Imagine a root beer that’s more than just a root beer. It’s a root beer with a mission. A mission to enrich the state of New Mexico, through local economic support. A mission to achieve a sustainable earth for the next seven generations. And a mission to benefit the Native Tribe of Zia Pueblo. Congratulations, you’ve imagined ZIA Root Beer. The company name, ZIA Energia means sun energy. And the symbol on the bottle is the sun, with rays in four directions, symbolizing many sets of four things like North, South, East, and West; Earth, Water, Air, Fire; and even Clear Mind, Strong Body, Pure Spirit, and Devotion to the Well-Being of Others. The design and the font are all very Pueblo-y, if that’s a style. I think it’s a style. I’m saying it’s a style. Feel free to correct me in the comments about what the real style is. My rudimentary Googling fell short. My only comment on their mission is what about the poor eighth generation?
The Body is rich and complex with lots of spice and some licorice. There’s also a hint of malted barley. The Bite is strong and spicy with a lot of clove. The Head is decent. It’s tall and frothy enough but I’ve seen much better. The Aftertaste is wintergreen and vanilla with clove accents and licorice.
This is a solid and complex brew, but there’s just a little too much licorice in it for my tastes. I was on the fence of where to put this one and thankfully I had more than two bottles so I could try it again. Ultimately it didn’t quite make the Seal cut, but it’s still worth trying as it is pretty unique. See how it rates against other root beers.
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I’ve seen root beer bottles with many different types of animals on them, but this is the first rabbit. My daughter saw it and said it is an Easter Bunny root beer. Actually, it’s made by Rabbit Ridge Winery’s spin off soda line, Paso Pure, so the rabbit is from that. The sodas were developed in 2015 for all the children and designated drivers that come out wine tasting, which means that people must drink way too much out there if they need designated drivers. The line is called Paso Pure because they use pure ingredients and they’re located in Paso Robles. It’s run by the daughter of the winery owners. The label is a bit perplexing since “Rabbit Ridge” is far more prominent than “Paso Pure.” I suspect that’s the parents reminding their daughter who’s really in charge. They also make sure to say “Soda Pop” to both frustrate and placate both sides of the soda vs. pop nomenclature war. 
