NewYorkFirst.com: Cipriani Bellini Mix

Civilization in a Glass.

Harry Cipriani, located at 59th Street and Fifth Avenue, is almost an exact duplicate of the original Harry's Bar in Venice, opened by Giuseppe Cipriani in 1931, and whose regulars have included Ernest Hemingway, Truman Capote, Maria Callas, Orson Welles, and Aristotle Onassis.

Harry Cipriani offers the classic Harry's Bar menu of unique Cipriani specialties, including a legendary drink called the Bellini, the mixture of white peach juice and sparkling prosecco, named after the fifteenth-century Venetian painter Giovanni Bellini, invented by the founder of Harry's Bar, Mr. Cipriani himself. Apparently, the wonderful faint pink hue of the Bellini reminded him of a similar shade in one of the artist's paintings. Components are fairly simple, but when combined, they make an intricate, stylish drink. The Bellini is revered as an Italian lifeline to civilization.

Offered is the original Cipriani Bellini mix from the cocktail's place of origin. White peach juice, lightly carbonated - perfect with champagne, prosecco, vodka or on its own as a refreshing drink, best served over ice. (Very young drinkers are served baby Bellinis, in which the peach juice used to make a grown-up Bellini is mixed with soda water instead of sparkling wine). Proper proportions call for one-third fresh peach juice and two-thirds chilled sparkling wine (make sure to pour the peach juice into the glass first). The mix (a carbonated peach soft drink) arrives in a set of six 8.45-ounce tins, accompanied by a history of the Cipriani Bellini and instructions for preparation.