Founded in 1898, Berghoff has clearly still not had quite enough time yet to perfect their root beer flavor. It’s a very weak bite which settles into a bland flavor with an after taste resembling cough syrup. The after taste actually stays with you and seems to get worse over time. It has a very uniform blondness for a root beer. In fact, the only good thing I have to say about this root beer is the smell. It smell is strong and root beery, which makes the let down of the taste even steeper. Okay, that’s not the ONLY thing. It does have a lower sugar content then other root beers and does NOT contain high fructose corn syrup. The label is a nice classic design so you can use it as a display item, but stay away from this root beer if you’re looking for something to drink. 4 out of 10, lowest score thus far!

After an extensive hiatus, the Root Beer Blog is back with new and tasty root beers.  Today’s subject, Dr. Brown’s Original Draft Style Root Beer.   It starts out with a good bite and the gentle aroma of sassafras.  The taste is also quite sassafrassy.  Swirling it around in the glass produces a cloudy brown color. Dr. Brown’s has been serving up this “Flavor Favorite for Generations” and it’s 42g sugar content is sure to keep you nice and wired.

Although the flavor sticks with you a little on the syrupy side (that’s the high fructose corn syrup), I deem it one of the better root beers thus far and give it a 7 of 10 score.

Aaah, back to caffeine free root beer.    Dad’s cloudy bronze color comes out with a good fizz, introducing it’s strong bite.  The flavor is slightly sweet with a little syrupiness on the back end.  Like the flavor, the smell is also quite subtle.  However, I found that pouring it over ice brought out the flavor a lot more and you could taste the root beer much stronger and it was much more enjoyable.  It’s sweetness comes from the 40 grams of sugar it contains.  It seems we’re starting to get up there on sugar content.

Over all, I give Dad’s a 6 out of 10.  My recommendation is that it be enjoyed on ice. 

I am about to die, and not in the good way.  I’m only half way through this Bawls High Caffeine Guarana Root Beer and my heart is already racing.  I’m beginning to question if this review is hazardous to my health.  Containing High Fructose Corn Syrup, lots of caffeine and guarana extract, this has to be the worst root beer for you on the market and it carries over into the flavor.

At first, the light amber color looks like any other root beer, and when you first open the bottle, the smell of root beer wafts over you, but then it’s gone.  The fragrance quickly dissipates into something that is hardly a smell at all.  Although it comprises a good bite, you can taste the guarana in it.  It tastes more like an energy drink with a little root beer mixed in.  Other then that, there is almost no flavor.  I assume that this drink is more for people looking for an energy drink who like the novelty of root beer then someone who is truly looking for a root beer to drink.

Over all 4 out of 10.

“Third time available in 420 years” as the label reads, Jack Black’s bottle is full of funny extremisms like “Better Dead Red then just  plain Dead!” and “Once you’ve had Jack Black, you’ll never go back!”  Exclamation pointed each time.    Now does its flavor match up with its drama?  The reddish tint holds true to its name and the bouquet has a molasses hint to it.  However, the flavor has a light syrupy essence to it and the bite is modest despite its large sudziness when poured.  Overall, it’s an okay root beer, however I’m afraid the label does resemble to root beer in that it has a large head, but little follow through.

There is still more fun to be had by the bottle however, with cryptic messages on the cap advertising their other beverages, this one in Spanish for some reason “Beba BrainWash… Refrigerante que dá Lingua Azul!”  This means, “Drink Brain Wash… Refrigerate to get a blue tongue!”

Despite its mediocryness (word?)  I’m giving Jack Black’s a 6 out of 10.  Sometimes something just gives you a good feeling 

Zuberfizz has a strong bite to start which I like.  There’s not much of a smell to it but the dark cloudy brown color foreshadows the creamy flavor to come.  The taste is not sharp, but has a smooth creaminess that isn’t too sweet but just right.  Produced by the Durango Soda Company in Durango, CO, they use pure cane sugar, giving it just enough sweetness without being overpowering.  The gum arabic is a natural gum made of hardened sap and is used as a stabilizer and probably what gives the root beer its cloudiness.

All in all, I give Zuberfizz a 7 out of 10 for its creamy goodness.

Made with pure Louisiana Can Sugar, Abita is not too sweet, but just right, and definitely not syrupy.  It’s light brown color and moderate fizz give you a slight bite to accompany it’s moderately rich flavor.  Even the smell is subtle.  “Mild” seems too cruel a word to describe this root beer, so I would call it genial; perfect for the masses, but not nearly strong enough for the root beer connoisseur.

Overall, I’ll give it a 6 out of 10. Although I would give it extra marks for having no additives or preservatives.  That’s quite a feat! Pretty much every other root beer has sodium benzoate in it as a preservative.  Sodium benzoate is bacteriostatic and fungistatic under acidic conditions (in this case carbonic acid), meaning it keeps fungus and bacteria from growing.  While sodium benzoate is on the whole harmless, there is research that shows it may be unhealthy in certain conditions or large amounts.  For instance, in combination with ascorbic acid (vitamin C, E300), sodium benzoate may form benzene, a known carcinogen. Heat, light and shelf life can affect the rate at which benzene is formed.  But if you simply don’t drink OJ with your root beer, this won’t be an issue.  Bleh, get chills just thinking about mixing the two.

However, some claim that sodium benzoate by itself can damage and inactivate vital parts of DNA in a cell’s mitochondria, which is the energy producing powerhouse of the cell.  So again kudos to Abita Root Beer for nixing the preservatives.

The first thing you notice about Sparky’s Fresh Draft Root Beer is not the smell, which is actually very slight, but the loud fizz of the super carbonation of this delectable beverage.  It’s uniform blondness pours clearly and creates an immediate and ferocious head.  Pouring it into your mouth, you feel the sharp bite tickle your tongue.  It’s just enough to invigorate you but not overdone to the point where you taste the carbonation.

The taste itself is pure root beer flavor.  The mysterious “spices” in this root beer hold the key to the nigh perfect root beer.  I think the addition of honey gives it a sweet taste without being syrupy or overpowering.  For those naturalists out there, Sparky’s uses pure cane sugar, no artificial ingredients, and has a kick ass sassafras taste.  Definitely a high recommendation on my list.  However, since I’m an optimist, I’m gonna hope for even better things along the way, so I’m going to give Sparky’s an 8 out of 10, although it may perhaps be a grade below what it deserves.

Drive-in Style Dog n Suds Root Beer starts off with a nice robust root beer bouquet.  You can almost taste the root beer by smelling  it.  When poured, it is a clear amber color, lightly carbonated.  Dog n Suds brought back memories for my dad growing up in Arkansas when he would go down to the drive in or soda shop and enjoy the fizzy beverage with a hot dog.  Although he said Dog n Suds hot dogs were delicious, he was never too impressed with their root beer and I’m going to have to agree.  The smell of the root beer seems to be its best trait.  Much like Burger King fanning their artificial hamburger scent from its drive in, Dog n Suds Root Beer does the same thing. It calls you in with fragrance, but lets you down with its light flavor and syrupy taste.  Furthermore, the bite of this dog is nothing to be afraid of; a very tame root beer to say the least.

Over all, I give Dog n Suds Root Beer a 5 out of 10.

Upon further examination, the inclusion of High Fructose Corn Syrup to its ingredients would explain the syrupiness.  Although its 30g of sugar might seem like a lot to some, it’s mild in comparison with where we’re going on this root beer journey.  We’re off to a rough start, but there’s plenty more where that came from.

Before we jump into the tastings of root beer.  We’ve got to know a little more about its making and what we’re looking for in a flavor.  Root beer was originally brewed using sassafras root.  This same root can be filed down to a powder and is put in many gumbos as a spice.  Sassafras can also be steeped into a tea until the FDA banned sassafras in cooking oils and foods in 1960, siting lab reports that claimed ingesting it led to liver damage and certain types of cancers.  Of course today, they’re more then happy to let us ingest high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils, but let’s not get off topic.

After 1960, soda companies were forced to switch over to artificial sassafras flavorings and spices to recreate their flavors, that is until 1994 when the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act was passed, eventually lifting the ban on sassafras use in foods.  Today, most root beers are still made with artificial flavorings along with some of these ingredients:

• Pimenta dioica – Allspice
• Vanilla planifolia – Vanilla
• Trigonella foenum-graecum – Fenugreek
• Myroxylon balsamum – “Tolu Balsam”
• Abies balsamea – “Balsam Fir”
• Hordeum vulgare – “Barley” (Malted)
• Myristica fragrans – Nutmeg
• Juniperus communis – “Juniper” (fruit or “berry”)
• Cinnamomum zeylanicum – Cinnamon (bark)
• Cinnamomum aromaticum – “Cassia” (bark)
• Syzygium aromaticum – Clove
• Foeniculum vulgare – Fennel (seed)
• Zingiber officinale – Ginger (root)
• Illicium verum – Star Anise
• Pimpinella anisum – Anise
• Humulus lupulus – Hops
• Mentha species – Mint
• Hypericum perforatum – St. John’s Wort
• Cane Sugar
• Molasses
• Honey

Most of which will be hidden under the clandestine “spices” label in the ingredients section to secure each maker’s secret recipe is not revealed.

Each brand has its own history to their specific root beer, but to North America, root beer was invented by Charles Hires, a Philadelphia pharmacist who according to his biography discovered a recipe for a delicious herbal tea while on his honeymoon. The pharmacist began selling a dry version of the tea mixture and also began working on a liquid version of the same tea. The result of was a combination of over twenty-five herbs, berries and roots that Charles Hires used to flavor a carbonated soda water drink. The Charles Hires’ version of a root beer beverage was first introduced to the public at the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial exhibition. The Hires family continued to manufacture root beer and in 1893 first sold and distributed bottled root beer. Charles Hires and his family certainly contributed greatly to the popularity of modern root beer, however, the origins of root beer can be traced further back in history.

The historical root beer was analogous to small beer, in that the process provided a drink with a very low alcohol content. In spite of roots being used as the source of many soft drinks in many countries throughout the world (and even alcoholic beverages/beers), the name root beer is almost unused outside of the United States, Canada and the Philippines. Most other countries have their own indigenous versions of root-based beverages and small beers but with different names and branding.

December 4 is International Root Beer Day (IRBD). IRBD was first celebrated on December 4, 1995 in Venezuela with American root beer imported from Curaçao.

Alright kiddies, that’s enough background on the beer of root, let’s get fizzin!