Austria

===Food and beverages===
{{More citations needed section|date=December 2023}}
{{Main|Austrian cuisine}}
[[File:2015 0731 Apfelstrudel Vanillesoße Edelweisshütte Sölden.jpg|thumb|right|Apple strudel, served with vanilla sauce, in [[Tirol (state)|Tirol]] Austria]][[File:Wiener-Schnitzel02.jpg|thumb|right|''Wiener Schnitzel'', a traditional Austrian dish]]

Austria's cuisine is derived from that of the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]]. Austrian cuisine is mainly the tradition of Royal-Cuisine ("Hofküche") delivered over centuries. It is famous for its well-balanced variations of beef and pork and countless variations of vegetables. There is also the "Mehlspeisen" tradition of bakeries, which created particular delicacies such as Sachertorte, "Krapfen" which are doughnuts usually filled with apricot jam or custard, and "Strudel" such as "[[Apfelstrudel]]" filled with apple, "Topfenstrudel" filled with a type of cheese curd called "topfen", and "[[Millirahmstrudel]]" (milk-cream strudel).

In addition to native regional traditions, the cuisine has been influenced by [[Hungarian cuisine|Hungarian]], [[Czech Republic|Czech]], [[Polish cuisine|Polish]], [[Jewish cuisine|Jewish]], [[Italian cuisine|Italian]], [[Balkan]], and [[French cuisine|French]] cuisines, from which both dishes and methods of food preparation have often been borrowed. The Austrian cuisine is therefore one of the most multicultural and transcultural in Europe.

Typical Austrian dishes include [[Wiener Schnitzel]], Schweinsbraten, [[Kaiserschmarren]], [[Knödel]], [[Sachertorte]], and [[Tafelspitz]]. There are also Kärntner Kasnudeln, which are pockets of dough filled with Topfen, potatoes, herbs and peppermint which are boiled and served with a butter sauce. Kasnudeln are traditionally served with a salad. [[Cantharellus|Eierschwammerl]] dishes are also popular. The sugar block dispenser [[Pez]] was invented in Austria, as well as [[Manner (confectionary)|Mannerschnitten]]. Austria is also famous for its [[Mozartkugel]]n and its coffee tradition. With over 8&nbsp;kg per year it has the sixth highest per capita coffee consumption worldwide.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Lora |date=13 April 2018 |title=Coffee: Who grows, drinks and pays the most? |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-43742686 |url-status=live |access-date=13 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613115037/https://www.bbc.com/news/business-43742686 |archive-date=13 June 2018 }}</ref>

Beer is sold in 0.2-litre (a ''Pfiff''), 0.3-litre (a ''Seidel'', ''kleines Bier'' or ''Glas Bier'') and 0.5-litre (a ''Krügerl'' or ''großes Bier'' or ''Halbe'') measures. At festivals one litre ''Maß'' and two-litre ''Doppelmaß'' in the [[Bavaria]]n style are also dispensed. The most popular types of beer are [[lager]] (known as ''Märzen'' in Austria), naturally cloudy ''Zwicklbier'' and [[wheat beer]]. At holidays like Christmas and Easter [[bock]] beer is also available.

The most important wine-producing areas are in [[Lower Austria]], [[Burgenland]], [[Styria]], and Vienna. The [[Grüner Veltliner]] grape provides some of Austria's most notable white wines<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gruner Veltliner Wine |url=http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-209-gruner-veltliner |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140301165955/http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-209-gruner-veltliner |archive-date=1 March 2014 |access-date=2 June 2014 |publisher=Wine-Searcher }}</ref> and [[Zweigelt]] is the most widely planted red wine grape.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Zweigelt Wine |url=http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-645-zweigelt |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140207055743/http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-645-zweigelt |archive-date=7 February 2014 |access-date=2 June 2014 |publisher=Wine-Searcher }}</ref>

In [[Upper Austria]], Lower Austria, Styria, and [[Carinthia (state)|Carinthia]], ''Most'', a type of [[cider]] or [[perry]], is widely produced.

A [[Schnapps]] of typically up to 60% alcohol or fruit [[brandy]] is drunk, which in Austria is made from a variety of fruits, for example [[apricot]]s and [[rowan]]berries. The produce of small private schnapps [[distillery|distilleries]], of which there are around 20,000 in Austria, is known as ''Selbstgebrannter'' or ''Hausbrand''.

Local soft drinks such as [[Almdudler]] are very popular around the country as an alternative to alcoholic beverages. Another popular drink is the so-called "Spezi", a mix between Coca-Cola and the original formula of [[Fanta|Orange Fanta]] or the more locally renowned [[Frucade]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2019}} [[Red Bull]], the highest-selling energy drink in the world, was introduced by [[Dietrich Mateschitz]], an Austrian entrepreneur.