Nestled on the banks of the Danube, Vienna shines with its cozy charm and invites you to linger. Despite its status as a metropolis of millions, hardly any other European city has such a decelerating effect and stands for art, culture, and culinary delights as Austria’s capital. It is easy to lose yourself in the galleries and art exhibitions and unwind on leisurely strolls through Vienna’s architecture.

T his intellectual sophistication can also be found in the local gastronomy, where an art form of its own has emerged, the Viennese coffee house culture. An institution of bohemians, artists, and writers that emerged in the late 19th century, it has endured to this day and was even declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011.

There are several culinary specialties that are inextricably linked to the history of coffee houses. A good cup of Melange, for example, or a steaming plate of Schmarrn. And of course, the Sachertorte. No visit to the city on the Danube is complete without trying Vienna’s sweet landmark. Vienna’s most famous piece of cake is named after its inventor, the Austrian chef Franz Sacher. According to legend, he created the iconic pastry almost by chance when he had to stand in for his sick boss in his second year of training to prepare a special dessert. However, the Sachertorte got its current personality from his eldest son, Eduard Sacher, who perfected it during his apprenticeship at the imperial and royal court confectionery Demel.

Anyone coming to Vienna today has several options for enjoying a slice of Sachertorte. The duty-free store at the airport is certainly the least romantic option. The Hotel Sacher is more stylish and authentic. A reservation in Café Sacher or even in the Bel Étage is highly recommended. In the plush, classic ambiance, the chocolaty sweetness feels more harmonious and somehow more at home. We must not forget that we are dealing with a classic from an era when pastry chefs were less shy when it came to sugar. The two layers of apricot jam are a perfect balancing element. The purist eats his Sachertorte exclusively with unsweetened whipped cream.

Of course, the majority of all Sachertorte eaten is accompanied by a hot drink, most notably the aforementioned Viennese Melange. But let’s remember that, historically speaking, it is a dessert that was certainly not always served with non-alcoholic drinks. What’s more, Franz Sacher was married to a winemaker’s daughter and ran a flourishing wine business alongside his confectionery business. So let’s take a look at the question of what would be the perfect alcoholic accompaniment. Even if only as a spiritual pastime, in true coffee house style.

When we stay at the Hotel Sacher, the cake is served in proper style with a glass of Sacher Cuvée Brut. The sparkling wine produced exclusively for the hotel by the Viennese winery Schlumberger is made from the Austrian Welschriesling grape. It forms a beautifully refreshing counterpoint to the chocolaty sweetness, but has enough fruity aromas to harmonize perfectly with the apricot layer. A glass of Gemischter Satz, a Viennese wine specialty in which different grape varieties are grown, harvested, and pressed together, can have the same flavorful effect. As the wines are very individual due to this special method of cultivation and aging, not every wine will go perfectly with our tart. However, the Rosengartel Wiener Gemischter Satz from Weingut Wieninger has all the flavor attributes to make it a perfect accompaniment. A hint of tropical fruit and aromas of orange zest play together with the chocolate in an almost Christmassy way, creating a harmonious overall picture.

Last but not least, of course, we cannot avoid a dessert wine. And as a wine country, Austria has a lot to offer here. Straw wine is a special type of wine. For this, the grapes must be stored on straw for at least three months before pressing, allowing them to dry and raisinize. The evaporation of the water increases the sugar content. The result is a dessert wine that is both sweet and full-bodied. A great example comes from Burgenland. Johann Schwarz’s Schwarz Gold Strohwein takes up the idea of the apricot jam in the cake and multiplies it. A flavorful firework of juicy passion fruit, sweet nectar, and yellow stone fruit joins the bittersweet cocoa note. The result will inevitably bring a smile to your face.

Sachertorte and wine. Definitely a combination that works in terms of taste, history, and culture and invites you to experiment. And Vienna is full of suitable places for a cozy piece of cake and a glass of wine. Somehow the clocks seem to tick slower here. It is not for nothing that the great Austrian composer and coffee house visitor Gustav Mahler is said to have remarked: “When the world ends, I’ll move to Vienna; everything happens there 50 years later.”