Let's take a look together at the history, production and tradition of Mozart balls so you can taste the real thing!

When you spend your holidays in Bad Gastein or in the Salzburg area, it would be a sin not to try Mozart balls, which are one of the most typical sweets of Austria. Their production began in Salzburg by Paul Fürst in 1890 - unfortunately, the production is not patented, so there are several other manufacturers of Mozart balls who try to approximate the recipe as closely as possible (e.g. Regel and Mirabell). The history of the production of the original Mozart balls by Fürst was based on perfecting the chocolate pralines with different ingredients so that the whole ball would look perfect and cause ecstasy on the taste buds. Then something perfect was created - nougat, which was combined with the luxurious taste of pistachio marzipan, coated in dark chocolate. Originally, this treat was called Mozart candy, but later, after expanding production, it was renamed Mozart Kugeln.

Production - Ingredients of Mozart balls

The core of the ball consists of high-quality pistachio marzipan made from fresh pistachio nuts. The marzipan is covered with a layer of nougat cream and a layer of dark chocolate closes the surface. As Fürst's production is completely original and prides itself on handmade, you won't come across a perfect round shape - Fürst's balls are slightly conical. And why conical? The balls are skewered on wooden sticks and dipped in dark chocolate, then placed on wooden boards to set the confectionery perfectly. Once the wooden sticks have set, they are removed from the sphere and the chocolate is injected into them. The ball is now ready and must be wrapped in its original silver packaging with a blue picture of Mozart.

As the balls were not patented, various disputes dragged on about their production and the actual copying. As a result, the court ruled that the Fürst Balls were the only ones allowed to use the name: Original Salzburger Mozartkugeln - Original Salzburg Mozart Balls.

where to buy genuine Mozart balls

The tradition of Paul Fürst has been preserved and his descendants now offer handmade balls directly in Salzburg, where they have 3 shops of their own, namely:

• Brodgasse Street
• Ritzerbogen Street
• Getreidegasse Street

As far as price is concerned, the genuine balls are more expensive than the industrially produced ones (Mirabell, Reber, Hofbauer, Manner, Lambertz), also due to the handmade production. For Fürst, count on a price of around 1 euro for 1 ball, while other manufacturers offer 1 ball for around 30 cents.

So, if you fancy a taste of Salzburg's original culinary heritage, make sure you go to one of the addresses - you may have to stand in line - because every tourist and local loves to taste the sweet treat that made Salzburg famous.

How far is Salzburg from Bad Gastein?

Book your room at the Residence AlpenHeart and enjoy your holiday to the full in the Austrian paradise of Bad Gastein.