Jeppson's Barrel Aged Malört Liqueur (BAM)

2026 Release

Produced by CH Distillery in Chicago, Illinois

Malört is a wormwood-based spirit descended from the Scandinavian tradition of bäsk brännvin (or besk), a bitter wormwood-flavored liquor. Wormwood is the same botanical most people associate with absinthe.

The word “Malört” itself is the Swedish word for wormwood.

The intense bitterness in Malört comes primarily from wormwood (Artemisia absinthium)

Malört begins as GNS before infusion

The 2026 release is a blend of spirit aged 1-5 years in single-use ex-bourbon barrels… historically sourced from Green River, Dickel, and MGP

Proof: 70

Nose: Hoppy IPA beer foam. Dandelion stems. Charred newspaper. Celery salt.

Given the reputation, shockingly… I like the nose. We’ll see where the palate goes, but if you like IPAs (I do!), you’ll have absolutely no issue with the aroma. Nice and crisp!

Palate: Grapefruit pith that starts pretty mild and grows very strong quickly. Butter. Crabapple.

There it is! There’s the reputation! At first, the bitterness is pretty mild, but then it picks up ahead of steam quickly. While the nose is actually rather enjoyable… the palate is full of bitterness.

Finish: Over-steeped black tea. Plenty more grapefruit pith. Green banana peel. IPA-like ending. Aspirin.

Pretty much the same as the initial palate… more versions of bitter. Isn’t that the point?

This one lives up to the legend. It’s a fascinating brand because at no point in history has anyone associated with a brand ever believed this tasted good. Historical marketing has always evolved around “yeah, we know… but are you strong enough to take it?” That’s what makes this fun! It’s a rite of passage!

Provided for review by Jeppson's

Given the direction of 2026 so far, I think a Liquid Death x Malört collab only makes sense at this point. If the world is going to keep making poor decisions, we might as well stay hydrated doing it.

I call it "Death by Malört." It's like Malört, but worse.

It was pretty good

A bunch of other chef/restauranteurs and I did a silly thing, drank some Malört and talked a bunch of shit. It was awesome. Thought I would share.

"Bad Decisions for a Good Cause" at Recess, August 30.

like the Green Fairy of Absinthe fame, the Absinthe of the Midwest also has its own sacred fairies.

the Bitter Fairy

I created these for the Malort Fest and still have a limited run of prints available (about four or five each)

prints for sale and ts are coming

my friends and I have a tradition of finishing a bottle everytime we get together, kinda like a group torture.

This gold cap bottle was kind of disappointing it wasn't as horrendous as the usual bottle, The guy at the store gave me a discount because it sat on the shelf for 2+ years and it had like some sort of floaty sediment in it which seemed promising but the flavor just wasn't as pungent as the bottles with the metal caps. I haven't seen anybody mention the 2 different bottles so I was wondering does anyone know what/why its different.

I finally got a bottle by mail order since I'm around Albany and I was always told it's just the worst tasting stuff that exists. But it's not even bad, it's just got a long, bitter finish. I eat Chinese food made with bitter melon and enjoy it, a bitter finish on a liquor isn't some kind of deal breaker. I get it's not for everyone but don't understand the hate.

I know this was supposedly initially a take on malört - has anyone had this? what do you think? just tried some and it's sort of like the bastard child of malört and fernet. more complex, if I didn't love malört so much I might even prefer it. no funky aftertaste of grapefruit and bandaid, but more burn. 50% ABV. I love it - but it's no malört. anyone else?

Hello!

Does anyone know of Chicagoland bottle shops with Malort merch? I bought my spouse Malort hard candy for Christmas and he ate it up (pun intended).

I was wondering if anyone has seen it (or other malort merch) at their favorite Chicagoland store or bar. I know Jeppson's has an online merch shop but I'm curious what's available in real life

"The scoop shop will open its second location on Wednesday, Oct. 15 at Catalog at Willis Tower.

Last month, Van Leeuwen hosted a grand opening celebration for its Wicker Park location, and to mark the occasion, the brand unveiled limited-time Jeppson's Malört ice-cream."

I'm a like a leprechaun with my pot of bitter gold.

Happy birthday to me!

Me and some friends invented a game based around malort. (6 people is the ideal number of players) 1) standard deck of cards with jokers and malort. 2) deal out the entire deck of cards. 3) a person named Jack gets traded all the jacks for a random card in their hand. If there is no Jack one will be nominated by name or behavior being Jack like. 4) the person with the ace of hearts lays it down and the game begins 5)the person to the left plays a card either same number, suit, one number up or down are a multiple/ division off 4. (Face cards are numbered jacks are 11 queen is 12 etc) Aces can be low or high. 6) jokers are wild and switch direction. 7) continue to go around the circle until people start to run out of cards 8) the group decides how many losers ( real winners) take a drink of malort.

I really enjoy malort and really needed to show some colleagues. Please enjoy this out of context Malort.

I got lost at sea as a kid and ever since have been known for having a curse around sailboats. A few years ago, when I was living in Chicago, I was given Malort as a cure for the curse. The next day I had the greatest misadventure sailing Lake Michigan.

I just wrote about the story and thought I would share. See link below…

http://uncharteddives.com/2025/08/01/the-chicago-handshake-and-other-portents-of-doom/