The Bellini: Venice in a Glass

The iconic peach and Prosecco cocktail that's been seducing sophisticates since 1948

Right then, darlings, let's talk about the Bellini – quite possibly the most elegant way to start a Saturday morning or toast a summer soirée. This peachy stunner was born in 1948 at Harry's Bar in Venice, created by the legendary Giuseppe Cipriani. He named it after the 15th-century Venetian painter Giovanni Bellini, whose work featured the same delicate pink hues found in white peach flesh. Très romantique, non?

Now, here's the thing about a proper Bellini – it's not just any fizzy peach drink. The original calls for white peaches (not yellow), fresh purée (not tinned muck), and Italian Prosecco (nothing else will do). It's a study in simplicity, but like all Italian classics, the quality of your ingredients is absolutely everything. Get this right, and you'll be sipping liquid sunshine. Bollocks it up with supermarket peach schnapps, and you might as well be drinking sangria from a box.

What You'll Need

For One Perfect Bellini:

60ml (2 oz) fresh white peach purée
90ml (3 oz) chilled Prosecco
Splash of fresh lemon juice (optional, if peaches aren't perfectly ripe)

Sophie's Pro Tip: If white peaches aren't in season (they're notoriously fussy), you can use frozen white peach purée from specialty grocers. Yellow peaches will work in a pinch, but they lack that delicate, almost floral quality that makes a Bellini sing. And for the love of all things holy, never use peach schnapps or tinned peaches. That's sacrilege, darling.

The Method (Keep It Simple, Gorgeous)

Prep your peaches: If using fresh peaches, blanch them briefly in boiling water (about 30 seconds), then plunge into ice water. The skins will slip right off – très satisfying. Remove the stones, roughly chop, and blitz in a blender until completely smooth. Pass through a fine-mesh sieve if you're feeling fancy (I always am).
Chill everything: Your Prosecco should be properly cold (6-8°C), and pop your champagne flutes in the freezer for 10 minutes beforehand. A warm Bellini is like a lukewarm kiss – thoroughly disappointing.
Build the drink: Pour your peach purée into the chilled flute first. Now here's where people get it wrong – they pour the Prosecco in a great glugging rush. Don't do that. Pour slowly and gently down the side of the glass, letting the bubbles naturally mix with the purée. You want a gradient effect, not a volcanic eruption.
Give it a gentle stir: One delicate swirl with a bar spoon to marry the flavors. You're not making a milkshake, darling.
Serve immediately: The Bellini waits for no one. Those bubbles are precious – drink up while they're still dancing.

Choosing Your Prosecco

Listen, you don't need to remortgage your flat for this, but you do need decent Prosecco. The original Bellini uses bone-dry Prosecco to balance the peach sweetness. Look for bottles labeled "Brut" or "Extra Dry" (confusingly, Extra Dry is actually slightly sweeter than Brut – blame the Italians for that linguistic quirk).

Brilliant Prosecco Picks:

La Marca Prosecco Brut

Price: $12-15 USD

Perfectly respectable everyday Prosecco with crisp apple and citrus notes. Absolutely spot-on for Bellinis – won't break the bank, won't break your cocktail.

Mionetto Prosecco Brut

Price: $11-14 USD

Light, fresh, and lively with delicate pear and peach blossom aromas. A brilliant choice that practically begs to be mixed with white peach purée.

Bisol Prosecco Superiore Brut

Price: $18-22 USD

From the Valdobbiadene DOCG region (the posh bit), this is a step up in quality. Elegant, creamy mousse with white flowers and stone fruit. For when you're trying to impress your date or your mother-in-law.

Nino Franco Rustico Prosecco Valdobbiadene Superiore

Price: $20-25 USD

My personal go-to for special occasions. Gorgeous aromatic complexity with acacia flowers, ripe pear, and just the right amount of minerality. This is Prosecco at its finest, darlings.

Seasonal Variations (For the Adventurous)

While the classic white peach Bellini is perfection itself, the formula works brilliantly with other fruits. Here are my favorite riffs:

Rossini: Swap peach for fresh strawberry purée. Named after the composer (another Italian genius).
Puccini: Use mandarin or blood orange juice. Utterly divine in winter.
Tintoretto: Pomegranate juice creates a stunning ruby-red version. Rather dramatic.
Raspberry Bellini: Fresh raspberry purée makes a gorgeously tart, pink variation. Brilliant for bridal showers.

Food Pairings

The Bellini is traditionally a mid-morning or early afternoon cocktail (the Italians know how to live, don't they?). Pair it with:

Prosciutto e melone – The classic Italian starter. The salty-sweet combination with the peach and bubbles is absolutely smashing.
Fresh burrata with heirloom tomatoes and basil – Creamy, fruity, herbaceous. Summer on a plate.
Smoked salmon blinis – The richness needs that bright, fruity fizz to cut through.
Almond croissants – For a decadent brunch. The stone fruit and almond flavors are old friends.
Fresh fruit tarts – Peach, apricot, or nectarine tarts create a beautiful flavor echo.

The Glassware Matters, Darling

Serve your Bellini in a proper champagne flute – tall, slender, and elegant. This isn't just about aesthetics (though a Bellini in a tumbler is frankly tragic). The narrow shape preserves those precious bubbles and concentrates the delicate peach aromatics. If you want to be properly Venetian about it, chill your flutes in the freezer for 10 minutes before serving. The frost on the glass is chef's kiss.

Fun Facts & Cocktail Wisdom

Giuseppe Cipriani only made Bellinis when white peaches were in season (July to September in Italy). The rest of the year? Tough luck, darlings. That's dedication to quality.
The Bellini became internationally famous after Ernest Hemingway started ordering them at Harry's Bar. That man had impeccable taste in both literature and libations.
The perfect Bellini ratio is 2:3 peach to Prosecco, but Giuseppe himself was known to adjust based on the sweetness of the peaches. Be flexible, not dogmatic.
In Venice, you can still order a Bellini at the original Harry's Bar (now a UNESCO heritage site). Fair warning: it'll cost you about €25, but you're paying for history, atmosphere, and the ghost of Hemingway.
The pink color should resemble the toga of a saint in a Giovanni Bellini painting – soft, luminous, and slightly otherworldly. If your Bellini is neon pink, you've gone terribly wrong somewhere.