By Chiara Petrella
“Nature does not create works of art. It is us, humans, thanks to our peculiar ability to interpret – which is exactly what makes us human – who see art in it”.
Man Ray – Photographer (1890 – 1976).
This also applies to cooking, pastry, wine and all those specialties, apparently simple, in which the human being can express himself or an inspiration. They know this well at the Meucci wine shop, where every small business is transformed into an experience for those who create it and for those who live it.
This time I am welcomed in the fireplace room. It’s autumn now, and the heat of that fire warms my mind, body and soul as I look around again enchanted by the charm of the bottles so well distributed and guarded. But what attracts my attention is more than anything else the scent of the panettone, which have just been packaged and are now waiting to be expertly displayed together with the other products. I didn’t expect to be able to find homemade sweets in this magical place; instead, the creativity of the Meucci team surprises me again: the chef, Massimo Romano, is working on those still in production and guides me to taste the classic panettone, leaving me with an incredible desire to try the other four which, he explains, will have different flavours: salted caramel and apricot, three chocolates, gianduja and black cherries, raisins. At the Enoteca Meucci they are already working on Christmas and the preparation of baskets for companies and individuals with wines and local products, but also with self-produced pastries, which in addition to panettone includes panforte, ricciarelli, cantucci, zuccherini and ‘mbriachelli‘, prepared with wine, sugar and cinnamon.
But how will we celebrate at the restaurant? Mauro Meucci, the owner, explains to me that by reservation it is possible to organize business dinners, even in special rooms, and of course Christmas lunch and New Year’s Eve dinner with a traditional menu, but revisited by the chef, to which it will be possible to combine a wine tasting on request, or choose a bottle or glass. “Wine pairing is a service that we also offer the rest of the year,” says Mauro. “It starts with bubbles and then moves on to white, rosé, red and finally dessert wine. It is in great demand and appreciated by our guests, such as offering a red rose to ladies on their birthdays or on the occasion of an anniversary”. Attention and “pampering” therefore return as a must at Enoteca Meucci, and it is no coincidence that it has been reported in the authoritative Michelin Guide as early as 2022, shortly after opening. This time I was also invited to taste some delicacies by chef Massimo Romano, a highly experienced professional, who has worked successfully in Italy and abroad, even in starred realities. Massimo is from Maremma and Mauro is keen to emphasize that the name indicates his origin, but above all his substance, like the dishes he makes. Fisherman, hunter, mushroom and truffle hunter, he grew up in the family restaurant and his is a cuisine that looks carefully at the Tuscan tradition, but also winks at innovation and research.
So I try to understand more, also by virtue of my personal passion for cooking, and when I go up to taste the delicious tastings he has prepared for me and for the staff of Valleylife, I ask him a lot of questions, discovering the secrets that make the experience here at the restaurant of the wine shop truly magnificent, which are basically three: the very rigorous choice of raw materials and the exclusive use of seasonal products (where possible grown by themselves in the dedicated garden), the study of the types of cooking, especially those at low temperatures, and the skilful use of aromatic herbs, which give the various dishes a very special taste. As for the ‘style’, because that’s exactly how we want to define it, it is possible to choose between Tuscan classics and those revisited in an artistic and modern way, as well as innovative dishes linked to the season or the passion of the moment but always made with local products. I put him in crisis, however, when I ask him what his favorite dish is: “I don’t know – he replies – why it goes according to the season, the evening, the mood, the company; so, in truth there is not one in particular…”
VL: “Isn’t there a dish that you consider the ‘strong’ one?”
MR: “No, because everything is linked to the tastes of the taste, which can be influenced by many different factors. I can say, however, that in my dishes there are three, or at most four ingredients. This is because I want them all to be valued, without suffocating or overlapping”.
VL: “Speaking of ingredients: since we are in a wine shop, how much wine do you use in your dishes?”
MR: “I don’t put it everywhere, but where it is present, as I said, it must feel like a full protagonist. For example, in the winter menu there is a wild boar fillet cooked at low temperature and browned in Syrah sauce, where wine is a real ‘ingredient’. Among other things, this is the typical grape variety of Cortona”.
VL: “Is there a ‘common thread’ in the choice of dishes you offer?”
MR: “The menu is changed often, because here we give a lot of importance to seasonality and we do not use frozen ingredients under any circumstances. But apart from that, I follow inspiration: it happens that for days nothing comes to mind and then in an afternoon I close the entire menu chasing an idea or a feeling”.
Yes, because cooking can be an intense and intriguing form of art. And after having tried the experience, I can say that that of the Enoteca Meucci is without fear of denial.
Enoteca Meucci
Loc. Riccio, 71
52044 Cortona (Ar)
Tel. +39 333 196 5439