‘Here’s To The Last Malta!’: Broadway Giant’s Sad Tweet Confused A Couple Of People This Week
If you are what you eat (or drink), then Maltese people should be a lightly carbonated malt beverage packed with protein. But since that’s not a popular drink in Malta, this sad Tweet by one of Broadway’s biggest names must’ve really confused a couple of islanders this week.
“I’ve made ’em last, but this is our last Malta,” lamented Lin-Manuel Miranda, an American composer, lyricist, singer and playwright who’s best known as the guy who wrote Hamilton.
You know, Hamilton; the most talked about book-inspired musical theatre shows of the last odd decade.
I’ve made ‘em last, but this is our last Malta…???? pic.twitter.com/B3yzsgAL6M
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) April 21, 2020
Of course, Miranda was actually talking about Malta… the drink.
A non-alcoholic soft drink that’s kind of a cross between non-fermented beer and iced tea, Malta is sometimes called “champagne cola” by some brands. And no, neither champagne nor cola feature in the drink; Malta, as the name implies, is a malt belverage.
Nowadays, most Malta is brewed in the Caribbean and can be purchased in areas with substantial Caribbean populations, with many different brands helping the drink become widely popular in certain areas of the US.
Malta Goya, for example (which is the specific brand Miranda referred to), is produced in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania, and much of the United States.
Miranda’s Tweet was met with equal parts nostalgic Americans reminiscing on their youths drinking Malta, to people not entirely sure what the hell he was talking about. Maltese people would probably fit somewhere in the latter category.
“I don’t really know what Malta is, but I’m sorry,” one person replied, with another saying, “Here’s to the last Malta, cheers!”
And while it all looks quite confusing to see people talking about your country as if it were a drink (because, well, it kind of is in this case), it didn’t take long for one Maltese fan of the musical theatre prodigy to find her way in the comments section.
“I live in Malta, come say hi when the world is open again,” she quipped.
I live in Malta come say hi when the world is open again
— steffiewee (@steffiewee) April 22, 2020