Читать книгу The Adlerweg. The Eagle's Way across the Austrian Tyrol онлайн

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At the close of a meal, Austrians typically drink schnapps, a distillation of alcohol from a wide variety of fruits, berries and herbs. Tyrol is a major producer of fruit schnapps (typically about 40% alcohol) and fruit liqueurs (less strong, at about 20%). Small local suppliers often produce these (there are 20,000 registered schnapps distilleries in Austria) from fruits such as pear (williams), apricot (marillen), plum (zwetschken), and bilberry (myrtille). Particularly distinctive tastes are those of krauter, a distillation flavoured with herbs, and enzian from the root of the gentian flower. Schnapps is usually bottled commercially, although sometimes you will find local distillations decanted into unmarked bottles. Many refuges have a haus schnapps, sometimes home produced. Beware, quality and strength can vary greatly from sophisticated smoothness to throat burning firewater!

Coffee is the Austrian hot drink of choice. Legend has it that coffee was introduced in 1683 when retreating Ottoman troops left bags of beans behind after the Battle of Vienna. Coffee is served in a wide variety of styles. Mokka or kleiner schwarzer (small black) is similar to expresso, kleiner brauner (small brown) is served with milk; verlangerter (lengthened) is diluted with hot water; melange (mixed) is topped up with hot milk; while einspanner is topped with whipped cream. Italian styles such as cappuccino and café latte are also commonly served.