It writhes!–it writhes!–with mortal pangs
The mimes become its food,
And the angels sob at vermin fangs
In human gore imbued.
The Tale
The Conqueror Worm is one of Poe’s more gruesome poems, describing how, at the end of our mortal lives, our bodies are consumed by worms (or, to be more precise, maggots). It’s a fair (though disgusting) characterization, though his broader conclusion (What’s the point of life, as in the end we’re all dead) isn’t exactly uplifting. This isn’t the kind of poem that you’d want to include in a valentine.
The basic outline of the poem presents a theater presentation that is horribly ruined by a “conqueror worm” that essentially eats up the performers (“mimes”). Poe ends the poem on this cheery note: “…the play is the tragedy, ‘Man,’ / And its hero the Conqueror Worm.”
The poem (or at least its title) has made its way into songs and movies. For example: The 1968 British horror film The Witchfinder General, starring Vincent Price, was retitled The Conqueror Worm for its release in the US. But the film really has nothing to do with Poe’s poem.
The full story is available here.
The Drink
This cocktail employs the humble gummy worm in the lead role. It sits atop a mountain of ice, which seems like an appropriate pose for a conqueror.
For the ingredients, I figured we needed a neutral spirit so as not to clash with the distinct gummy flavor. So I chose vodka. To this we add some Aperol, whose sweetness is in sync with the gummy’s sugar, but whose bitterness saves this drink from being too cloying. A couple of dashes of chocolate bitters adds depth; trust me on this one.
Ingredients:
1-1/2 oz vodka
½ oz Aperol
2 dashes chocolate bitters
I Gummy worm (flavor of your choice; I used a sour gummy)
Mix the vodka, aperol, and bitters in a shaker with ice. Strain into a coupe glass that’s been filled to the top with crushed ice. Add a single gummy worm on top of the ice, leaning over the rim of the glass.
This drink goes down easy, like a Sunday morning. Eat the alcohol-soaked worm at the end as a special treat.
Poe-script
Poe’s birth-parents were both actors. Surely this somehow figures into his describing life as a stage. And yet, didn’t someone else once use that metaphor?
Chasing Phantoms 
C’mon Steve… A sour gummy worm drowned in Aperol? Why not offer mezcal and a real worm? https://vinepair.com/wine-blog/there-shouldnt-be-a-worm-in-your-tequila-bottle/ Poe himself used to drink that very concoction when he lived in Acapulco! Cheers. – Peter
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The thought did occur to me, but I figured it would be a step too far for my squeamish readership.
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I, for one, am grateful you didn’t use tequila and a real worm. Bleh! This recipe sounds like a keeper!
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Agreed. But I’ll bet Poe would have done the worm.
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