One of the best sides of Vienna are, no doubt about that, the coffeehouses, BUT, one of the worst sides of Vienna is the coffee served in most coffeehouses…
As a guy grown up near the italian border, I´m used to have high quality coffee – mild, creamy, strong – in many different versions – cappuccino, espresso, machiatto, ristretto etc – for very little money. Somehow the Italians managed to develop a sophisticated coffee culture and even the Italian governments payed deference to this culture: the prices for coffees when consumed at the bar are regulated by law…
When I moved to Vienna for studying I was anxious to experience the famous viennese coffeehouse-culture. Well, the problem is, the coffee mostly served in Vienna is bitter, tart and lacks the wonderful cremá of the italian roasting. Why? No chance to find out, and it´s no good idea asking a viennese waiter about the quality of his coffee…
I´ve got the theory that the italian coffee is milder and “rounder” because when beeing roasted, it is mostly ment to be served without milk, so it has to be pleasant to be drunken even without creamy milk. On the side, the viennese (or let´s say non-italian) coffee is intended to be served together with milk, it´s not very common in Vienna to drink your coffee as a “kleiner Schwarzer” (“small black one”, another term for espresso).
So, if you fancy a rich, creamy coffee in Vienna, try to find italian coffeehouses or one of the modern cafés, they usually have the good italian roastings like Segafredo, Hausbrandt or Lavazza.
snooker86
2 Comments
June 24, 2008 at 1:10 pm
hi greg,
in addition to your expertise on the subject matter i would like to mention, that the coffee in austria is 100% arabica beans whereas the coffee in italy has some robusta beans added – which makes it easier to drink or as we in austria like to say “bekömmlicher”.
blog on and best of luck,
manü
June 24, 2008 at 1:12 pm
wtf “Your comment is awaiting moderation.” how old media of you!!