Notes for Franz Sacher: 1832 - The Sacher torte was created by pastry chef Franz Sacher (1816-1907) in 1832 for Prince Clemens Lothar Wensel Metternich (1773-1859) of Austria, the Austrian State Chancellor.
The prince enjoyed trying new dishes and ordered the chef to create a new cake. Orders were sent to the kitchens where it was instant pandemonium. The head chef was sick and the team of cooks in the kitchen had no idea what to prepare. Franz Sacher, a 16-year old apprentice cook, rolled up his sleeves and created this famous chocolate cake with the ingredients that were available. The Sacher Torte and other recipes made him prosperous, and he operated several cafes and restaurants.
1876 - In 1876, Franz's son, Eduard Sacher, opened a grand hotel called the Hotel Sacher, but it was Eduard's dynamic, cigar-smoking wife, Anna, who turned it into one of Europe's greatest hostelries where the aristocracy and diplomats would meet. After Eduard's death his widow, Anna Sacher, became manager. Under her rule, the hotel became one of the finest hotels in the world, where the aristocracy and diplomats would meet, and by the time of her death in 1930 it was a national institution.
1965 - For some unknown reason (date unknown), Franz Sacher Jr., a son of Eduard and his wife Anna, later sold his original recipe to Demel's, a fancy coffee cafe on the Kohlmarkt, allowing them to produce a rival torte. Both the Hotel Sacher and the Demel Patisserie claimed to produce the "original" Sachertorte. These two world-famous institutions engaged in a lawsuit which lasted for years. The judgement in 1965 went in favor of Sacher, giving them the right to the “Original Sacher Torte” while Dehmel had to be satisfied with the “Original Eduard Sacher Torte”. The main difference between the two recipes is that in Sacher's case, the layer of jam is between two layers of the chocolate sponge, while in Demel's version the jam is on top of the sponge but under the chocolate covering.
Franz Sacher (b. 1816, d. 1907)
Notes for Franz Sacher: