原文标题

Midwestern drinking habits

Twofisted taste

Chicago tries to export its most unpleasant booze

中西部的饮酒习惯

双手拿酒

芝加哥努力推广该市最不受欢迎的烈酒

Care for a shot of Malört?Why do parts of the Midwest love such awful booze?来一杯苦艾酒吗？

为什么中西部地区人们喜欢这么难喝的酒呢？

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NEW VISITORS to Chicago—at least those who stay with local friends or relatives—can expect many lovely experiences.

新来芝加哥的游客——至少那些和当地朋友或亲戚住在一起的人——可以期待许多美好的体验。

They will be taken to the Art Institute, to pose like Ferris Bueller in front of priceless paintings, and to The Bean to take selfies with the skyline, then perhaps for an Italian beef sandwich.

他们会被带到艺术学院，在价值连城的画作前摆出费里斯·布里尔的姿势，然后去镜豆广场与天际线一起自拍，接着或许会去尝尝意大利牛肉三明治。

Almost as inevitable, at least if they are not teetotallers, is that afterwards they will be taken to a bar and forced to drink a “Chicago handshake”: a pint of Old Style beer and a shot of a deeply bitter spirit that is almost entirely unknown outside the Windy City.几乎可以肯定的是，如果他们不是滴酒不沾的人，就一定会被带去酒吧，被迫喝上一杯“芝加哥见面酒”：一品脱的老式啤酒和一杯非常苦涩的烈酒，这种烈酒在“风城”（芝加哥）以外几乎不为人知。

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That is Jeppson’s Malört, a wormwood liqueur invented by Carl Jeppson, a Swedish immigrant to the city almost a century ago.

这就是Jeppson’s Malört，一种由卡尔·杰普森发明的苦艾酒，他是近百年前移居该市的瑞典裔移民。

The spirit is so closely associated with Chicago that it includes a version of its flag on the bottle (an old one, with three stars instead of four).

这种酒与芝加哥紧密相连，以至于它在瓶子上印有该市的市旗（一个带有三颗星而不是四颗的旧版旗帜）。

It tastes, connoisseurs say, a little like an old shoe. Yet its owners would like it to sell elsewhere.

内行说，它尝起来有点旧鞋的味道。然而，酒老板希望能够将其推广销售到其他地方。

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In late March Malört went on sale in Ohio, with a flurry of publicity mostly focused on how awful it is.

3月底，Malört在俄亥俄州上市，大量宣传主要集中在它的槽点上。

Since 2018, when CH Distillery, a small Chicago-based maker of vodka, gins and other spirits, bought the brand, it has expanded sales to around 30 states, says Tremaine Atkinson, the firm’s CEO.

CH Distillery总部位于芝加哥，这是一家小型伏特加、杜松子酒和其他烈酒制造商。该公司的首席执行官屈里曼阿特金森说，自2018年收购Malört品牌以来，它已将其推广销售到了30个州左右。

The market is already there, largely because “Chicagoans land in other places and they all seem to get nostalgic about Malört,” he says. As a result, “it spreads like the noxious weed that wormwood is.”

他说市场已经存在，主要是因为“定居在其他地方的芝加哥人会怀念Malört酒。”因此，“它就像毒草苦艾一样蔓延开来。”

Some fans have even written in from New Zealand, Mr Atkinson says, sending a recording of a song about the drink that leaves a similar aftertaste to its subject. He declined to share it with The Economist.

阿特金森说，甚至有一些粉丝从新西兰写信来，发送了一首关于这种酒的歌曲录音，歌曲与酒有相似的余味。然而，他拒绝向《经济学人》分享这首歌。

It is less clear yet, however, whether the market expands much beyond Chicagoans who have moved away.

然而，目前尚不清楚市场是否会触及背井离乡的芝加哥人之外的人群。

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And what about the core market, Chicago proper?

那么关于核心市场，芝加哥本市呢？

Some might expect the growing sophistication of American drinking culture to reduce the appeal of bizarre hooch.

有些人可能会认为美国饮酒文化日益成熟会降低奇怪烈酒的吸引力。

Visitors to even the smallest towns can now usually buy a fancy craft beer made nearby, so why drink something awful to feel like a local?

即使是到最小城镇旅游，游客现在也通常可以买到附近酿造的精酿啤酒，那么为什么要喝一些难喝的酒来感觉像本地人呢？

Drinks like Malört seem to hold on as a symbol of regional pride.

Malört这类酒似乎仍然是地区骄傲的象征。

Indeed, some fancy bars have recently started offering Malört cocktails—a less traumatising way to try the city spirit.

事实上，一些高档酒吧最近开始提供Malört鸡尾酒——以一种不那么痛苦的方式来品尝这种芝加哥烈酒。

Mr Atkinson says the taste of wormwood goes especially well with citrus flavours.

阿特金森说，苦艾的味道与柑橘风味很搭。

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Of course, Malört is not the only Midwestern alcoholic speciality outsiders are shocked by.

当然，Malört不是唯一一个让外地人感到震惊的中西部特色酒。

In Wisconsin, locals drink a sickly sweet version of an Old Fashioned made with Korbel, a Californian brandy, and Sprite, topped with a glazed cherry. Over half of Korbel’s sales are in the Badger State.

在威斯康星州，当地人会喝一种用加州白兰地Korbel和雪碧制成的甜腻Old Fashioned酒，上面还会加一颗糖霜樱桃。一半以上的Korbel酒销量是在威斯康星州。

In Michigan a popular cocktail, the “Hummer”, features white rum, Kahlúa and two full scoops of vanilla ice cream.

在密歇根州，一种名为“Hummer”的鸡尾酒非常流行，它由白朗姆酒、卡鲁亚酒和两勺香草冰淇淋制成。

Midwesterners are more likely to indulge in binge-drinking than most other Americans (see map).

中西部人比大多数美国人更沉溺于狂欢饮酒（参见地图）。

Malört is advertised as being “savoured by two-fisted drinkers”. That is because you need something else in your other hand to wash it down.Malört被宣传为“双手拿酒者的最爱”。这是因为你需要用另一只手拿点别的东西来冲淡它的味道。

（恭喜读完，本篇英语词汇量555左右）原文出自：2023年4月1日《The Economist》United states版块。

精读笔记来源于：自由英语之路

本文翻译整理: Irene

本文编辑校对: Irene仅供个人英语学习交流使用。

【补充资料】（来自于网络）

瑞典苦艾酒Jeppson's Malört出现于上个世纪。它的主要成分是艾草。这似乎没有什么特别的。但它的味道是苦涩的。很多人都觉得这是最令人厌恶的饮品。

芝加哥市民戏称云门为“豆子”(the bean),从侧面看,这座巨大的不锈钢雕塑真的很像一颗浑圆饱满的蚕豆。云门被称为具有标志性和革新性的作品，它在主题上和很多卡普尔以前的作品有着共通点。塑像的镜子效果让人联想到以前游乐园里的哈哈镜，但这些效果有着更严肃的目的，他们让巨大的“云门”看起来相当轻巧。“云门”被认为是卡普尔最有野心的作品，因为这个镜子形的艺术品结构十分复杂。

芝加哥毗邻北美最大的湖泊之一密歇根湖，每到夏季，湖区吹来阵阵凉风，芝加哥成为人们避暑的好去处；但在冬季，刺骨的寒风在芝加哥高层建筑物间的街道上肆虐，使人受不住，因此，芝加哥被称为美国的“风城”(WindyCity)。

费里斯·布里尔（Ferris Bueller）是1986年约翰·休斯（John Hughes）电影《费里斯·布里尔的休假》（Ferris Bueller’s Day Off）中的主角。这部电影讲述了一位高中聪明人决定从学校请一天假，尽管校长对此持反对意见。

【重点句子】（3 个）

It is less clear yet, however, whether the market expands much beyond Chicagoans who have moved away.

然而，目前尚不清楚市场是否会触及背井离乡的芝加哥人之外的人群。

Some might expect the growing sophistication of American drinking culture to reduce the appeal of bizarre hooch.

有些人可能会认为美国饮酒文化日益成熟会降低奇怪烈酒的吸引力。

Midwesterners are more likely to indulge in binge-drinking than most other Americans.

中西部人比大多数美国人更沉溺于狂欢饮酒。