Gorch Fock Aquavit
Niederhatzhofen, Bayern, Germany
- ABV
- 40%
- Base spirit
- Unknown
- Color
- Pale Gold
- Style
- Unaged Aquavit
Gorch Fock Aquavit is a 40% alcohol herbal spirit (aquavit), based on caraway (“Kümmel”) and enhanced with fine herbal distillates. It is produced and marketed by Rola – “Rola GmbH & Co. KG”.
The taste is described as spicy yet mild, typical for a Scandinavian-style aquavit.
The brand has a considerably longer history than its current association with Rola. Vintage bottles show that Gorch Fock Aquavit was already produced in West Germany in the 1970s by Gebr. Kocks of Herten, Westphalia. A surviving 0.7-litre, 40% ABV bottling from this period carries a “DLG Prämiert 1974” distinction, confirming that Gorch Fock was established by at least 1974.
About the producer
Rola GmbH & Co. KG
Niederhatzhofen, Bayern, Germany
Rola Weinbrennerei und Likörfabrik GmbH & Co. KG is one of Germany’s largest spirits producers. The company was founded in 1946 by a family displaced from Upper Silesia and has operated ever since in Niederhatzkofen, now part of Rottenburg an der Laaber in Bavaria. Its official address is Graf-Preysing-Str. 14, 84056 Rottenburg a.d. Laaber. Over decades, Rola has grown from a small post-war distillery into a highly automated facility producing around 50 million bottles per year.
Rola specializes in private-label spirits for major retailers, manufacturing vodka, rum, gin, liqueurs, herbal spirits, cream liqueurs, and flavored alcoholic drinks. Most products appear under retail brands rather than the Rola name.
The company remains family-run, employs roughly 100 people, and generates an annual turnover of about €160-170 million. It operates under modern food-industry certifications and uses advanced distillation, maceration, and bottling technology.