Malort may be the worst thing you'll ever taste.
Known primarily for its intense bitterness, the infamous Chicago liqueur has been compared to "a forest fire, if the forest was made of earwax." Yet lurking in the horror and the mockery lies the truth of Malort: we keep going back for more. For nearly a hundred years, we've gone back.
Jeppson's Malort could have died a hundred deaths in that time. Its survival wasn't always a given. There were cultural shifts and fortunate timing that helped transform a drink rooted in centuries-old Swedish tradition into the American sensation it is today.
Malort is a story of love, relationships, and how one generation finds meaning where generations before did not.
Author and beer expert Josh Noel unpacks a uniquely American tale, equal parts culture, business, and personal relationships—involving secret love, federal prison, a David vs. Goliath court battle, and the 2018 sale of Jeppson's Malort, which made Pat Gabelick, a seventy-five-year-old Chicago woman who spent much of her life as a legal secretary, into an unlikely millionaire.
Malort isn't just the story of one brazen liquor—it is the story of modern tastes and cultural shifts.
