🥃 Goldwasser

Goldwasser (“golden water”) is a spiced herbal liqueur from Gdańsk with thin sheets of gold leaf floating in it. The best-known version, Original Danziger Goldwasser, comes from the Der Lachs liqueur factory.

History. According to the tourism portal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Ambrosien Vermöllen, a Mennonite from Lier in Brabant, founded Gdańsk's first liqueur factory and brought the Goldwasser recipe with him. His descendant Salomon Vermöller moved the firm in 1704 into a building with a salmon sign, which is where the name Der Lachs (“the salmon”) comes from. The brand owner Hardenberg-Wilthen dates the Danzig factory to about 1598 and the Goldwasser to 1606, and says it took majority ownership of Der Lachs in 1971.

Composition. The portal says the original recipe is lost: it was probably passed on by word of mouth and changed over time. It mentions various roots and herbs, a little sandalwood and rosewood, a strong aniseed or cognac spirit, sugar and gold leaf. The roots macerate for about six weeks, distillation takes about two weeks, sugar is added over roughly three months, and the drink matures for at least a year. The portal adds that experts regard German producers' claims to the original recipe as a publicity stunt. The producer's brand page mentions 22-carat gold leaf. Under EU rules a liqueur has at least 15% ABV and usually at least 100 g of sugar per litre.

Why this matters to you. Gold in the bottle is decoration, not a health benefit; this is first of all a sweet, strong liqueur. Goldwasser labels differ between brands, so read the label. The WHO reminds us: there is no safe level of alcohol consumption.