A recipe for Viennese-style coffee

Strong coffee with chocolate, whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon or cocoa: that is Viennese-style coffee in a nutshell. There are many versions of the recipe. What might you be served in a Viennese café, and how is the drink prepared in Poland?

Viennese-style coffee holds a special place among coffee drinks with additions, particularly for Polish enthusiasts. Stories linking Polish coffee culture with Vienna and the seventeenth-century relief of the city are part of its appeal, although coffee was known in Poland before that event.

The version described here combines a strong coffee base, usually chocolate, whipped cream and a topping of cinnamon, cocoa or finely ground coffee. A slice of Sachertorte or Viennese cheesecake makes a fitting companion. In Poland, some recipes also add milk to the coffee, and others replace whipped cream with frothed milk.

Viennese-style coffee — the recipe

Serve it in a wide cup with a saucer, around 250 ml, similar to a cappuccino cup. It is a sweet drink, with the level of sweetness depending on your ingredients, so a lightly or moderately sweet cake or a shortbread biscuit is a good match.

Offer a glass of cool still water alongside it. In some Viennese cafés, the water may be topped up before you finish the coffee, without you needing to ask.

Ingredients

• 200 ml freshly brewed strong coffee, such as an espresso-based Americano or moka-pot coffee. Freshly ground, good-quality Arabica with caramel, chocolate or nut notes complements the chocolate particularly well.
• One teaspoon of drinking-chocolate powder or two squares of grated chocolate. Choose milk chocolate for sweetness or dark chocolate for a more bitter cocoa character.
• One teaspoon of sugar, optional.
• 50 ml whole milk.
• Whipped cream or frothed milk for the top.
• Cinnamon, cocoa or grated chocolate to finish.

Method

Mix the cold milk with the chocolate and optional sugar, then whisk or froth it using a mixer, milk frother or blender. Combine it with the hot coffee and pour into the wide cup. Top with whipped cream or firm milk foam and dust with cinnamon or cocoa.

An alternative without milk in the base

Melt the chocolate, with sugar if desired, in a small saucepan or a bowl over hot water. Add the freshly brewed hot coffee, then decorate as above.

Experiment with sweetness on your first attempts. Chocolate, sugar and whipped cream all contribute. For a sweeter drink, use milk chocolate and sweetened cream. For a more restrained version, choose dark chocolate and frothed milk.

Header photo by Okko Pyykkö via Flickr, under a Creative Commons licence.