When winter arrives in western Austria and the sun disappears all too quickly behind the snow-capped Alps, you can stand in bare orchards and still taste the sun-ripened fruit that the trees once bore — just sip a glass of schnapps. For centuries, farmers in the Tyrol region have mashed, fermented and distilled apples, plums, apricots and other fruit into schnapps, a strong spirit enjoyed most commonly as a digestif. It is sometimes infused with local herbs and plants, like fruit from the Austrian stone pine. Not only does this elixir warm the soul; it also provides a strong dose of a deep local tradition. In Austria, especially in the mountains of Tyrol, “schnapps is both,” she said.

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Persons: Ischgl, ”, Monika Unterholzner, “ schnapps Locations: Austria, Tyrol, schnapps, Tyrolean, “