may be taken from mid-morning until mid-afternoon, is a jause, a thick slice of bread topped with cheese (kase) or ham (schinken). A more substantial version consisting of a selection of meats or cheeses and bread (rather like a Ploughman’s lunch) is served on a wooden platter and known as a brettjause. Plates of sausages and mustard (wurst mit senf) served with bread (brot) or bowls of goulash soup (beef stew flavoured with paprika) are widely available lunch snacks. Other soups include clear broths with strips of pancake, and cream soups such as knoblauch (garlic) or zweibel (onion).
Jause lunchtime snack with hefeweizen wheat beer
Cakes (kuchen), which are often homemade (hausgemacht), accompany coffee during the afternoon. Typical Austrian cakes include Sachertorte, a chocolate and apricot creation that originated in the Hotel Sacher in Vienna, but can now be found almost anywhere. If you want to try the original recipe, Café Sacher has a branch in the entrance to the Hofburg in Innsbruck, which you pass on Stage 12a.
For the evening meal (abendessen), the mainstays of Tyrolean cooking are hearty simple dishes of meat and various kinds of savoury knodel (dense, tennis ball size dumplings), kartoffel (potatoes) or spatzle (noodles). The most common meat is from the pig (pork, gammon, bacon, ham), but you will also find beef or veal, chicken, turkey and occasionally lamb. Austria’s most renowned dish, Wiener schnitzel (veal escalope fried in egg and breadcrumbs) is almost ubiquitous. Another Austrian speciality is tafelspitz (braised beef). Particularly Tyrolean is grostl, a hash made from leftover cooked pork, diced potatoes and onions fried in butter and topped with a fried egg. Hunting, which is widely practised in local forests, provides game such as venison (reh), chamois (gams) and boar (wildschwein), while anglers catch trout (forelle) from the rivers and pikeperch (zander) from the lakes. The most common vegetable is sauerkraut (pickled cabbage). Abendessen starts at 1800 in some refuges, but more typically from 1900.
The most common dessert is strudel, usually apple but sometimes apricot (marillen), poppy seed (mohn) or curd cheese (topfen). Two typically Tyrolean, and very substantial desserts, are Germknodel, a sweet dumpling filled with poppy seeds and plum jam, served with custard (vanilla sauce); and Kaiserschmarrn, a pancake made with raisins, which is served chopped and dusted with sugar.
Vegetarianism is still considered by many Austrians to be an exotic fad, and catering for vegetarians is rather hit or miss. In refuges, vegetarian fare is unlikely to be more than pasta with tomato sauce, knodel in cheese sauce or a veggie casserole.
Drinks
Tap water is usually safe to drink, and on the few occasions when it is not, you will always be told ‘nicht trinkwasser’. Water in refuges often comes straight from mountain springs. Many drinking fountains and water troughs, often drawing water from springs, can be found along the path, particularly at lower and middle levels. However as the underlying rock is mostly porous limestone, natural water sources at higher altitudes are often scarce and you should take water with you.
All the usual soft drinks (colas, lemonade, juices) are widely available. Austrian specialities include Almdudler, a drink made from mountain herbs and tasting of elderflower, often used as a mixer with white wine. A very refreshing soft drink is a mix of apple juice and sparkling water (apfelgespritz or apfelschorle). The popular energy drink Red Bull originated in Japan, but was introduced into Europe by an Austrian entrepreneur who still has his head office near Salzburg. Pasture huts often sell milk straight from the dairy, although the milk in refuges is usually UHT.
Grostl (Tyrollean pork and potato hash)
Tyrol, like nearby Bavaria, is a beer consuming region and beer is available from a wide variety of local and national breweries. Many refuges, except those in the most remote locations, have both bottled and draught beer. The main types of beer are German style lagers and hefeweizen (wheat beer). Wheat beer popularity is increasing and can be found in both helles (pale) and dunkles (dark) varieties. Very refreshing and slightly sweet tasting, wheat beer is unfiltered and thus naturally cloudy in appearance. Beer is sold in a number of standard measures; Pfiff (200mm), Kleines or Seidel (300mm) and Grosses or Halbe (half litre). Hefeweizen is traditionally served in half litre, vase shaped glasses.
Radler (shandy, a blend of beer and lemonade) is a popular and refreshing drink that is always available and, having only 50% of the alcohol content of beer is probably a better choice at lunchtime. Apfelwein (cider) made from apples can also be found.
Austria is a major wine producing country, although almost all Austrian wine comes from the eastern part of the country, with little or no production in Tyrol. Most wine produced is white with Gruner Veltliner the most commonly used grape along with Riesling, Muller Thurgau, Weissburgunder and Rulander. Red wine, mostly produced from Pinot Noir (Blauburgunder) or Zweigelt (Rotburger) grapes, is growing in popularity. Imported, mostly Italian, wines are readily available and often cheaper than Austrian wine. This is not surprising as Italian wine producing regions are closer to Tyrol than Austrian vineyards. Wine can be bought by the bottle, or as house wine (offene weine) by the glass or carafe in sizes achtel (125ml), viertel (250ml), halbe (half litre) and litre.
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.
Tea is growing in popularity. Schwarzer tee (black tea or English breakfast tea) is widely available, along with a range of fruit and herbal teas. Tea is served with lemon. If you want it with cold milk, you need to ask for tee mit kalt milch. To warm yourself up on a cold day you could try hot chocolate with rum, a popular winter après-ski drink.
TYROLEAN FRUIT SCHNAPPS
There is a particularly wide selection of schnapps at Tuxerbauern distillery in Tulfes, near the bottom of the Glungezerbahn cablecar (Stage 13). An excellent souvenir, but not very practical to carry around. However as Tulfes is only a short bus trip from Innsbruck, you could always return at the end of your walk and pick up a bottle or two before travelling home.
Amenities and services
Shops
All towns and larger villages passed through have grocery stores, often small supermarkets, and many have pharmacies. Opening hours vary, but most open early. Grocery stores close at 1300 on Saturdays and stay closed all day Sunday. Clothing and outdoor equipment stores can be found in St Johann, Kufstein, Pertisau, Innsbruck, Leutasch, Ehrwald, Lermoos, Elbigenalp
