Sachertorte

Sachertorte (UK: /ˈzæxərtɔːrtə/ ZAKH-ər-tor-tə, US: /ˈsɑːkərtɔːrt/ ^ⓘ SAH-kər-tort, German: [ˈzaxɐˌtɔʁtə] ^ⓘ, Austrian German: [ˈsaxɐˌtɔrtɛ]) is a chocolate sponge cake covered with chocolate glaze, with an interior layer of apricot jam either under the glaze or in the middle of two sponge layers. The cake was invented by Franz Sacher, either in 1832 for Austrian chancellor Klemens von Metternich, or perhaps in the 1840s.

Sachertorte

Sachertorte from the Hotel Sacher, Vienna
Place of origin	Vienna, Austria
Created by	Franz Sacher
Main ingredients	Chocolate sponge cake, apricot jam, chocolate glaze
Cookbook: Sachertorte   Media: Sachertorte

The cake is served at Hotel Sacher and Demel pastry shop in Vienna. In the 20th century, they battled over the cake's ownership and whether the cake should have one or two layers of sponge. Both keep their exact recipes secret, but the cake's ingredients include butter, chocolate, eggs, flour, and sugar. Hotel Sacher serves the cake with whipped cream.

History

Franz Sacher invented the cake in the 19th century.

Franz Sacher was the inventor of Sachertorte (also spelled Sacher-Torte and Sacher Torte),^[1] torte being a German word for a multi-layered cake with a filling.^[2] Sacher worked as a chef in Vienna and Pressburg for Prince Metternich,^[3] and was trained under Metternich's chef Chambellier.^[4] According to one story, he made the cake in 1832 for Metternich and his friends. However, according to an interview Sacher gave in 1906, he created the cake in the 1840s at his restaurant in Pressburg.^[3] Several food writers have indicated that the cake was created in 1832.^[5] His son, Eduard, claimed in 1888 that Sacher created the cake for Metternich.^[6] After Eduard opened Hotel Sacher in 1876,^[7][8] the cake made its way to the hotel's menu.^[3] After its creation, the cake became widely popular in Vienna, surpassing the popularity of Linzer torte.^[9] The cake also became popular in other cities in Europe, such as Paris, Berlin, and London, and was even shipped over the ocean, such as to the United States, India, and Japan.^[10] The cake was introduced in the Austrian food codex (Latin: Codex Alimentarius Austriacus) in 1894^[11] and in the English vocabulary in the early 20th century.^[12]

The cake was first published in Die Süddeutsche Kirche of Katharina Prato, calling it "A Chocolate Cake. A La Sacher".^[13] She helped popularise the cake in her books.^[14] Other writers, such as Louise Seleskowitz, Klara Fuchs, Anna Bauer, and Anna Fink also featured the cake in their books.^[13] By the 1930s, the cake had become omnipresent and there were many versions of it.^[14] In the 1930s, the hotel entered a legal battle with the pastry shop Demel over the cake's ownership. The shop introduced the cake as "Eduard Sacher-Torte" in 1934, while the hotel had the cake under the name "Original Sacher-Torte".^[3] Demel's argument was based on the fact that they had obtained the right to produce the cake from Eduard, while Hotel Sacher based their argument on the family connection.^[15] Hans Gürtler, one of the hotel's investors, took the shop to court in 1938 and won.^[3]

After World War II, the dispute resurfaced in the Austrian Supreme Court. This time, there was also a dispute on whether the cake should have one layer of sponge, preferred by Demel, or two layers, preferred by the hotel.^[3] The dispute over the ownership remained complicated as Eduard had connections to both Hotel Sacher and Demel.^[16] The case ended in 1963,^[8] with the court eventually siding with Hotel Sacher on the ownership and Demel on the number of layers.^[3] In response to the court ruling, Demel had to change the name of its Sachertorte to Ur-Sachertorte.^[17] Since then, Hotel Sacher and Demel have retained their duopoly over the cake, though Hotel Sacher outsells Demel by five to one.^[16] Other pastry shops and restaurants have tried to replicate the original Sachertorte.^[11]

The cake spread outside of Austria, such as in Massachusetts in the United States.^[18] In July 2025, a Želiezovce café in Slovakia, where Franz Sacher once worked, was renovated and began selling Sachertorte.^[19]

Ingredients and preparation

The cake is modelled after a chocolate biscuit.^[20] The Austrian food codex (Latin: Codex Alimentarius Austriacus) describes the cake's ingredients and preparation in detail. Sachertorte has to be a chocolate sponge cake and covered with apricot jam, chocolate glaze, and sugar. The primary ingredients must be butter, chocolate, eggs, flour, and sugar. The recipe calls for whipping the butter and melting the chocolate. The chocolate and sugar are then combined and mixed. The mixture is then thickened with egg yolks and flour before being folded with egg whites. The batter should be baked for an hour. After baking, apricot jam is placed on top of the cake, which is then coated with chocolate glaze.^[21] Nuts can be added if the name of the cake reflects their inclusion.^[3] Viennese bakers recommend using cake tins with rounded edges. However, those without a such pan could round the edges with hot strained jam.^[22]

Demel has one layer, and puts the apricot jam below the chocolate glaze, while Hotel Sacher puts the jam in the middle of two layers.^[23][24] Both keep their exact recipes secret.^[25][26] Hotel Sacher serves the cake with whipped cream,^[21] which is also popular in other places in Vienna.^[27] According to Elisabeth Gürtler, the director of Hotel Sacher, the cake can also be served with champagne.^[28]

In culture

Sachertorte is a popular dish in Vienna and other regions of Austria,^[29] as well as other German-speaking countries, particularly during festive periods.^[30] the food writer Michael Krondl described it as "easily [the] city's most storied confection". Hotel Sacher ships its cakes worldwide.^[3] According to the food writer Felicity Cloake, it is sometimes attributed as Sigmund Freud's favourite cake.^[31] In Japan, McDonald's offered the cake for ¥360 in 2015.^[32] A cinematography festival in Italy was named after the cake,^[33] including the book The Sachertorte Algorithm.^[34]

Reception

Eduard claims that Metternich liked the cake.^[10] According to Krondl, Sachertorte is "almost the personification of the sweet".^[3] Roland Mischek of Die Welt described the cake as "sweet, delicate, and with a flawless surface" (German: süß, delikat und mit makelloser Oberfläche).^[29] Writing for the BBC News, Bethany Bell complained that the Sachertorte almost always "looks better than it tastes", unless "homemade with extra chocolate".^[28] The cake is well-acclaimed. Author Franz Maier-Bruck wrote that the cake's taste is "delicate and mild" (zart und mild) and that it is not too soft, sweet, dry, and gritty. He added that the success of Sachertote lies in the balance of its ingredients, the baking process, and the smoothness of the glaze.^[11]