One of my very favourite things about living in Vienna? The heurigen (singular, ‘heuriger’). Incredible winelands are found just on the outskirts of the city. (I like to think that this is one of the key reasons Vienna is so eminently liveable). A heuriger is a wine garden, owned by a family-run winemaker. It’s always filled with local regulars year-round, who come for an hour or two in the evening to drink a bit of wine, have a chat, and listen to, in most cases, live music or singing, and have a simple bite to eat.

This typical Viennese pastime was created by Emperor Franz Josef, who passed a law allowing these family winemakers to sell their wine directly to the public, and serve food alongside it. ‘Heurige’ is an abbreviation of ‘heuriger Wein’—‘this year’s wine’—and it allows winemakers to sell their young wines straight to the public.