2 ms·

Tried it when I was in Chicago. If you enjoy bitter amari like Cynar or Averna you won't find this particularly especially bracing. It's an interesting local cu

by Niksko 2y ago

Tried it when I was in Chicago. If you enjoy bitter amari like Cynar or Averna you won't find this particularly especially bracing. It's an interesting local curiosity, but it's sort of _just_ bitter with not much else in terms of flavour.

anamexis 2y ago
That's interesting, because I would consider Malört substantially more bracingly bitter than Cynar or Averna.
kasey_junk 2y ago
The problem with malort isn’t the bitter, it’s the lack of quality. I love amaros and bitter liqueurs, but malort is a hard pass.
- dgently7 2y ago
  Not sure if it’s still around but there was a local bartender there who made his own high quality version of Malört. You could find it at a few distributors around called “franklins malort” but I heard they got a cease letter and then renamed it to “bësk”. Compared to the jepesens was like bud light to a craft brew. Way better balance, still the bitter grapefruit, but also with a ton of other aromatics and spices. That stuff was delicious.
  - tptacek 2y ago
    Leatherbee (iirc) made one; they had it at Publican for awhile. Here's the problem: Malort is a Bask, which is its own whole kind of digestif. If you make a Malort-like Bask on purpose, as opposed to finding it in a puddle in the basement and bottling it like Jeppson's did, what you come up with will probably be fine. I remember not hating the Leatherbee stuff (but it was incredibly high ABV and we all got pretty messed up on it).
tptacek 2y ago
Even someone who has never had an amaro might enjoy Cynar (artichoke; powerfully vegetal with a sweet finish, refreshing in a lot of the way a slice of cucumber in water is) or Averna (orange and anise, what's not to like?). If you take a sip of Malort and your brain doesn't immediately scream POISON, something is wrong.

2 ms·

Tried it when I was in Chicago. If you enjoy bitter amari like Cynar or Averna you won't find this particularly especially bracing. It's an interesting local cu

by Niksko 2y ago

anamexis 2y ago
That's interesting, because I would consider Malört substantially more bracingly bitter than Cynar or Averna.
kasey_junk 2y ago
The problem with malort isn’t the bitter, it’s the lack of quality. I love amaros and bitter liqueurs, but malort is a hard pass.
- dgently7 2y ago
  Not sure if it’s still around but there was a local bartender there who made his own high quality version of Malört. You could find it at a few distributors around called “franklins malort” but I heard they got a cease letter and then renamed it to “bësk”. Compared to the jepesens was like bud light to a craft brew. Way better balance, still the bitter grapefruit, but also with a ton of other aromatics and spices. That stuff was delicious.
  - tptacek 2y ago
    Leatherbee (iirc) made one; they had it at Publican for awhile. Here's the problem: Malort is a Bask, which is its own whole kind of digestif. If you make a Malort-like Bask on purpose, as opposed to finding it in a puddle in the basement and bottling it like Jeppson's did, what you come up with will probably be fine. I remember not hating the Leatherbee stuff (but it was incredibly high ABV and we all got pretty messed up on it).
tptacek 2y ago
Even someone who has never had an amaro might enjoy Cynar (artichoke; powerfully vegetal with a sweet finish, refreshing in a lot of the way a slice of cucumber in water is) or Averna (orange and anise, what's not to like?). If you take a sip of Malort and your brain doesn't immediately scream POISON, something is wrong.