A city but also a band
Apr. 9th, 2023 12:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kathleen_daileyEvery now and again I, an ex-Chicagoan, seek to restore my original factory settings and go in search of confirmation of memories. This leads to randomly compulsive browsing of the Tribune, the Chicago Reader, Chicago History, and the Hyde Park Herald, among other sites. Sometimes the memories come looking for the expatriate, however. Recently I saw an article in The Economist on Jeppson's Malört.
CH Distillery, the current manufacturer of the wormwood-based spirit, notes in a timeline that "[during Prohibition] Carl Jeppson begins producing his 'bäskbrännvin' (a traditional Swedish-style of bitters) and sells it as a 'medicinal' product that rid its imbibers of stomach worms and other parasites in the body. Jeppson skirts federal regulation given the recurring conclusion by law enforcement that nobody would drink his concoction recreationally." Later, "[in] an effort to keep Malört’s full-bodied flavor, [two subsequent owners] secured a long-term source for the strongest, most unpalatable wormwood."
I can't remember how I learned years ago that Jeppson was a Swede, but I know that I wasn't surprised. According to Wikipedia, he said that his tastebuds had been ruined by years of smoking. As a member-by-marriage of a large Swedish family, I'm more inclined to think that the tastebud deficit might be part of my spouse's genetic heritage. Just consider the spouse's--and the entire family's--favorite Christmas meal: lutefisk ("lye fish," which is reconstituted dried salt cod, boiled until really truly dead, served in a white sauce, garnished with white potatoes and cauliflower, all arranged on a white plate.) The big debate in our clan was not what green vegetables or condiments to serve, but whether the white sauce should be spiked with a grind or two of black pepper or a sparse sprinkle of allspice. I've been told that shouting matches have been triggered by family members coming out in favor of one or the other. (I'm pretty sure lutefisk wouldn't have been on the menu in the lavish Christmas scene in Fanny and Alexander.)
I may ask whether CH Distillery will ship Malört to Canada. Even though the LCBO sells a Canadian-made absinthe, somehow I can't picture the People's Dispensary allowing the citizens of Ontario to have the far less refined experience of Malört.
CH Distillery, the current manufacturer of the wormwood-based spirit, notes in a timeline that "[during Prohibition] Carl Jeppson begins producing his 'bäskbrännvin' (a traditional Swedish-style of bitters) and sells it as a 'medicinal' product that rid its imbibers of stomach worms and other parasites in the body. Jeppson skirts federal regulation given the recurring conclusion by law enforcement that nobody would drink his concoction recreationally." Later, "[in] an effort to keep Malört’s full-bodied flavor, [two subsequent owners] secured a long-term source for the strongest, most unpalatable wormwood."
I can't remember how I learned years ago that Jeppson was a Swede, but I know that I wasn't surprised. According to Wikipedia, he said that his tastebuds had been ruined by years of smoking. As a member-by-marriage of a large Swedish family, I'm more inclined to think that the tastebud deficit might be part of my spouse's genetic heritage. Just consider the spouse's--and the entire family's--favorite Christmas meal: lutefisk ("lye fish," which is reconstituted dried salt cod, boiled until really truly dead, served in a white sauce, garnished with white potatoes and cauliflower, all arranged on a white plate.) The big debate in our clan was not what green vegetables or condiments to serve, but whether the white sauce should be spiked with a grind or two of black pepper or a sparse sprinkle of allspice. I've been told that shouting matches have been triggered by family members coming out in favor of one or the other. (I'm pretty sure lutefisk wouldn't have been on the menu in the lavish Christmas scene in Fanny and Alexander.)
I may ask whether CH Distillery will ship Malört to Canada. Even though the LCBO sells a Canadian-made absinthe, somehow I can't picture the People's Dispensary allowing the citizens of Ontario to have the far less refined experience of Malört.
