Heilig-Geist-Ausstellungsraum

There may be no vineyards in this neck of the woods but - with a little divine intervention - the Heilig-Geist-Stift-Schenke (Holy Spirit Foundation) has been producing its own wine for centuries. Passau's most historic restaurant is actually part of a former Franciscan monastery. In 1358, a wealthy local family created a foundation here for the poor, where residents lived for free on the condition that they prayed for the family in the adjoining chapel.

To fund the foundation, the family established vineyards in Krems (then also part of the Habsburg Empire, and now in Austria). Wine was given to residents with meals as a gesture of respect (providing they kept up their prayers, of course).During WWII, Germans were not permitted to own land over the border, and the foundation risked losing its vineyards, and by extension, the foundation itself. However, in a display of the cross-cultural connections harking back to the Habsburg era, Austrians claimed the vineyards as their own, protecting and working them until the end of the war, when they safely returned them.

The foundation remains as a subsidised residence today. Prayers are no longer required, but its frescoed Gothic chapel still gets plenty of visitors. Now it regularly hosts experimental contemporary art and sculpture exhibitions; pop in to see what's on. Best of all, you can taste the Stiftswein (Foundation Wine) at the Heilig-Geist-Stift-Schenke. Amen.