🥂 Discover Typical Austrian Drinks – from Coffeehouse Classics to Uhudler
Austria is not only famous for its cuisine (see our Food Blog) – its drink culture also has many unique features. From the famous Viennese coffeehouse to regional specialties like Uhudler and the simple apple juice with soda, there are many drinks you’ll find almost only here.
Especially exciting for language learners: In Austria, there are many unique terms for drinks. You don’t just order “coffee,” “wine,” or “beer,” but for example Melange, Verlängerter, Märzen, or Mischung.
Here we present some of the most typical Austrian drinks – from coffee to beer to non-alcoholic classics.
1. ☕ Viennese Coffeehouse Culture
The Viennese coffeehouse is part of everyday life in Austria. It’s a place to read, work, chat – or simply enjoy coffee. Our tip: Café Jelinek, right around the corner from DIALOG. Here you can find an authentic drink menu. For the full history of coffeehouse culture, see the City of Vienna website.
Popular coffee varieties:
Verlängerter
An espresso extended with hot water – similar to an Americano.
Melange
The classic Viennese coffee: coffee with hot milk and a bit of milk foam.
Kleiner Brauner / Großer Brauner
Espresso with a small jug of milk or cream. A “kleiner/großer Schwarzer” is a single/double espresso.
Einspänner
Black coffee in a glass topped with whipped cream.
Fiaker
Coffee with rum and whipped cream – named after Viennese horse-drawn carriages.
Well visualized and garnished with key Viennese terms in a video by A.geh Wirklich?, a Viennese rapper, with whom you can continue learning after our Viennese Workshop:
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More Information2. 🍷 Austrian Wine and Mixed Drinks
Austria is a wine country – especially white wines like Grüner Veltliner or Riesling are very popular, but also red wines like Zweigelt or Blaufränkisch. From these, many typical mixed drinks are made. Sparkling wine (Sekt) is also produced for celebrations.
Spritzer
The classic: white wine with soda.
Variants:
- Sommerspritzer – more soda, less wine
- Kaiserspritzer – elderflower syrup + white wine + soda
A Spritzer (or G’spritzter) is light and refreshing, very popular in summer. When mixed with mineral water, it is also called “Mischung”.
Uhudler
A true specialty from Burgenland. Uhudler is a wine from special grape varieties with a very intense, fruity taste, often described as a mix of strawberry and raspberry aromas.
Sturm
Partially fermented grape must – basically young wine. Consumed mainly in autumn during the grape harvest.
Most
Not wine, but a traditional drink made from fermented apples or pears. Especially common in Upper Austria, Lower Austria, and Styria.
3. 🍺 Austrian Beer Culture
Austria has a long beer tradition and is sometimes underestimated as a beer country despite neighbors Bavaria & Czechia. In pubs, beer is usually served on tap. For Vienna, we recommend visiting a beer festival at the Ottakringer brewery in summer.
Märzen
The classic Austrian beer – mild and easy to drink.
Helles
A pale lager, similar to Bavaria.
Zwickl
An unfiltered, cloudy beer with especially aromatic taste.
Radler
Beer mixed with lemonade, classically with lemon.
Typical Beer Sizes
In Austria, beer sizes often have unique names:
- Pfiff – very small beer (≈0.2 l)
- Seiterl – small beer (0.3 l)
- Krügerl – large beer (0.5 l)
4. 🧃 Non-Alcoholic Austrian Drinks
There are also many typical and refreshing drinks without alcohol.
Almdudler
The most famous Austrian herbal lemonade.
Apfelsaft gespritzt
A summer classic. Also try grape juice with soda in wine regions.
Himbeer- oder Hollersoda & Soda Zitron
Soda with raspberry (called Skiwasser in ski resorts) or elderflower syrup. Lemon soda is refreshing without sugar, made with pure lemon juice.
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More Information5. 📚 Austrian Drink Vocabulary & Phrases
Some typical Austrian drink terms:
| Austrian German | English |
|---|---|
| Weißer Spritzer | White wine spritzer |
| gespritzt | with soda |
| Achterl | an eighth of wine |
| Verlängerter | Americano/long coffee |
| Melange | milk coffee with milk foam |
| Seiterl | small beer |
| Krügerl | large beer |
| vom Fass | on tap |
| Sodawasser | sparkling water |
| Schlagobers | whipped cream |
| Most | apple/pear cider |
6. 🍹 Tip: Ordering Drinks is Perfect Language Practice
In cafés, pubs, or wine taverns, you can easily practice German. Order a coffee, try a regional drink, or ask for recommendations.
This way, you learn not only new words but also a piece of Austrian culture.
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April 2026
