Mozartkugel

The Mozartkugel, or Mozart ball, is a small round confection from Salzburg, Austria, made of a ball of marzipan and pistachio covered in nougat and dark chocolate. Its name honours the composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

History

The origin of the sweet is attributed to two Salzburg confectioners, and the sources do not agree. One account places its creation in 1880 and names Rudolf Baumann, a master pastry chef who arrived in the city that year and opened a shop in the Alter Markt. Another, the version best documented by the firm run by Paul Fürst's descendants, dates the invention to 1890, after lengthy trials in Fürst's pastry shop on Brodgasse.

Fürst never patented his invention, and other Salzburg cake shops soon sold similar products. This led to a long dispute over the name. Court settlements obliged competitors to use other labels, such as 'Real Salzburg' or 'Real Reber'. In the late 1970s a further conflict arose between the industrial maker Mirabell and Reber, which ended in a provisional agreement between the Austrian and German governments in 1981. The European Commission later declared that agreement invalid.

The handmade method, with the ball set on a stick so the chocolate can harden upright, has changed little. Today industrial imitations predominate, and most must have one flat side, with Mirabell the only maker allowed to produce round ones.

Culture

The Mozartkugel is one of the most recognisable sweets in Salzburg and is sold in confectioners, cafés and souvenir shops across the city. Many people buy it as a gift, and its foil wrapping has become part of the city's everyday image. Around 1.4 million pieces a year are estimated to be made by hand using the traditional technique, while the rest come from industrial production. In 2006 the documentary Mozartkugeln, directed by Larry Weinstein, brought the sweet to the screen.

Trivia