Brandy Style

Three brandies define this region, and each has its own fruit and its own story. What they share is that they're bottled clear and let the fruit speak — not the cask.

The Original Pielachtaler Dirndlbrand is the most famous. It comes from six municipalities in the Pielachtal and, according to the register of traditional foods, shows a sweetish, delicate fruit character with a subtle truffle note. It also has a very long finish.

All three are fruit brandies under EU regulation and come in at a minimum of 37.5 percent alcohol — the Dirndlbrand, per its registration, at 39 to 45 percent. Up to 18 grams of sugar per liter may be added, and none of them are colored.

The perry pear brandy is the everyday spirit of the Mostviertel. It may not be labeled Williams, since within the EU that name is reserved exclusively for pear brandies made from the Williams variety. Perry pears are tarter and more tannic, so their brandy usually tastes drier and more angular than the smooth, almost perfumed Williams.

Elsbeerenbrand comes from a wild fruit that grows between the Mostviertel and the Wienerwald, and thanks to the tiny harvest volumes, it's a real rarity. It comes across fine and lightly tart. Lower Austria lists it as a traditional food.

Cross to the other side of the Danube into the Wachau, and you'll find a completely different picture: there, the apricot defines the local brandy. In the Mostviertel, by contrast, it's pear, Dirndl, and Elsbeere — and the difference shows in the glass. Between the sweetish Dirndl, the tart pear, and the understated Elsbeere lie three very different paths from fruit to brandy.