GourmetRootBeer

Jul 122017
 

Dad-Gum-It! Butterscotch Root Beer Bottle Another brew from Rocket Fizz. Those makers of strangely themed craft sodas are at it again, this time, rather than go all celebrity themed, they decided to go hunting themed. Finally, a root beer that embraces the most glorious sport and pastime that is hunting. But you can tell that they are true hunters, for they’ve named it Dad-Gum-It! in a clear reference to a frustrated bird hunter. Who’s name is Ryan if the hat is to be believed. I’ve been there Ryan, more times than I care to admit, after burning through all three shots at a single pheasant flying straight away from me. How could I have missed? When just yesterday I was able to shoot quail. QUAIL! They’re like a quarter of the size and move faster. How could I have missed something so much bigger and slower?!? Dad-Gum-It! … well anyways, root beer. And butterscotch root beer. I do like me some butterscotch. Will this be the Seal of Approval brew to console my crushed ego after future bird hunting failures?

The Body is dark and spicy with licorice featuring prominently and some wintergreen as well. I also taste a distinct lack of butterscotch. The Bite is solid and strong from spices and ample carbonation, a little too strong. The Head is excellent! It’s there as long as you drink it (within reason). The Aftertaste is a little wintergreen and licorice. Also, no butterscotch.

Dad-gum-it! They tricked me. I was promised butterscotch. Maybe that’s the whole message of this brew. That what you really want will escape you. Ryan, for all his prowess, was unable to get his birds just like Rocket Fizz, despite their vast collection of soda ingredients, was unable to actually put butterscotch into the root beer. In the end all you’re left with is bitter dissappointment, much like a failed hunting trip. I don’t recommend either. See how it rates against other root beers.

2.5/5 Root Beer Kegs




Jul 052017
 

A mug of Faultline Brewing Company Root BeerTwo weeks ago I was down in the Bay area, not for the business trip that I posted about on Facebook, but for another amazing Tesla Road Trip! It’s that time of year and probably my last trip down there for awhile, so I had to see what I could find. My friend had upgraded his P90D to a new Model X P100D! So much more ludicrous speed. And he even let me drive it! And he laughed as I raged at getting kicked out of autopilot time and again for “not holding the wheel.” I WAS HOLDING THE WHEEL!!!! Upgrade your sensors or something… So anyways, we had stopped in Mountain View and were trying to supercharge and I scanned the area and found the Faultline Brewing Company was only about 10 minutes away and still along the way to Monterey. So we left the rather congested super charger and took the Gilroy route down, stopping at the brewery along the way. It’s a really classy brewery I must say, as the pictures below will attest. The root beer order seemed more than a pint but it didn’t say on the menu and I didn’t ask. I was too busy drinking.

The Body is mild with a fruity generic flavor with some hints of sarsaparilla. There really isn’t much distinct about it. The Bite is mild as well yet it isn’t smooth. The Head is nice and foamy and can be built tall. The Aftertaste is fruity sarsaparilla with caramelized sugar.

So, no, not really, nope. I don’t really like this. I mean, it’s not horrible, but not good. We ordered some very delicious seafood ceviche and then, interestingly, the brew paired quite well with it. Afterwards I doubted my initial reaction to the brew and got a bit more to swig again and yup, didn’t like it. So my conundrum, a brew that literally only tastes good when paired with a menu item. I guess that’s my definition of drinkable, so 3 kegs it is, barely. I don’t even think it’d pair well with the other food there, but the ceviche was yummy and so I can recommend the combo but not the brew by itself. Check it out if you’re in the area.

Three kegs




The seafood ceviche with root beer. Quite a tasty combo.

The seafood ceviche with root beer. Quite a tasty combo.

The left side of the restaurant as viewed from the entrance.

The left side of the restaurant as viewed from the entrance.

The right side of the restaurant as viewed from the entrance.

The right side of the restaurant as viewed from the entrance.


Jun 282017
 

Big Rock Root Beer Bottle This was a find by my good friend and avid root beer collector Vince. He found it on a road trip somewhere in the south. I’d never even heard about it before. It’s made by Diamond Bear Brewing Company from Little Rock Arkansans. So this brew is the Big Rock of Little Rock? I approve of that joke. There’s also an image of a big rock on the label, though I have no idea if that’s a real place. It probably is. Maybe. I like the color scheme of the rest of the label too, all blue and white and whatnot. The brewery itself is pretty new, only coming on the scene in 2000. This root beer is kept pretty hush-hush as the only reference to it is the root beer float dessert on the alehouse menu. And yet they bottle it so I’m not sure what their marketing plan is with this. Maybe it’s to make the most amazing root beer in the world and have only the coolest people know about it. We’ll see.

The Body is sweet with a medium strength. There’s a sarsaparilla flavor with a little vanilla. It’s got a zippy little Bite to it. The Head is tall but lacks staying power. The Aftertaste is more vanilla sarsaparilla.

This kind of reminds me of Barq’s, but better. That makes sense it coming from the South and all. It’s pretty solid but nothing exceptional or fancy. Just a straight up root beer with frills. See how it rates against other root beers.

Three and a half kegs