Sankt Petrus Aquavit
Bad Oldesloe, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
- ABV
- 38%
- Base spirit
- Unknown
- Color
- Clear
- Style
- Unaged Aquavit
Sankt Petrus Aquavit was a German aquavit produced in Bad Oldesloe, Schleswig-Holstein, by August Ernst. The surviving miniature bottlings shown here are 40 ml bottles at 38% vol., with several label variations, including blue and dark-green designs. Their labels carry the wording aus dem Hause Aug. Ernst · Bad Oldesloe and recommend serving the aquavit ice-cold (eisgekühlt servieren). A later full-size export bottling is documented at 700 ml and 40% vol., showing that the product was also sold at a higher strength.
The recipe was centred on caraway, accompanied by other herbs and spices. Material connected with August Ernst’s international promotion of the product specifically identifies caraway, coriander and aniseed, together with additional undisclosed aromatic herbs. A former Japanese importer likewise described selected caraway, herbs and spices as the basis of Sankt Petrus.
The name and label imagery have a particularly strong connection with Bad Oldesloe. Saint Peter is the central figure in the city’s historic coat of arms, shown with the key traditionally associated with him; the city explains that Peter entered the Oldesloe arms because the medieval town church was dedicated to him. The Sankt Petrus label similarly depicts the saint with his keys, making the product name closely tied to its place of origin rather than simply a generic religious reference.
Sankt Petrus remained part of the August Ernst range into the twenty-first century and was still being presented in connection with the company’s international expansion in 2014–2015. It was later discontinued and no longer forms part of the current August Ernst spirits portfolio.
About the producer
August Ernst GmbH & Co. KG
Bad Oldesloe, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
August Ernst GmbH & Co. KG is a family-owned spirits producer based in Bad Oldesloe, Schleswig-Holstein. The business began in 1898, when master distiller and farmer August Ernst established a Korn distillery together with an agricultural operation in Bad Oldesloe. Its early specialities included Oldesloer Korn and Oldesloer Kümmel, which became the foundation of the company’s regional spirits business.
In 1948, August Ernst transferred the distillery to his son Richard Ernst, who expanded its sales network beyond the traditional regional market. Harald Ernst joined the management in 1964 as the third generation of the family. Continued growth led the company to acquire a 16,000-square-metre site in Bad Oldesloe’s industrial area in 1971, where a new production facility was built; a further major distillery expansion was completed in 1990. Thomas Ernst entered the management in 1993 as the fourth generation.
Expansion also came through acquisitions. August Ernst purchased Erkelenzer Kornbrennerei in 1978, the Specht fruit distillery in 1980, and Meeraner Spirituosen und Weinkellerei, including the Greizer liqueur and herbal distillery, in 1992. These acquisitions broadened both the company’s production capacity and its portfolio of German spirits brands.
August Ernst remains a family-owned spirits company headquartered in Bad Oldesloe. Today it produces and distributes brands including Oldesloer, Greizer, Specht, Meeraner, Romanza Amaretto, Stern-Marke, Holborn, Zinnaer Klosterbruder and Scharlachberg, continuing more than a century of distilling activity in the town.