The grand princely feast of the Italian Renaissance, codified by papal cook Bartolomeo Scappi (*Opera*, 1570), does not oppose starter-main-dessert but alternates two registers: the *servizio di credenza* (cold dishes arranged on the buffet — cured meats, fruit pastes, confections, candied fruits) and the *servizio di cucina* (hot dishes from the kitchen — roasts, soups, pies). Several courses are served, each comprising multiple dishes, with sweet and savory mingling throughout, and spices signaling the host's rank. At the table of a Farnese, grandson of a pope and prince of Parma, profusion was political discourse.

The Italian court cuisine of the Cinquecento loves the gold of saffron and the balance of *agrodolce*: *agresto* (sour green grape juice, or verjuice) and vinegar sharpened with sugar, cinnamon, and ginger. This sweet-sour-spicy tension, inherited from the Middle Ages but refined by Scappi, perfumes both a roast and a drink.