Eric’s Gourmet Root Beer Blog – The blog of the gourmet root beer site.

Ancestry Draft Root Beer

Jun 032026

Back in February I was in Portland doing what I do best, DERMSing. This wasn’t the first time I’ve been to Portland for such reasons. In fact I was there fall of last year, when I was doing my crazy travel schedule. I had checked near my hotel, in Tualatin, and found Ancestry brewing back then, but I was with quite a few coworkers and we were in a hurry so I filed it away as something to hit for the next trip, which trip was this February. That’s a long way of saying I was expecting to hit this place up. We actually barely made it in time to order dinner and the root beer.

The Body is sweet and rich with some vanilla and wintergreen. It’s a pretty typical flavor profile about halfway between a creamy classic and a dark old fashioned that just tastes like good root beer. The Bite is mild and smooth with a little carbonation prickle slight spice. The Head is medium tall with good staying power. The Aftertaste is sweet with a bit of vanilla but not much.

There’s nothing that really stands out on this but it’s a good total package. Better than average and plenty fine with the meal of fish and chips with some pretzel bites. I got a second pint after all. So check it out. It’s a fine place.

**Fish and chips with pretzel bites in a beer cheese dip. Quite delicious**

Oasis Diner Butterscotch Root Beer

Draft and Keg Root Beers No Responses »

May 062026

When I was at Oasis Diner, and I asked for my refill, they asked if I wanted more of the regular or if I wanted to try the Butterscotch Root Beer. What? That was an option? They have two house root beers? I am not a fan of doing back to back reviews, but I knew I was coming back in December, so I vowed that would be the first place I ate at on my return. Then, in December, I did return, with my youngest brother as well, for he was also works at the company and had business with my customer. I told him of the epic diner and away we went for dinner.

The Body is sweet and full of butterscotch but light on other flavors. You can taste the root beer in there, but barely. The Bite is mild yet not overly smooth. The Head is very tall and foamy. They really excel with that. The Aftertaste is sweet butterscotch.

This is some good butterscotch, but it needs some more root beer. This happens a lot with flavored root beers. They put a lot of that flavor in to overpowering the root beer flavors. It’s still very pleasant to drink and it goes well with their food. Now do I like this better than their original? They are about the same, one’s a decent, albeit rather generic, root beer and the other is a tasty butterscotch yet weak root beer. So what are you in the mood for? Both go well with their delicious cuisine. I had the patty melt this time. It was amazing.

**A patty melt with onion rings and butterscotch root beer. True bliss.**

Oasis Diner Root Beer

Draft and Keg Root Beers No Responses »

Apr 012026

The very next day after visiting the Mug and Bun, I was searching casually just to see if there was any other Indianapolis brews to be had because why not, I had another day. I found Oasis diner, in Plainfield, very close to the airport. The perfect place to go for lunch before I flew out. The original diner was made in New Jersey in 1954 and shipped via rail to Plainfield where it operated continuously until 2008. The iconic landmark was moved 4 miles in in 2010 and reopened in 2014. It definitely has that 1950s diner vibe with an impressive menu of what you’d expect and cakes and pies under cloches. I ordered their signature Oasis Burger and a frosty mug of root beer.

The Body is mild and isn’t overly sweet. There’s licorice notes and some vanilla over a sassafras core that is pleasant enough. The Bite is rather mild as well with no notable spices and a below average fizziness. The Head builds to a medium height and medium foaminess, coalescing into big bubbles as it dissipates. The Aftertaste is light, sweet vanilla that is gone quickly.

This stuff is okay. Nothing special but very drinkable. The food is next level, however. That Oasis burger has 2 beef patties, bacon, pulled pork, and coleslaw. That’s quite the burger. I also had a slice of German chocolate cake because I know no restraint when the company picks up the tab. Great place, okay root beer. Worth a visit for vibes and food. They also bottle their root beer so I intend to review that to see if there’s any difference.

***The Oasis Burger and fries with root beer.***

***Just look at this cake, could you blame me?***

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