Frostop Premium Root Beer

 Bottled Root Beers  4 Responses »
Nov 232011
 

You’ve got to love a root beer bottle with a picture of a drive-in on it. Those were wonderful days, back when root beer reigned supreme as the soft drink of choice, our cars were beefy and so were the burgers. I don’t know how I can really get nostalgic about it since I wasn’t alive then, but I’ve heard stories. It is always nice when a dedicated root beer stand bottles their product so root beer aficionados like myself can enjoy it without having to take a trip to the Midwest. They say it’s been around since 1926 and it’s “Top Rated!” at that. What really got my hopes up was its claims about the amazing Head. So it was with great anticipation that I cracked it open to give it a try.

Sweet mother of root beer Head! The Head is amazingly tall and frothy. It overflowed my mug! The Body is very sweet and creamy. One of the sweetest I’ve ever had. There is a lot of wintergreen and some spices, maybe nutmeg? It is a little light on the sassafras, more of a medium bodied brew. The Bite is pretty good. There are some spices that grab you and a slight carbonation tingle but a smooth finish, as it should be. The Aftertaste is a deliciously creamy vanilla and wintergreen.

So it lived up to it’s claims, especially with the epic Head. I do rate this as a top brew. They say “NOTHING tops it… but the foam!” While not the best root beer ever, I must say, that’s pretty accurate. See how it rates against other root beers.




River City Root Beer

 Bottled Root Beers  1 Response »
Oct 262011
 

Sacramento is a special city to me. Both of my grandparents lived there and so we would go every summer for a week or two. After I became a root beer connoisseur, Sacramento was a place where I found many a new brew to review. The very first summer after my root beer ascension, while I was looking for root beers in the Sacramento mall near old town, I came across the River City Brewing company. They made their own root beer but only sold it on tap. It was amazing. I wished they bottled it so I could review it. They didn’t so I moved on, always remembering that amazing brew. Well when I came across this, I did a double take. Had the amazing root beer of my nascent days of a root beer aficionado finally been bottled? River City Root Beer is from Sacramento. Sadly though, it is made from different manufactures, so my dream remains yet unfulfilled. I was still excited, however, to try a brew birthed in the city of such root beer legacy. This time, I was not disappointed.

The Body is rich and creamy with traces of mint surfacing. It has a very strong and rooty flavor. The Bite is most excellent with the perfect amount of spices and carbonation. The Head is good. It builds to a very decent height and is pretty frothy. It lingers throughout the entire drinking experience, though I’ve had many that are taller and frothier. The Aftertaste is a lovely, creamy combination of vanilla and mint that sticks around about the perfect amount of time. This is an exceptional brew in all categories.

It says on the bottle that this is a brew to bring back memories of a time gone by, and I do think of glorious root beer days in Sacramento when drinking it. Underneath the cap it reads “Thanks to those who have gone before.” I must say, that this root beer, truly honors the past of great brewers while leading the way to a glorious future. See how it rates against other root beers.




Olde Philadelphia Old Fashioned Root Beer

 Bottled Root Beers  No Responses »
Oct 142011
 

The first question that I had was why did they call it Old Fashioned root beer and not Olde Fashioned? I mean it is Olde Philadelphia. Perhaps old fashioned root beer isn’t old enough for the extra ‘e’. The second question I had was “why is the label almost pealing off?” and crooked for that matter. A crappy crooked label doesn’t help convince people you have a “gourmet soda.” But then again, this is from Philly, the home of Hank’s. Ever since Hank’s, I’ve had a soft spot for Philly. So perhaps this root beer from the same city got some of that awesomeness that Hank’s exudes.

It does have a nice full Body that is rich and creamy. It is also pretty sweet from all of the invert sugar. The Bite is a sharp on the tongue, mostly from carbonation but there are some spices in there too. It still goes down smooth. The Head is medium height and froth. It lasts long enough. The Aftertaste is sweet hints of vanilla that lasts just about the perfect amount of time. This is a solid brew that is very enjoyable.

It seems that this is at least the second and most recent iteration of root beer from the Olde Philadelphia Soda Co. Also a perusal of the web reveals that the previous iteration was not near as good as this one (though it had a much cleaner label). So pat yourselves on the back Olde Philly Soda Co. You did it right this time. See how it rates against other root beers.




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