From 1961, when Pöschke departed for West Germany, production of Wurzelpeter was taken over by the state enterprise VEB Bärensiegel Berlin in Berlin-Adlershof.

Wurzelpeter gradually gained some status as a cult drink, and was considered to be the East German counterpart of Jägermeister.

[4] With limited production, it had a reputation in the GDR as Bückware, scarce goods available 'under the counter' through bartering or to favoured customers.

In 1990 the company was acquired by Franz Wilhelm Langguth Erben, a winery with its headquarters in Traben-Trarbach, a municipality in the district Bernkastel-Wittlich.

[5] In 2017 Wurzelpeter's recipe was altered to a formulation said to be closer to that of 1935, along with an increase in strength from 30% to 40% ABV and a repositioning of the brand to emphasise its Berlin heritage.