Bottled Root Beers – Page 2 – Eric’s Gourmet Root Beer Blog

Swell Riptide Root Beer

Jun 042025

Another trade with anthony. This brew comes from San Diego and is made by 6th generation San Diegans, which is what you call people from San Diego. Who knew? I have some of my own family roots from San Diego area, on my mother’s side. They are also surfers like this root beer depicts. Surfer themed root beers are a favorite of mine so I have high hopes. This is also brewed in small batches, if the text on the label is to be believed. I like a double entendre on the title as well. A swell in the waves or a swell root beer. Though a riptide is a pretty dangerous thing so I don’t know about having a riptide being swell. It is a beach thing so I guess that fits, or maybe they’re just going for alliteration.

The Body is sweet and rich with a lot of vanilla and caramel with a tinge of fruity sarsaparilla. It’s pretty good. The Bite is mild on spice with some prickly carbonation. That said, it isn’t the smoothest. The Head is medium tall but fizzes down too fast. The Aftertaste is vanilla. There’s a hint of that sarsaparilla as well. Overall it’s pretty good,

I’d say it’s pretty swell. Not Seal of Approval but swell. This brings an interesting question of how good is swell, is it better than good, slightly worse than excellent? I feel it’s somewhat better than good but not the best. Maybe I’ve been using swell wrong my whole life? Maybe this root beer makes me rethink everything on the word swell, a word I’ve just sort of used without too much thought. Anyways, swell brew. See how it rates against other root beers.

Chautauqua Beverages Root Beer

Bottled Root Beers 1 Response »

May 072025

I don’t know how I’m supposed to say this name. Thankfully this is a written post and not a video, or I’d be in deep trouble. For a root beer that’s supposedly been established in 1938, they sure have done a good job keeping it a secret from me. I got this in a trade from anthony, I think he got it in either New York or Pennsylvania, because those are the two addresses on the label. Also, in small print, it says it was produced by Mobilia Farms, so maybe he got it there? Also did you know there’s a town in Pennsylvania called North East? I thought they were just being general in the area, but nope, it’s a real place. On Lake Erie, by the town of Erie, but you guessed it, a little North and East. Anyways The one other part is that they are “Manufacturers of high grade beverages” which evidently means they put propylene glycol in their root beer, because they did. Anyways.

The Body is sweet and mild. There’s an aged sarsaparilla flavor which is good, but there isn’t a lot of other flavors. The Bite is sharp and prickly but light on spices. The Head is very tall and foamy, but fizzes down a bit two quickly. The Aftertaste is mild sarsaparilla.

This should probably be labeled as a sarsaparilla and not a root beer. Though that gets into the whole is a sarsaparilla a root beer which I’ve gone over my stance many times, but incase you’re new, I’ll summarize by saying if you call it a root beer but serve me a sarsaparilla, it can be decent, which this is. It’s drinkable. See how it rates against other root beers.

Old Keg Root Beer

Bottled Root Beers No Responses »

Mar 052025

The root beer that could have been my 500th review. I bought the bottle after trying my 499th, but, I didn’t think it was “special enough” to be 500. It’s another resurrected brand from Orca Beverages, of which there are several, and that’s just a bit to plain a backstory for the storied 500th brew. I found this at the store formerly known as Blue Sun Soda, and I do like the motif of an old keg being called Old Keg. I mean, I throw pictures of old kegs all over this site of mine. But does it really have that, “old keg” flavor and profile?

The Body sweet with rich honey and vanilla complimenting a nice rooty sassafras core. It is really delicious. The Bite is spicy and prickly with a smooth finish. The Head is medium tall and foamy that fizzes away faster than I prefer by coalescing into increasingly larger bubbles. That’s rather unique. The Aftertaste is a delicious honey sassafras with hints of vanilla.

This is my kind of root beer. Darker than classic, with honey showing through. I love it. Honestly, as far as quality of the root beer goes, this would have been a better 500th than what I had, and while it didn’t have a backstory then, it’s lack of backstory has become one of the better ones. Ah, the brew and review that could have been, but at least it won the Seal. See how it rates against other root beers.

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