There is no better place to get a first impression of Austria's dynamic, trendy wine scene than in its cosmopolitan capital. No, I'm not going to tell you about five-course degustation menus at famous Viennese gourmet temples or cozy romantic visits to the Heurigern among the vineyards on the outskirts of the city; you can read about those in all the guidebooks. We are going to join the young Viennese in their newest favorite pastime, swirling Austrian wine in long-stemmed Riedels in the ever-growing number of inner city wine bars.

Never before have Vienna's bars had such a large and diverse selection of wines by the glass. Vienna has been a multicultural city throughout history, a place where north meets south, occident meets orient. As home of the UNO-City, renowned University, and major European convention center it remains a cultural mixing pot today and this is reflected in the city's gastronomy. Roman is going to be my guide tonight and he has promised that we will put the versatility of Austrian wine to the test at many of these establishments by pairing it with many different kinds of foods.

The best initiation to Vienna is at the Naschmarkt in the city's 6th district. This historic market combines typical Viennese sales spiel with the atmosphere of an oriental bazaar. Here you can barter, badger, holler and bargain to your heart's content while sampling everything from bratwurst to calamari to sushi to kebab. Across from this all is the Wein & Co. Naschmarkt Bar .This is the original bar from the eccentric Wine & Co. merchant Heinz Kammerer and it is the totally hip place for wine lovers to meet. It is always packed and lots of fun. The big hit is not just that you can choose from over 100 wines by the glass, you can buy a bottle in the shop and drink it in the bar without paying a cork fee! I decide to reward myself for some successful shopping with a heavenly glass of Kracher 1998 No. 3 Scheurebe Trockenbeerenauslese and a small portion of goose liver paté. Connoisseurs prize the noble sweet wines from Luis Kracher the world over and the ones from the aromatic Scheurebe grape are my personal favorites. I feel really energized by this special treat and ready for a whirlwind tour of the city.

Our next stop in the 6th district is Vinissimo on Windmühlgasse 20. This is a wine bar in the classic definition with high-quality bistro food, 20 or so wines by the glass that vary daily; all for a fair price. I am lucky enough to be here in the spring, so I try the Austrian white asparagus from the Marchfeld along with a Styrian rarity: a light, delicate, completely dry Gelber Muskateller from Alois Gross in South Styria.

Manfred Stranetz searched the country for the best raw products from the most dedicated artisan producers for his kitchen at Winetime on Zollergasse 5 in the 7th district. A stylish but not overdone interior and truly good music makes this a favorite place to meet with friends and choose from over 30 different wines by the glass. I can't resist the smoked duck filet with a sesame seed dressing and a glass of St. Laurent from Gernot Heinrich.

Before taking the subway to Stephansplatz, Roman tells me of another new wine bar in the 8th district called Wein & Wasser , "It's too bad it's not on the way, it's quite chic." Evidently the vaulted brick interior is furnished nearly minimalist and the menu also has a new age slant with a large selection of bottled water, top wines by the glass, and food leaning heavily on organic products from Austria. I'll make a point of going there next time.

As we step out of the subway station, Roman smiles and says, "An American should never visit Vienna without strolling across Stephansplatz." As I look up at the imposing Stephansdom Cathedral and surrounding pulsating city square, I must admit that the feeling of standing in the very heart of Europe makes me a little high. It is nearly 5 PM, the glamorous shops are all still open, but some of the office workers are calling it a day and meeting with friends to wind down. The wine bars offer a relaxed atmosphere and a small snack to tide you over until dinnertime. One of the favorite places to go is Meinl's Am Graben. This is THE address for experience grocery shopping in Austria. Caviar, sushi, salad, pasta, cheese, and patisserie: you can taste it all before you buy. There is a restaurant upstairs and the wine bar is (where else?) in the wine cellar! They do have their own Meinl Edition wines, but I'd recommend the Schloss Gobelsburg Grüner Veltliner from the Ried Lamm vineyard. This represents the new avant-garde of the GV grape. A portion of the wine has gone through malolactic fermentation in small oak barrels. The resulting full-bodied wine has an animated spicy fruit and a creamy succulent texture that make it a scrumptious combination with the platter of mixed antipasti.

There are two more wine bars that are particularly popular at happy hour. Unger & Klein on Gölsdorfgasse 2 is said to have originally been Vienna's most beautiful wine shop. Now wine lovers can taste before they buy and snack on Italian antipasti, pannini, or a tasty selection of cheeses. Upon being asked for a juicy, fruity wine to go with just about everything, Helmut Unger recommended a red wine from the Carnuntum district. The Zweigelt from the Glatzer winery is round, supple and has good concentrated fruit. Vis-à-vis on Wollzeile 5 was perhaps the first successful wine bar in Vienna and has become a long-established favorite with locals. The money saved on interior decoration was invested in top glassware. This is a great, unpretentious place to taste rare wines from all over Austria.

Beginning to feel a bit hungry again, we decide to put Austrian wine to a very difficult versatility test with Asian food. Yohm on Petersplatz seems to offer the perfect opportunity. Although not actually a wine bar, the restaurant is upstairs and downstairs there is a casual place to eat and they do have a large selection of reasonably priced wines by the bottle or the glass. Knowing that we will continue to eat at other places this evening, we order the mixed plate of the day's sushi and sashimi. What wine could possibly go with wasabi, ginger, soy sauce, or chili? It seems that the Zierfandler from the Thiel winery in the Thermenregion may be worth a try. The Zierfandler is a white grape with an uncanny ability to ripen to a bursting sugar content without turning rotten or losing its acidity. Perhaps the potent extract a small dose of residual sugar will be a decent match. The wine has a delicate spicy-nutty nose, a surprisingly weighty mouth-filling body with restrained fruit and mineral nuances that linger with a satin texture and slightly bittersweet finish. I never thought I would drink any other than tea or beer with this type of Asian dish. I have now found a new favorite! As long as I go light on the chili, this wine harmonizes and holds its own quite nicely. Roman explains there are fusion dishes where a Grüner Veltliner or a Riesling offer fantastic possibilities for pairing.

After the success of the wine bar Vis-à-vis and the traditional Viennese Beisl Weibel's Wirtshaus, the local wine guru Hans Weibel opened Weibel 3 on Riemergasse. The staff here is well trained and can recommend the ideal wine from a very large selection of Austria's best to accompany some of the most perfectly prepared food in the city-anything from Viennese classics to very tasty Eurasian creations. A great discovery here was a deep, complex and concentrated red wine blend from the Prieler winery in Burgenland's Neusiedlersee-Hügelland district The Cuvée '99 Schutzener Stein combines the spice and depth of Blaufränkisch with the noble elegance of Cabernet and animated fruit. I loved this together with the lamb cutlets in a rosemary-thyme crust with polenta and sautéed spring vegetables.

I think it's a combination of the warm brick-red walls, Spanish flair, and friendly master sommelières Dagmar Gross and Michaela Hebenstreit that make the atmosphere at Tinto Rosso so cozy and relaxed. Ernst Triebaumer's Blaufränkisch from the Ried Gmärk vineyard matches a wide selection of Spanish tapas splendidly. This is a place for long conversations with friends or for a romantic rendezvous.

We decide to cap off the night with one last stop at the sister branch of our starting point. After the success of the wine bar at the Naschmarkt, Wein & Co decided to go for a repeat in the Stephansplatz branch and added a complete kitchen crew to boot. The success seemed guaranteed and indeed the place is always just as packed. Here you see that wine is definitely not a drink for fuddy-duddies. The clientele comes in all colors, shapes, sizes, and ages and is just as diverse as the selection of what must be around 300 different wines. The food here is fresh, creative, and delicious and if you don't mind eating while rubbing elbows with the next table, you'll probably enjoy all the boisterous conversation as well. The pan-fried stream trout (Bachsaibling) with lots of herbs and sautéed leeks, tomatoes, and potatoes with a peppery glass of Grüner Veltliner Federspiel from Nikolaihof sounds absolutely mouth-watering, but I am simply no longer hungry. I choose an Austrian brandy from Freie Weingärtner Wachau, a 7-year-old distilled wine from Grüner Veltliner to linger over.

At our neighboring table sits Egor from Bosnia, Jens from Holland, and Cindy from Australia; three students from the University in Vienna. They tell me of yet two other good wine bars in the first district. The Eulennest gets its name from the previous owner who was an owl collector. Florian Deutsch has kept a few symbolic owls, but the bar has a new main theme: Austrian wine. This, they say, is another great place to collect insider tips on Austria's boutique wineries. "You just have to see the 17th century carousel organ with carved wooden figures that move to the music as it plays once an hour at the Weinorgel on the Bäckerstrasse!" exclaims Cindy. Egor adds that despite this historic attraction, it is the large selection of wines and the chatty atmosphere that keeps the place full of young locals rather than curious tourists. Alas, it is closing hour at 2 AM at the Viennese wine bars. I'll have to return again - all in the line of research, of course. It's a tough job.