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Federal regulations prevented Jeppson’s Malort founder George Brode from marketing his aggressively bitter wormwood spirit on its supposed medicinal qualities. But at least some of his customers believed in it–particularly in its value as a digestif. One man brought a bottle of kidney stones into Brode’s office, claiming his faithful consumption of Malort had helped him to pass them, according to Brode’s former secretary and Jeppson’s honcho Pat Gabelick. “George also said that the girls on the [distillery] line–if they had cramps–they would take a shot and it would help.” At one time Malort was bottled with a dried wormwood stem for authenticity’s sake, but Gabelick says it became too labor intensive and Brode halted the practice. “People just called and complained bitterly,” she says (cue rimshot).
Gabelick says she still occasionally hears from annoyed customers that claim the taste of her powerfully bitter liqueur has changed over the years. “Sometimes I have people call me and complain and say it’s sweet,” she says. “They don’t mean it’s sweet the way they describe it. They just mean it’s not as bitter.” There’s good reason for that. Gabelick imports dried wormwood from Switzerland, but it’s possible the botanical is harvested from different regions in Europe–once she saw Romania listed on the shipping documents. The intensity of the bitterness can also be affected by variable harvests or by how old the herb is when it’s macerated. She ought to mark the bottles with vintages.
If you want to make your own Malort all you need is the booze and the wormwood, available from various online sources.
