Flensburger Schiffer Aquavit is a traditional northern German aquavit produced by Braasch Flensburg GmbH & Co. KG in Flensburg, Schleswig-Holstein. Its historical roots trace back to the Colonialwaaren-Handel H. P. Schmidt, founded in 1779. In 1867, the business was taken over by Jürgen Brodersen, grandson of the long-distance West Indies captain Asmus Brodersen, who continued it under the name J. Brodersen, Flensburg.

The Brodersen family’s maritime history is closely tied to the frigate Urania, built in 1826 in Stettin. For more than 40 years, the ship sailed Atlantic trade routes between Flensburg and the Danish colony of St. Croix (today U.S. Virgin Islands), transporting sugar, rum, timber, spices, and returning with coal, bricks, and provisions. This long-standing West Indian trade helped establish Flensburg’s reputation as a historic Rumstadt. The voyage tradition ended in 1866 when Urania was lost in a hurricane off Puerto Plata.

In honor of his grandfather and the ship, Jürgen Brodersen later created the well-known Flensburger Schiffer-Rum-Verschnitt. Alongside it, he introduced a Scandinavian-inspired aquavit, served at a measured temperature alongside hearty meals. Today, Braasch continues this tradition with Flensburger Schiffer Aquavit, produced according to an old Flensburg recipe.

The aquavit is made from a matured wheat fine distillate combined with selected herbs, following the character of the historical formulation but bottled at a recognizably Nordic strength of 42% vol. It represents the continuation of the Brodersen family’s local spirit-making heritage and Flensburg’s maritime cultural identity.