GourmetRootBeer

Lift Bridge Brewery Root Beer

Sep 122018

A pint of Liftbridge Brewery Root Beer So my family has been on vacation in Europe for the past month, leaving me with lots of free time on the weekends to chase down root beers, and Labor Day was no exception, so I set out to Stillwater, a quaint little town on the border with Wisconsin (which I’ve yet to set foot in). There resides the Lift Bridge Brewery, named after the lift bridge on the St. Croix River. Lift Bridge actually cans their root beer, and they can be found all around the Minneapolis area. But I don’t drink root beer from cans, so my only way to try it was to go straight to the source, which I did because it was Labor Day and only a 45 minute drive away.

The Body is very minty with a little vanilla. It isn’t overly sweet, but it isn’t lacking either. It does feel a little hollow, like it needs more sassafras. The Bite is harsh and sharp. There’s a ton of carbonation and some spices. It is too harsh in my opinion. The Head is medium tall with a good foaminess that lasts. The Aftertaste is a strong wintergreen flavor that ends a little bitter. It reminds of those wintergreen Lifesavers.

This is solid, but lacking. There really isn’t anything bad about it, it just needs a few tweaks to make it top notch. If you’re in the area, check it out. The town of Stillwater is worth the walk around, and even climb those downtown stairs, just don’t run up the stairs two steps at a time, my legs are still sore.

Three and a half kegs

The Lift Bridge Brewery. This picture was taken from inside the taproom looking through the brewery door.

Schneider’s German Root Beer

Root Beer Stand Root Beers 1 Response »

Sep 052018

A glass of Schneider's German Root Beer Still at the Minnesota State Fair, after I’d visited The Root Beer Hut I figured it was time to hit up all of the fair essentials, like roasted corn, big fat bacon on a stick, Sweet Martha’s Cookie Jar, etc. After I’d gotten my corn and was waiting in line for my bacon (which I dual wielded for awhile), I saw another root beer stand. Schneider’s German Root Beer. Mind blown, two root beers for me to review when I only expected one! This was going to be an epic fair. I decided that I should walk the whole grounds (since I’d just recently had a 32 oz Challenge Root Beer) and catalog all of the root beer stands at the fair. After about 4 hours of wandering, I was ready for review Round 2. Schneider’s German Root Beer was established in 1947 using a family recipe. Like the Challenge Root Beer, it’s only available at the State Fair from one of two stands. I assume the one I visited was the first such stand.

The Body is very spicy and reminds me of a root beer barrel candy. There’s some vanilla with a slight fruity tinge as well. The Bite is spicy with good carbonation and a relatively smooth finish. The Head is a medium height but lacks staying power. The Aftertaste is a spiced vanilla.

This is pretty good. I better than the Challenge Root Beer, though more expensive. You get what you pay for I suppose. There still was a fruity tinge, and that keeps it from a Seal for me. But it’s yummy all the same and is sure to go well with all of that salty stick food you’ll be buying at the fair.

Three and a half kegs

Schneider’s German Root Beer stand. A bonus root beer at the fair for me.

The other German Root Beer stand.

Root Beer at The Minnesota State Fair

Random Root Beer-ness 1 Response »

Sep 012018

Minnesota State Fair Root Beer Barrel

So as you know, I was at the Minnesota State Fair this past weekend on a quest for a root beer stand review. Over the course of five hours of walking basically every part, I came to a happy realization. In addition to the food-on-a-stick, animals, rides, cookies (oh those fresh cookies), and exhibits, there was another overarching theme. And that is root beer. I made this discovery as I first trekked to The Root Beer Hut I saw a root beer barrel stand. I was very amazed and curious. I went to see if they had their own root beer. They said no, but had IBC in their fountains along with other sodas. Someone told me it was actually A&W, the dispenser itself said Mug, but it doesn’t matter. They weren’t advertising soda, they were advertising root beer. There was more than one of these barrels that I found (3 maybe) just out there selling root beer. There was The Root Beer Hut and The Red Barn Root Beer by the same family. I also found a surprise root beer stand, the German Root Beer stands (review coming Wednesday). There was a 1919 root beer stand, and a shaved ice stand with a big barrel advertising some craft brewed root beer that I’d never heard of. It’s clear, that root beer is just as much a feature of the Great Minnesota Get-Together as anything. Minnesota truly is the right place for a root beer gourmet like me. So if you’re in the area and love root beer, get on down to the State Fair!