and after a short distance, before meeting Via Guido da Polenta, you will find Ca ’de Vén.
This place, a few dozen steps from Dante's tomb, is much more than a simple wine bar; it is a welcoming home, a place where the oenological history of this land takes place at the table together with the guests. If you are looking for a place to start to discover the great wines of Romagna, well, that place is certainly Ca 'de Vén.
We met Rita Manzillo and Maria Grazia Guidi, owners of the wine shop and true genius loci of the place and, perhaps, of the whole of Romagna.
Rita, Maria Grazia, let's start with the last question that is usually asked, and that is: why should a person choose to come from Ca 'de Vèn?
M - Let's start by saying that when it comes to clubs, the thing that matters is to satisfy the sight, smell and tastes of the customers. Here, Ca 'de Vèn is a place that conquers all three, starting right from the glance you get when you enter, to get to the service and cuisine we offer.
R - I tell you that when one enters here he finds cordiality, kindness, welcome and then we try to make him feel good when he is at the table. Ah, and then the quality and the Romagna passion. Here you can eat traditional Romagna cuisine and drink Romagna wines. We have 142 producers that cover the whole of Romagna, from Imola to Rimini.
In short, you have distilled Romagna in here.
R - Boy, this is a piece of Romagna. A piece of Romagna created by a Romagna, a Rasponi, at the end of the fifteenth century.
That is, in the same years in which Columbus left for the Americas, did the history of Ca 'de Vèn begin?
A - More or less yes. Rasponi was a captain of fortune who, between one undertaking and another, wanted a place to pass the time between a good dish and a glass of wine. This is how his osteria, "L'Osteria della Corona", was born. It remained so until the end of the eighteenth century, and then became a grocery store, the Bellenghi grocery store, for over a century. And in fact, if you look at the furniture and the shelves, those are still original from the grocery store.
How long have you been running Ca 'de Vèn?
A - I have been for 25 years. In fact, let's do 30, since before I was only in charge of the kitchen.
M - I half the time, about 12 and a half years.
A lot of time. I'll get straight to the point: what's the secret to making things work for so long?
A - We have two well-defined tasks, that's why they work. She (Maria Grazia, editor's note) is very good with bureaucratic things, personnel and paperwork management and so on. But you could say it eh.
M - Yes yes, I take care of the bureaucracy and marketing and relations with professionals. Rita takes care of food & beverage and everything that goes around it.
A - Then of course, when Maria Grazia goes on vacation, I'm in the cashier. Of course, I don't like it, but you have to be versatile. In short, yes, the secret is organization. And trust me I've been doing this job for 64 years, I wasn't born yesterday eh, but I tell you: this is a job that is difficult to do well.
What do you mean?
M - That bureaucracy is a nightmare. Before opening a business, a person should study as an accountant, a lawyer and a computer scientist, because those are the heaviest things.
R - We were saying about the kitchen, right? That I started from there. One thinks that it is enough to choose quality ingredients and excellent suppliers, but in reality the most difficult part is the bureaucratic part.
I know it's difficult, but if you had to tell me your favorite Romagna appellation wine which one would you choose?
R - Eh, for me Romagna Sangiovese DOC. In recent years, great strides have been made with Sangiovese. Eh, but because in Romagna there are really great winemakers ...
M - I, on the other hand, are more white. Romagna Albana DOCG, Romagna Pagadebit DOC ...
A - The whites of Romagna have also made giant steps, incredible improvements. See the awards that Romagna Albana DOCGs get ... thanks to these and the commitment of the producers we make 60 bottles of Albana go a week, so to speak.
While we're at it, I ask you for a memory linked to Sangiovese!
A - Twenty years ago, perhaps even more, I was talking to a producer friend, or rather, more of a friend than a producer. Just think that he used to bring me Sangiovese pomace to refine the cheeses. In short, I remember very well that afternoon, that glass of Romagna Sangiovese DOC which, unfortunately, is no longer produced.
So it wasn't the first glass of Sangiovese that sparked off ...
A - Let's say that that was the definitive confirmation. I used to love bubbles, but then everything changed with that glass. Now out of 5 glasses of wine, 3 are Sangiovese and two are bubbles.
M - Speaking of bubbles, we greatly appreciate, and the customers do, the Novebolle project. He has truly rediscovered the Romagna sparkling wine tradition. It is a Romagna bubble, something that was missing. There is a great movement to recover the oenological past. I am thinking of the Famoso (vinified as Ravenna IGT and Rubicone IGT) or Bursôn, which until the day before yesterday were blended grapes, and instead have now conquered an important place in the territory's offer.
What is the traditional dish you are most attached to? Specifically linked, because it does not necessarily have to be on paper.
R - It may already be that I do not put the cappelletti al ragu on the paper!
M - Eh, cappelletti are a special thing for me too.
A - Listen, cappelletto is a dish that takes you back to Romagna. Last night at that table there was a Milanese dance teacher who told me: "Rita, I can't go back to Milan without having eaten your cappelletti". The cappelletto is the tradition par excellence, then there are the other pastas.
Well, you didn't hesitate! Does this mean that you have a particular memory linked to this dish?
A - You see, there was an elderly lady, Colomba, who once had her own place and from whom I learned how to make them. She put all cheese, 36-month Parmigiano Reggiano, egg yolk and nutmeg into the dough, and I learned how to make them like that. And remember that the cappelletto is born in the broth and dies in the ragu, and in fact we cook them in the broth and then pass them in the ragu.
Rita, now that you have given me the "welcome" in your kitchen, would you like to tell me how your passion for gastronomy was born?
A - It has always been my passion, since I was 12 years old. I looked at the others, my sister, my cousins, because this is how you learn to cook: stealing with your eyes and then practicing with passion. Then the kitchen is just one of the ways I talk about my land. You may not believe it, but I "feel" my land, Romagna, in what I do and in the things that are here. Can you believe that I caress the bottles every now and then? With the eyes, with the hands. This is how I get to know the land I live in and the things I sell. Which I also need to do this job. If someone comes and says “I need a bottle of wine!”, I ask him how old he is, what kind of job does the person to whom he has to bring it. I give him tailored advice to take home a wine and a piece of Romagna that is suitable for the occasion and for the person. Then they always come back to thank me.
Apart from Romagna cuisine, which gastronomic tradition intrigues you the most?
R - Ah, this is beautiful. I have traveled all over Italy, for gastronomic reasons, to try the poor dishes of the popular tradition. Until recently we were offering a typical dish from another region here at Ca 'de Vèn. If you ask me what was people's favorite dish, I tell you beans with chicory, from Puglia. It was a success.
This mention of poor dishes is interesting. In your opinion, is there one of the Romagna tradition that deserves more "popularity" or in general to be rediscovered by people?
A - For me the manfrigul, which go with a cream of spinach and zucchini, or the spoja gross. So, when they made cappelletti they always left a little pasta, right? The Azdore spread it out and "dirty" it with a spoonful of remaining filling, closed it and cooked it in broth. It was to retrieve all the leftovers. Poorer than that.
Speaking of the territory, what are the places, besides Ravenna of course, that you would recommend and to which you are most fond of?
M - Ah, the valley part of Romagna is wonderful. The Comacchio Valleys, for example, with those views, and a cuisine that is already different from what we have here. I think of the eel they are famous for in those parts. And then the Cervia salt pans, where you can see flamingos. A show.
A - The salt flats are wonderful. There is still one that collects salt using the traditional method (Cervese method, which we talked about in a dedicated article, ed.), The Camillone salt pan. Here, we use Cervia salt for meat, grilled for example, or with mutton, even the typically Romagna one. Then I had to mention others, I tell you Brisighella, a fairytale place, where there was this place that was the standard-bearer of Romagna, which now no longer exists and that's why I'll give you the name, and it was Gigiolè. Then ... but I'm biased, because in my opinion coming here (to Ca 'de Vèn, ed.) Is beautiful, you have a glass of wine, read the newspaper, then go and visit, but it's beautiful. Ah, Romagna is wonderful. Can I tell you one more?
What do you mean?
A - In the sense that if you go to a place and don't use ingredients that come from here, and then you don't have Romagna wines on the menu, you are not respecting the territory. If I come to Romagna, I think, you will want to eat and drink from Romagna, right?
In this regard, do you think that Romagna is still missing something from a tourist point of view? Take a foreigner: Romagna is probably not among the top 3 destinations that come to mind when thinking of Italy.
A - So, we have made up a lot of ground compared to other regions. Romagna is certainly second to none, it lacks nothing. I think of Tuscany. Sangiovese was born here, and then it went there! Do we want to talk about it? Let's talk about. There are medieval correspondence that confirm this, but even if it is a Romagna thing, everyone knows the Sangiovese of Tuscany. Because they have made a square around the Chianti and have made it become "Il Chianti". We miss this thing. Perhaps we are close to Predappio. When people come and want a Romagna Sangiovese DOC from that area, they ask me directly for "a Predappio".
Would you say that Predappio is one of your favorite sub-areas?
A - Yes, but then they are all excellent. However my favorite is that of Modigliana. I like its elegance. The subzones are a great way to distinguish between the different personalities of Romagna Sangiovese DOC, which are actually very different from each other. For me, in Romagna, it is producing very well. But something is still missing, a spark ... then we will no longer have anything to envy anyone.
Last question: I asked you where Romagna is going, now I ask you about Ca 'de Vèn. How will this place change in the next few years?
A - Ca ’de Vèn is energy, warmth and friendship. And this will remain forever. Because tradition remains, fashions pass, and this place is tradition. Here in Romagna you touch it, you breathe it, it is everywhere. I wanted it to be like this, I worked on it every day, putting my soul into it. And you can do better!
You're right, this place oozes energy, there is a beautiful soul in here. I think it's yours, you know?
A - Maybe ...