Goldwasser

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About Goldwasser
Wikipedia Article About Goldwasser on Wikipedia

Danziger Goldwasser (English translation: Gold water from Gdańsk, Literally: Danzig's gold water) is the registered tradename of a strong (40%) root and herbal liqueur that has been produced since 1598 in Gdańsk, Poland.

The drink was invented by a Dutchman from Lier, Ambrosius Vermöllen, who became a citizen of Danzig on 6 July 1598. Production moved in 1704 to a new premises. At that time it was common for the houses to use animal heads instead of numbers, and the new factory featured a salmon on the facade; hence the naming of the brand Der Lachs. Production of the drink in Berlin as well as Gdańsk was commenced by the Der Lachs company in 1922, and such production continued in Germany after the return of Gdańsk to Poland after the Second World War. It has also been produced in Gdańsk under other brand names through to the present day.

Goldwasser was also called Gdańska Złotówka (Gdańsk gold) or Złota Woda (Gold water). Legend has it that when King Sigismund II of Poland visited Gdańsk in 1549 on his tour of the country after his coronation, part of the Polish city authorities' homage to the newly crowned monarch was a gift of Goldwasser, and he is said to have sung the praises of the golden drink often along the rest of his route after Gdańsk.