Flakes of gold have traditionally been added to food and drinks such as teas and chocolates in many countries. Gold flakes can even be found in numerous cosmetic products. The Italian cinnamon schnapps Goldschläger is a clear liqueur known for containing very thin but visible real flakes of gold swirling within. In actuality only about a tenth of a gram of gold is contained in a 750mL bottle. Goldschläger is a German word meaning “gold beater” and describes the profession of gold leaf makers who beat bars of gold into thin sheets. A myth associated with why the liqueur contains gold flakes is that the flakes of gold make microscopic cuts along the lining of the esophagus and stomach hastening the time it takes for the alcohol to enter the bloodstream and thus shortening the amount of time to reach intoxication. However, because gold, especially 24k gold which is used in the liqueur, is soft and malleable the flakes have no sharp edges and therefore cannot scratch or cut anything.
Tags: gold flakes, gold myths, Goldschläger, liqueur
I definitely like the idea of drinking gold and not getting so high.This is really a good Italian idea of a drink.Though I have not seen this before,I sure want to taste it.I use to really think Gold was poisonous.Now I know better
I thought that was just an urban myth. Take if from an old booze hound. and it’s no harder to drink than any other similar drink without the gold. Actually, I’ve never really been certain What the purpose of the gold flakes is. I suppose it is similar to the cakes that I have seen that are covered with gold leaf, doesn’t really do anything for the taste, but there is something about the idea of ingesting gold that is appealing.
I tasted this once and I never so anything spectacular about it except that I kept thinking all week about the gold in my tummy.