Kaffee-Alchemie, Salzburg

Coffee make the hills come alive.

Salzburg is haven for The Sound of Music aficionados from around the world, but the Austrian city is also famed for its Kaffeekultur (or coffee culture). Traditional coffee houses or Kaffeehäuser abound. A beloved local beverage is the Einspänner, a strong black coffee topped with whipped cream and served with powdered sugar on the side.

One would be forgiven for assuming the Third Wave (of coffee, that is) never arrived in Salzburg but for a lone champion of specialty coffee in the city: Kaffee-Alchemie. Here, the truly alchemical properties of good coffee can be found and the café is worth a short trek along the river Salzach away from the tourist traps.

The brainchild of John Arild Stubberud, a Norwegian barista trainer and former judge of the World Barista Championship, Kaffee-Alchemie offers single-origin beans for all their coffees. Espresso shots on a La Marzocco GB5, using a Mahlkönig Twin grinder. Filter coffees are hand-brewed with care and precision.

There is a bohemian (hippie, not hipster) vibe to the café which encourages regulars to drop by for a quick pick-me-up or linger over V60-brewed Ethiopian Yirgacheffe or Brasil Santos. There ambiance is not unlike an Austrian Kaffeehaus from a couple of centuries ago punctured by the occasional beep of a smartphone.

Somehow one feels Maria and the von Trapp family would approve.

薩爾茨堡是音樂之聲愛好者的聖地；
可是來到這座奧地利的城市；除了參觀各處景點外，
又怎少得了一杯咖啡呢？畢竟奧地利的咖啡可是舉世聞名的啊。
這次的薩爾茨堡之行，
我們卻避開了遊客區的傳統奧地利咖啡館，
也沒試喝著名的維也納或艾斯班拿（Einspänner）咖啡。
而是在老城區，稍微遠離景點處；
找了一家第三波咖啡館Kaffee-Alchemie。

這家咖啡館的老闆是挪威人，除了是一位咖啡師培訓師外，
還曾擔任過世界咖啡師競標賽的評判，來頭不小。
在Kaffee-Alchemie，你可以選擇意式或來杯手沖咖啡，
兩者所用的都是單品豆子，而且無論口感或風味都不錯。
如果有興致，還可以和親切的咖啡師聊聊，
了解一下當地的咖啡文化。
由於位於老城區，咖啡館的空間并不大，
可是這家灑滿陽光的小店，卻給人一種隨性無拘束的舒適感。
來到薩爾茨堡，想在遠離鬧區的地方，
喝杯有別于奧地利傳統的咖啡，
不妨到Kaffee-Alchemie坐坐。