As organisers behind ambitious ticketed events are starting to show a bit more confidence with their planning, the scope of new and interesting things to do is finally starting to resemble a sense of normalcy. Last year you would be hard-pressed to find something as refined and exclusive as a night of live classical music paired with high-end Champagne in one of Sydney’s most magnificent heritage-listed homes. Yet here we are; the masterful Sydney Art Quartet is collaborating with iconic Champagne Maison Perrier-Jouët to offer three separate, delicate performances accompanied by several expressions from Perrier-Jouët conceived as ‘La Belle Epoque.’ Better yet, it all goes down in one of Sydney’s most elusive luxury residences – a private ballroom of ‘The Swifts’ in Darling Point.
Complementing a 90-minute concert from Sydney Art Quartet will be a multi-sensory tasting of four exquisite Perrier-Jouët cuvées guided by Champagne ambassador Emmanuel De Madre and Artist Director James Beck.
The space will be transformed according to the 19th-century classicism echoed by both the quartet and the Champagnes being poured, making this a solid choice for a date night or even just a pop of much-needed escapism if you haven’t got any French wine tours on your schedule this year. Plus, it’s a rare opportunity to actually go inside one of the more interesting mansions in Sydney, which was built in 1882 by beer baron Sir Robert Lucas Lucas-Tooth.
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The series of events plays into a wider program for Sydney Art Quartet, where La Belle Epoque will be designed as an immersive evening consisting of four music selections and four cuvèes, the most exciting of which will be the Perrier-Jouët Champagne Belle Époque Vintage 2013 paired with an interpretation of Beethoven Quartet Op.59/2. For blokes who take their Champagne and classical music as serious as each other, we’ve included a round-up of exactly what pairings to expect on the night below.
- Mendelssohn Quartet Op.44/3 – Champagne Blanc De Blancs NV
- Borodin Quartet No.2 – Grand Brut NV
- Beethoven Quartet Op.59/2 – Belle Époque Vintage 2013
- Smetana Quartet No.1 “From My Life’ – Blason Rosé NV
Each performance will be prefaced by coupe de Champagne served at intimate cabaret-style tables for two spread generously across the historic ballroom. For anyone who hasn’t experienced Perrier-Jouët before, just know that you’re getting some seriously top-shelf drops in what will no doubt be one of the more romantic ways to spend an evening in Sydney this year.
Each of the three sessions, kicking off this weekend on Friday 18th March and Saturday 19th March are now on sale and a few have already been booked out. Hop on to the link below if you want to snatch up some last-minute tickets, or you can wait. La Belle Epoque will also be repeated several times throughout the year with slightly different line-ups, with sessions planned for June, September, October and November.
