Facts About Malta
Malta is a lightly carbonated malt beverage, brewed from barley, hops, and water much like beer; corn and caramel color may also be added. However, Malta is non-alcoholic, it has a strong beer smell and flavor and is consumed in the same way as beer or cola in its original carbonated form, and to some extent, iced tea in non-carbonated form.
Malta is often described as being like a beer that has not been fermented. It is similar in color to stout (dark brown) but is slightly sweet, and is generally described as tasting like molasses. Unlike beer, ice is often added to a Malta when consumed. A popular way Africans and Americans sometimes drink malta is by mixing it with condensed or evaporated milk.
Origin
Malta originated in Germany as Malzbier ("malt beer"), a malty dark beer whose fermentation was interrupted at approximately 2% ABV, leaving quite a lot of residual sugars in the finished beer. Malzbier in its native form was superseded during the 1960s by its modern form, formulated from water, glucose syrup, malt extract and hops extract, which had been on the market since the latter half of the 19th century, notably in Denmark. Such formulated drinks are called Malztrunk ("malt beverage") according to German law, since they are not fermented. In colloquial use, Malzbier has nevertheless remained, along with other nicknames such as Kinderbier ("children's beer").
Distribution
Most Malta is brewed in the Caribbean and can be purchased in areas with substantial Caribbean populations. Aside from the islands of the Caribbean, it is also popular in Caribbean coastal areas such as Curaçao, Aruba, Haiti, Panama, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Ecuador, Cuba, Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago and countries that share a Caribbean coast. Malta is brewed worldwide, and is popular in many parts of Africa like Nigeria which has its own first malt brand - Maltex in 1967. It is also sold in Chad, Ghana, Benin, Cameroon and around the Indian Ocean. Malta Guinness is brewed under licence internationally. Some native Malzbiere is available in Germany, notably in Cologne, where the taps of breweries Malzmühle and Sion sell it alongside their traditional Kölsch. Many German breweries have a malta in their range, sometimes produced under licence (for example Vitamalz).
Malta is also occasionally called "champagne cola" by some brands. However, there is a separate type of drink with this name, having the flavor of bubble gum. Despite this appellation, neither drink is a champagne or a cola.
Due to its distinctive color, malta is sometimes known as black brewed beer. In fact, in Chile the word malta means a Schwarzbier beer.
Malta is high in B vitamins. Some breweries, like Albani Brewery of Denmark, fortify their non-alcoholic malta beverages with Vitamin B complex. Albani Brewery claims on their website to have been the first brewery to create non-alcoholic malt beverages in 1859.