Root Beer: A sweetly synthesized journey, written July 20, 2011
“Foreman, has the jury reached a verdict?”
“Yes, we have, your honor. However, we need to retrace our steps to see how we arrived at today’s decision…”
“So be it! Make it so, number one.”
**Please note: All previous Root Beer posts are archived on line for you to peruse in greater detail. This post show the stages of my journey…
Part 1 of X attempted to explain why I began the Root Beer adventures… In short, I drank way too much soda as a child, traveled to an old time Soda Shoppe in New Dorp, Staten Island, to drink Root Beer Floats, and drank more floats at the defunct Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor in the Staten Island Mall.
1- VIRGIL’S ROOT BEER is very natural tasting, neither contains corn syrup, nor caffeine; it’s filled with quality ingredients: Anise, Wintergreen, Vanilla, the obvious root beer flavor (sarsaparilla, birch, etc. It’s sold as a four-pack from Trader Joe’s for around $5.00. For more information, go to:
VIRGIL’S MICRO BREWED ROOT BEER www.Virgils.com
REED’S Inc., LA, CA 90061 call for questions or comments: 1-800-997-3337
2- A & W ROOT BEER also has a rich flavor minus the caffeine…the drink with a frosty mug taste? A & W is rich, sweet, and incredibly frothy.
Honestly, both MUG and A & W seem to be similar tasting. In short, A & W scores for 2nd place and Mug scores 3rd place.
A & W ROOT BEER www.rootbeer.com
CANNED BY CANADA DRY DELAWARE VALLEY, 8275 US 130, PENNSAUKEN, NJ 08110 UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF DR PEPPER/SEVEN UP, INC., 5301 LEGACY DRIVE, PLANO, TX 75024; consumer comments: 1-866-AW ROOT BEER
3- I sampled MUG ROOT BEER in a frosty cold mug at my cousin’s house a few weeks ago. It’s caffeine free and has a pleasing flavor. Unfortunately, it has corn syrup and almost too sweet.
MUG ROOT BEER WWW.MUGROOTBEER.COM
NEW CENTURY BEVERAGE CO., SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110
call for questions or comments: 1-800-433-2652
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Root Beer, Part 2 of X, December 5, 2009
Yesterday, I celebrated International Root Beer Day with my 7th Grade homeroom in DA BRONX. My Principal of MS424 in the Bronx, Dr. Hughes, also wished the school a happy and healthy Root Beer Day via the Public Address system.
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I just tasted IBC Root Beer and it was delicious. Unlike A & W and MUG, I could taste more of the Anise (basically Licorice) flavor.
IBC lacks caffeine–a plus in my book. Finally, I had another epiphany: Bottled Root Beer seems to taste better than canned products and plastic vessels. In short, IBC might end up taking A & W and MUG out of second and third place.
SARANAC 1888 (pictured above) was featured in Part 3 of X. If I was blindfolded, I might have mistaken it for Virgil’s Root Beer, as they both have a similar taste…
I’m enjoying it tremendously despite the 2nd ingredient: HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP. Luckily, it is caffeine free, so there might be some hope… The aftertaste is quite nice actually and the frothy head remains at the top just like the golden “crema” of a tightly pulled Espresso shot. The Anise flavor is much bolder in Virgil’s. Honestly, I’m stumped because SARANAC 1888 captures the essence of a great tasting Root Beer, but the preservatives and Corn Syrup are really messing with my ability to make a decision.
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BOYLAN’S BIRCH BEER (creamy, red) was featured in Part 4 of X. So far, I’ve sampled A&W, MUG, SARANACS 1888, IBC, and VIRGIL’S Microbrew. My first sip of BOYLAN’S BIRCH BEER (VINTAGE SODA POP), was delicious. BOYLAN’S red color is bold and the front of the bottle mentions, “sweetened with pure cane sugar.” Moreover, all of the ingredients seem to be safe and natural: Pure Birch oils, Vanilla, natural Yucca extract, etc. It’s also caffeine free, another strong selling point. Boylan’s website is: www.boylanbottling.com
It’s true: I’m a dork!
StewartS Root Beer was featured in Part 5 of X… The last time I drank StewartS, my wife and I were dining in Cracker Barrel. I remember the rich, extremely sweet, and fresh taste. It was also served in a cold bottle and a frosty mug, which really provides the visual aesthetic. Again, it’s cloyingly sweet, has the Anise flavor, and tastes artificial. Yet, it’s similar to IBC. The ingredients are: HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP (there’s a shocker), some Yucca, preservatives, Quillaia (whatever that is), Gum Acacia, etc. In my opinion, it’s great for a Root Beer Float and diabetic nightmares.
I’m forming solid ideas for the ultimate Root Beer: Bottled, a microbrew, several natural ingredients, caffeine free, and NO HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP (mentioned earlier).
Hansen’s Creamy Root Beer Natural Cane Soda was featured in Part 6 of X. I was ready to condemn all canned sodas. However, Hansen’s Creamy Root Beer in the can really took me by surprise. The cost of each can was approximately $1.60. In short, the taste is amazing and well worth the cash. Obtain information directly from their website: www.hansens.com
Hansen’s Creamy Root Beer Natural Cane Soda is made from the Tahitian vanilla extract. Our sodas are 100% natural and do not contain any preservatives, caffeine, sodium, high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors or colors.
Here are the ingredients:
Pure triple filtered carbonated water, cane sugar, caramel color, natural spices of wintergreen, birch, anise, sassafras, Tahitian Vanilla extract, citric acid, etc.
Nutritional Facts:
Serving Size 1 can amount per serving: Calories 160 Total Fat 0g 0%, Sodium 0mg 0%, Total Carbs: 43g 14%, Sugars 43g, Protein 0g 0%.
In short, Hansen’s is great enough to put in the top five CAN “draft” picks.
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BOYLAN’S ROOT BEER (NOT the Red Birch Beer) was featured in Part 7 of X.
I shared my 2 cents about BOYLAN’S CREAMY RED BIRCH BEER (VINTAGE SODA POP), in a previous post… Birch is different because the flavoring comes from some type of Birch extract, i.e. a Birch tree. In contrast, most Root Beers (artificial or otherwise) are flavored with Sarsaparilla (more on that later…). BOYLAN’S ROOT BEER is also “sweetened with pure cane sugar” instead of the dreaded Corn Syrup. It contains natural and artificial ingredients, natural Yucca extract, and Sodium Benzoate (a preservative found in most Root Beers). In sum, I’m really enjoying Boylan’s products and might have found a contender to compete against Virgil’s Root Beer.
Trivial fact: There are MORE THAN 100 Root Beers sold in the United States!
The dorkness (not an actual word) continues…
StewartS Birch Beer Versus StewartS Root Beer was featured in Part 8 of X, December of 2009.
Both StewartS products are brutally sweet! I do not have anything personal against StewartS, as they make an awesome Cream Soda. However, the cloying nature is disconcerting.
While I’m searching for the quintessential Root Beer, I’m forming a prototype: All of the aforementioned criteria, plus some other mystical element depicting love, e.g. a family in the Root Beer business who uses secretive and special ingredients…
HANK’S ROOT BEER was featured in Part 9 of X, February 2010.
It’s made in Philadelphia, PA and very accessible on the East Coast. I’ve branched out to the Midwest and Pacific Coast for Root Beers (more on that later)…
Hank’s is extremely similar to Boylan’s Root Beer, and also sweetened with pure cane sugar and somewhat identical ingredients: Natural Yucca extract, Quillaila, etc. It’s caffeine free and tastes much lighter than other Root Beers loaded with High Fructose Corn Syrup (AHEM), but still packs a nice punch for a TKO.
In sum, I’d like to say “Thanks, Hank’s!” Ba da bing!
PODCAST ALERT! PODCAST ALERT! Go to the HOME PAGE and check it out…
The SECOND LIVE PODCAST session took place in my basement with Cousin Jordan… It was a great time, unrehearsed, and Jordan is totally addicted to Bundaberg, my absolute favorite. It’s rich and thick like a Guinness Stout, completely natural, original, and I love it. Bundaberg can be purchased at a World Market store and/or Total Wine. Go to the homepage and choose PODCAST from the pull down menu…
This is the end…My only friend, the end… I’m Evan J. “Wanna Be” Gourmet. Thanks for watching! 🙂
