Why you need a Bellini Cocktail this New Year

What better way to welcome in the New Year than with a Bellini Cocktail – all the more appropriate as 2019 sees the much anticipated Bath Opera production of one of Bellini’s best loved operas…

The Bellini cocktail is the classic mix of Prosecco sparkling wine and Peach purée or nectar which originated in Venice. Known the world over, it is one of Italy’s most popular drinks – Venetian through and through. It was invented between 1934 and 1948by Giuseppe Cipriani, founder of the famous Venetian Harry’s Bar which welcomed guests such as Ernest Hemingway, Orson Welles and Humphrey Bogart. 

How to make the perfect Bellini Cocktail

10 cl (2 parts) Prosecco
5 cl (1 part) fresh Peach Purée
Pour peach purée into chilled glass, add sparkling wine. Stir gently.

Later, it also became popular at the New York counterpart of Harry’s Bar after an entrepreneurial Frenchman set up a business to ship fresh white peach purée to both locations. It was soon to become an all-year-round favourite.

Why ‘Bellini’?

Actually, there is no connection between Bellini the composer and Bellini cocktails. The story goes that its unique, sunset-pink colour of the Bellini reminded Cipriani of the shades in his favourite paintings by 15th-century Venetian Renaissance artist… Giovanni Bellini. And so the drink was christened. 

Giovanni Bellini (c.1430 – 1516) was considered to have revolutionised Venetian painting, moving it towards a more sensuous and colouristic style. Through the use of clear, slow-drying oil paints, Giovanni created deep, rich tints and detailed shadings. His sumptuous colouring and fluent, atmospheric landscapes were to have a great effect on the Venetian painting school.

Whether you welcome 2019 in with a glass of bubbly in your hand or not, Bath Opera wishes everyone a very happy and prosperous New Year and looks forward to seeing you at their forthcoming production of Bellini’s La Sonnambula (The Sleepwalker) on 21-23 February. 

Upgrade to our Gala Package and the Bellini’s are on us!

For a £15 supplement on full price tickets on Saturday 23 February, you can enjoy a talk with Bath Opera’s Honorary Patron, Isobel Buchannan together with Bellini Cocktails and Canapes. You can upgrade online or by contacting the Bath Opera Hotline on  01935 475 219