Barq’s Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Clear bottle and blue label make it easy to distinguish on a shelf crowded with brown bottles and labels.

Ingredients: Carbonated water,  high fructose corn syrup and/or sucrose, caramel color, sodium benzoate, citric acid, caffeine, artificial and natural flavors, acacia.

Smell: Smell is weak and it is difficult to distinguish any noticeable characteristics. There seems to be a bit of wintergreen smell, but it is very weak.

Carbonation: Very little carbonation leaves this brew tasting flat.

Color: Pleasing, dark brown color that is slightly transparent.

Head: Very tall head that also dissipates very quickly

Flavor: Barq’s root beer has a very mainstream flavor in that it is hard to find much in it to really savor. Much like the carbonation, the flavor is flat and leaves a slightly metallic aftertaste. There is not much else to say. Barq’s simply misses the mark in the flavor department.

Conclusion: Barq’s is one of those brews I drank as a kid when my parents would occasionally buy cases of it to drink on hot summer days on the farm. As a kid on a hot day, Barq’s was just fine. Well, times have changed. Barq’s is a mainstream root beer, but it falls short of my standard mainstream root beer, A&W. A&W, despite being largely artificial, still tastes pretty good. Barq’s is simply bland and has no redeeming qualities. This is one brew where I can, without hesitation, say avoid this beverage.

RBR’s Grade- F

Virgil’s Root Beer Party Keg

Bottle and Label: It’s a keg! Same basic design as the Virgil’s bottles. Well done, traditional, and it looks good on the keg.

Ingredients: Carbonated water, unbleached cane sugar, natural caramel color, all natural flavors (anise, honey, licorice, vanilla, cinnamon, clove, wintergreen, cassia oil, sweet birch and molasses. No preservatives, no artificial flavors.)

Smell: This brew has the strongest vanilla smell that I have encountered in a root beer. There are also some licorice hints, but they are almost overpowered by the vanilla. It’s not a bad smell, it just seems like it could use a little more balance.

Carbonation: Low level of carbonation makes this brew very smooth from start to finish. The low level of carbonation works with this brew thanks to the smooth flavor of the vanilla. The two complement each other well.

Color: Dark brown, almost like coffee

Head: Since this brew comes from a keg and is poured slowly, there was not much head present. However, I did have a root beer float with this brew and can attest that it makes a nice, foamy float.

Flavor: Virgil’s Root Beer Party Keg has a flavor that reflects the smell. It is very strong on the vanilla. This is not bad, but it also means that the traditional hints of wintergreen and licorice that are usually present are largely masked by the vanilla. The vanilla flavor is smooth and the aftertaste avoids bitterness making this a good pick if you like a vanilla flavored brew.

Conclusion: Virgil’s Root Beer Party Keg gets some extra points just for being unique. How often do you get to enjoy a root beer from a keg? I bought this for my wife’s birthday party and it was a lot of fun making root beer floats from a keg. That said, the brew doesn’t quite rise to the top of the pack thanks to a flavor that is almost all vanilla and maybe even a bit too sweet. Don’t get me wrong, this brew is great for things like root beer floats and for people who like a strong vanilla flavor, but if you are looking for a brew with more complexity or with a traditional flavor you will have to look elsewhere. I highly recommend the keg for parties as it is a great conversation piece and the root beer is certainly better than average.

RBR’s Grade- B-

Americana Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Brown bottle with a classy blue and black label that is different from many bottles and makes it easy to spot on a crowded shelf.

Ingredients: Carbonated water,  cane sugar, natural and artificial flavor, honey, caramel color, and sodium benzoate as a preservative, extract of vanilla, licorice and sassafras root bark, citric acid, and phosphoric acid.

Smell: This is what a root beer should smell like. After my last review, I’m grateful that this brew smells like a root beer should. It has a rich licorice and wintergreen smell from the bottle that is even stronger after being poured.

Carbonation: Medium-low level of carbonation. The bite does not really hit until you start to swallow, but this brew manages a nice balance of carbonation that does not take anything away from the flavor.

Color: Nice, dark brown color that lets just a little bit of light through.

Head: Very short head with very little foam. If you like a foamy brew, this is not one of them.

Flavor: Americana Root Beer is a very good brew. After the disaster that was my last review, I’m happy to be drinking something that tastes like root beer again. Americana is able to rise above the pack by crafting a brew that offers traditional flavor with a twist of honey and vanilla. That mix flavors makes this brew taste very creamy. In fact, I would liken the aftertaste of the brew to that of a cream soda. Overall, Americana has a pleasing flavor that should especially appeal to those who like cream soda.

Conclusion: Americana Root Beer is another brew that hails from the great Northwest (Weinhard’s is another). It is obvious from the first smell of this brew that it is going to be a quality beverage. It has the right mix of traditional root beer flavor with the added twist of honey and vanilla. The brew also does a good job of not letting the honey flavor overwhelm the rest of the brew. The only real weak point in this brew is the head. Those of you who like foamy root beers will be turned off by the decided lack of bubbliness this brew possess. That said, if you like good root beer and you see this on store shelf, you should give it a try.

RBR’s Grade- B+

Round Barn Root Beer

Round Barn Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Brown bottle with a nicely designed label featuring a popular Route 66 landmark in Oklahoma.

Ingredients: Carbonated water,  high fructose corn syrup, caramel color, citric acid, natural and artificial flavor, and sodium benzoate as a preservative.

Smell: As much as I tried, I could not distinguish any smell at all from the bottle. After pouring in my frosted mug, I still could not detect any smell other than something that was a bit like dirt.

Carbonation: Medium level of carbonation with a nice bite.

Color: One of the lightest brews that I have seen. It is transparent even when it is not held up to the light. Still, it is a pleasing dark amber color.

Head: Short head, not too foamy, but it lasts for a good while.

Flavor: I think this is the first brew that I have truly not wanted to taste again after the first sip. The brew has an odd aftertaste that reminds me of dirt. The aftertaste lingers long after the beverage is swallowed. I taste very little in terms of the traditional flavors that make a root beer. If those flavors are present, they are overpowered by the taste of dirt.

Conclusion: I have posted in the past how fond I am of Pop’s. It is a great store with a good restaurant and an awesome selection of pops from around the world. Unfortunately, whoever thought up the recipe for their signature root beer needs to be taken out back to the woodshed until they repent of this travesty. Round Barn Root Beer earns the dubious distinction of being the very first root beer I have reviewed to have no redeeming qualities. You read that right, I see nothing good about this brew. Avoid this root beer at all costs. If you come across it, buy some A&W Root Beer instead, at least then you will have something to drink that resembles actual root beer.

RBR’s Grade- F

Sea Dog Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Brown bottle with nicely designed label that attests to the origins of this brew (Maine). It looks like something you would find on a pier on the Maine coastline.

Ingredients: Water,  cane sugar, caramel coloring, natural and artificial flavors including wintergreen oil, anise, and vanilla, spices, herbs, citric acid, and sodium benzoate as a preservative.

Smell: Nice, traditional smell from the bottle. The dominant scents being a nice mix of wintergreen and licorice with something else I can’t distinguish that adds a bit of spice. The smell from the glass is a bit stronger and has a slightly bitter, almost medicinal, tinge to it.

Carbonation: Low level of carbonation offers little bite and makes this brew seem a bit flat.

Color: Slightly lighter in color than most brews, but still a very pleasing dark amber/honey color.

Head: Positively amazing head (the best yet) when poured in a frosted mug. A twelve ounce bottle of root beer fills about 2/3 of my A&W mug that I use for all of my tests. With this brew, the foamy head nearly bubbled out of the mug and even a full minute after being poured it had not completely dissipated.

Flavor: Sea Dog Root Beer is best described as merely average (average being A&W) in the flavor department. This is disappointing because the brew started out very well with an astonishing head and a solid smell. Unfortunately, the flavor cannot live up to the head. The flavor is a bit like that carbonation in that it seems slightly flat. The best way to describe the flavor is “medicinal.” It is okay at first, but the aftertaste it leaves reminds me a bit of cough syrup.

Conclusion: Sea Dog Root Beer is saved from the D grade by its incredible head of foam. Unfortunately, the flat carbonation and medicinal flavor keep it from rising above the average brews. Sea Dog would best be enjoyed with something to help mask the medicinal aftertaste. I think it would make a swell root beer float brew because the ice cream would help mask the aftertaste and enhance the head. With that said, I would have a difficult time recommending this brew because in the all important “flavor” category, Sea Dog just does not make the cut.

RBR’s Grade- C-

The Soda Gallery- Dallas, TX

This morning, since my wife is gone for the weekend to help my sister-in-law move into college, I decided to make a day trip over to Dallas to visit the Soda Gallery. It was probably a month ago that I discovered their website and I immediately knew I needed to make it over there at some point. The Soda Gallery is about a 45 minute drive from where I live so it makes replenishing root beer supplies much easier than driving to Pop’s in Arcadia, OK (about 4 hours away).

It was nice to go on a Saturday morning because the traffic wasn’t bad and The Soda Gallery was practically empty. I snapped a few pictures that I post at the end of the blog. It’s a neat little place with a lot of vintage soda pop decor as well as a nice bit of local art. The friendly man working the front told me that they were having an art show that evening featuring local artist’s take on Star Wars, Star Wars costumes, and beverages provided by the Saint Arnold Brewery. It is really the opposite of Pop’s. Where Pop’s is appealing because of the unique and modern architecture, The Soda Gallery is appealing because of how vintage the shop feels. It is definitely a hip place to go if you are searching out a new brew to try.

All that to say, my mission this morning was a success. I came away with six new brews and a six pack of Henry Weinhard’s Black Cherry Cream Gourmet Soda (one of my favorite non-root beer beverages). It cost me a total of $27 which is not bad and is comparable to Pop’s which charges $2 per bottle of pop.

If you are ever in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and are in need of some refreshment I highly recommend The Soda Gallery. It’s a unique place, with a cool environment, and a great selection of pops from all over.

Dr. Brown’s Original Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Brown bottle with a long neck. The label is nicely designed and suitably antique looking for a brew that claims to have been around since 1869.

Ingredients: Carbonated water, sugar and/or high fructose corn syrup, caramel color, natural and artificial flavors, gum acacia, citric acid.

Smell: Very strong smell from the bottle with the strongest smell being wintergreen and also hints of licorice. After being poured, I also seemed to smell something a bit like an orange. It’s certainly a different smell, but I like it because it adds some spiciness to the scent.

Carbonation: Medium-low level of carbonation. Just enough to offer a bit of bite and not seem flat. The low carbonation makes it easy to taste the brew instead of trying to taste around a bunch of bubbles.

Color: Pleasing dark brown color that is slightly transparent.

Head: Short head that is very foamy and dissipates quickly.

Flavor: Dr. Brown’s Root Beer has a very traditional flavor with a nice mouthfeel. The thing that makes this brew different is the aftertaste. The best way that I can describe it is like one of those orange slice candies with a bit of wintergreen added in. It is a bit surprising at first but I think it works. It is not overpowering and it leaves you with a nice taste in your mouth. I would argue that it is the best part of this brew since the initial flavor is merely average.

Conclusion: Dr. Brown’s Root Beer is, overall, a good brew. While the initial flavor is merely average, it is still good. The unique aftertaste is what saves this brew from a “C.” The aftertaste is unique among root beers that I have tried and I kept wanting to drink it just for the aftertaste. I think most people would enjoy this brew as the flavor is very traditional and the aftertaste is not over done and quite tasty.

RBR’s Grade- B

Welcome to the Redesigned Site!

This afternoon I decided it was time to spice up my site a little bit. I changed my site template and made my first attempts at customizing the CSS code. I didn’t do too much beyond the basic layout of the template, but I made a few notable changes:

1. I added a background image. Now you know from the first moment you enter this site that it is about root beer.

2. I made the font bigger for the posts. The original template had painfully small font for the posts so I made it a little easier to read.

3. I adjusted the color of the header (blog title). Unfortunately, my background image makes it hard to find a suitable color so I had to settle. It’s not perfect, but at least you can tell what it says.

I hope you like the new layout!

Red Ribbon Home Brewed Style Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Red Ribbon Root Beer has a clear bottle and simple, nondescript label.

Ingredients: Filtered carbonated water, sugar, natural and artificial flavor,  citric acid, caramel color.

Smell: Not very strong smelling from the bottle. The only smell I can really distinguish is licorice. After being poured, the licorice smell is very strong.

Carbonation: Very lightly carbonated and it makes this brew seem flat. The only place it really bites is on top-back of the mouth whereas in most brews the carbonation is at least evident on the tip of the tongue too.

Color: Dark brown, almost black when viewed at certain angles.

Head: Short, not very foamy, head that dissipates quickly.

Flavor: Red Ribbon Root Beer has a flavor that matches the carbonation. Flat. There are some hints of caramel/vanilla that come through, but other than that, nothing. The flavor seems watered down and weak. There are some traditional root beer elements to the flavor, but they are so weak that it can’t really be enjoyed. On the plus side, the lack of flavor also comes with a lack of bitterness and a good mouth feel. If you only judge a good brew on the two latter points, you might like this one.

Conclusion: Red Ribbon Root Beer is a brew that is easy for me to give a low mark. The head was not great, the carbonation was flat, the flavor was lacking, and even the smell was a bit off. While some might like the slight caramel flavor present in this brew, the lack of rootieness will be enough to keep most people away. With most brews I can see how some people could like them even if I don’t. However, this is one brew that I would recommend passing on if you come across it.

RBR’s Grade- D-

Saint Arnold Root Beer

Bottle and Label: Saint Arnold Root Beer has nice label that looks different than its counterparts. This is probably because the brewery did the label with the same overall design that it does with its non-root beer beverages. The well designed label will make this brew easy to spot on a crowded shelf.

Ingredients: Water, cane sugar, caramel color, natural and artificial flavor, vanilla extract, citric acid and sodium benzoate as preservative

Smell: Very strong and pleasing traditional root beer smell with hints of wintergreen and licorice.

Carbonation: Medium level of carbonation. This brew has a nice bite throughout, but it does a good job of not overpowering the flavor.

Color: Very dark brown that is barely transparent. Overall, a nice color that suggests the brew is neither too strong nor too watered down.

Head: Medium head, but very foamy and long lasting when poured into a frosted mug. The head of this brew would lend itself to being very good for root beer floats.

Flavor: Saint Arnold Root Beer is a solid brew in the flavor department. It is very traditional and has a very balanced flavor. There are no overpowering flavors present which allows the drinker to simply savor the brew. The brew is very smooth and leaves no bitter aftertaste. The vanilla extract in the ingredient list is the dominant aftertaste and it is very smooth. Overall, I would call this root beer “full flavored” and if you like a brew that is strong, you’ll like this one.

Conclusion: Saint Arnold Root Beer is another one of those brews that does everything well. It checks all the boxes and you come away from drinking it knowing that you just consumed a quality beverage. If you like a brew that is straightforward and traditional in terms of flavor, you will like Saint Arnold. If you are looking for a brew to serve at a party or give to friends and family, Saint Arnold would be an excellent choice. You might not like this brew if you prefer a more complexly flavored beverage. This brew comes out of a brewery in Houston, TX (I live in Fort Worth) and is one of the first local brews I have tried (granted, Houston is five hours away but Texas is a big state). Saint Arnold does TX proud with it’s big, full bodied flavor and if you are ever passing through TX, be sure to try and find some. Thanks to the excellence of this brew, Saint Arnold Root Beer earns a coveted “Editor’s Choice” award and takes its place on my shelf among the best root beers out there.

RBR’s Grade- A