Wow! That’s quite a name and an assertion they’ve got going. I mean, you’ll get old time root beers, and draft root beers, and even the occasional quality root beer, but more than one of those three on the same title? And not only that but all three no less. Well, it has been in continuous business for almost 90 years. If they haven’t changed the recipe at all then it would be old time. It must be of some quality in order to stay around for that long. Draft, well, I’ll see about that.
This is a very sweet medium Bodied brew that tastes like a root beer barrel candy. There is a hint of something kind of icky and out of place though. There are also some spices which add to the Bite but it is very smooth. The Head is very nice. It has an excellent height and is pretty frothy. So it is draft a style head in my opinion (though I wouldn’t go so far as to call it draught), but I’ve seen better. The Aftertaste is a letdown. It isn’t really anything. There are the faintest traces of sugar and vanilla but it is nowhere near enough.
Overall it’s pretty good. They seem to come through with all that they claimed the root beer would be. The Aftertaste though is where they take the biggest hit. It makes sense though because they boast of how their root beer has been served at certain restaurants for over 50 years, and pairing this with food would cover up the deficiencies. See how it rates against other root beers.
Dorothy Molter, The Root Beer Lady, lived in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area on the international border of the United States and Ontario, Canada. She was a nurse by training and operated the Isle of Pines Resort. She brewed her own root beer for the travelers. She was wild and rugged. Now, her resort has been moved from that pristine wilderness to Ely, MN, where it is a museum. This root beer is brewed by the museum. An interesting history. Though, when I think of commemorative root beers, things like Crater Lake and Red Jammer come to mind.
I always appreciate puns. I do. I was the ‘pun’isher at my high school. So it was a great delight to see Gale’s root beer have a little girl (obviously Gale) bending against a blowing wind (gale). There is also a little dog (once again) and the phrase “Oh Rootie” From the story on the bottle Rootie is the name of the dog. Though I am loathe to read ingredients before I try my first bottle, I couldn’t help but notice that it said “Cinnamon Ginger Vanilla Flavored” Now this really got my hopes up for a gingery Myers Avenue Red type thing.
