[PDX] Best Place to Get a Soda?

I've been going back and forth with a friend in emails about root beers, among other things. Who has the best soda pop collection in town? Not necessarily what restaurant, unless they have a good one (eg, was LOW's nice collection a LOW thing or an Apizza Scholls and LOW thing?), but especially what store?

I'm not expecting the great place my Dallas friend has with 135+ options (see link), but you'd think there'd be something better than driving around to several supermarkets and gourmet grocers to see if they have anything different. That's what I've had to do.

I'm talking specialty, nostalgic, and gourmet sodas here, not who has the best collection of Coke and Pepsi products, of course.

Link: http://www.ifsandsbutts.com/sodas/ind...

You should check out Real Soda. They have a Portland office on MLK near the Nike outlet. They're mainly a distributor but I bought a few cases of Schweppes Bitter Lemon from them a year or so ago. Lots of interesting sodas listed on their website.

Link: http://www.realsoda.com/

Thanks. Apparently if you buy 5 cases they'll do local delivery to save shipping costs. Not sure if I'm that thirsty, though. ;-)

It looks like sodaking.com (link below) is the actual shopping site.

Link: http://www.sodaking.com

Real Soda (Featherlite Industries) recently sold and they have cut down on the options. I had trouble ordering anything of the list as they were always out of stock.

Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls

if only Blenheim Old #3 Hot ginger ale was available up here...

The SE Asian grocery store on 38th and Belmont carries Sarsi cola.

regards,
trillium

Speaking of ethnic colas...Whenever I stop in at Apna I get a Pakola. It's like a curry cream soda. A bit sweet, but tasty.

Just a quick respone to your posting... I am a retro soda junkie. Glass bottles only and preferably/hopefully with real cane sugar. LOW (Rodney and Kyle) did not have any input on the soda selection.

Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls

Thanks, Brian. I just had never perused the soda list when I've gone for pizza. Actually, I take that back. My bad. When I took my brothers there one got a Nehi and one got another soda.

Ever consider some original recipe, Dublin, TX, Dr. Pepper?

How about the full Nehi selection? Peach would make my sister very happy! Also Fentiman's and Fizzy Lizzy available at New Seasons.

SarahWS

Yeah, I would love to get the original Dublin Dr. Pepper, but my distributor does not stock it and I don't really want to import it on my own, as it would be very costly in time and shipping charges. I have put in a request to my distributor to carry it, but since they have D.P. in the 12 oz bottle, from Plano, TX, I don't believe they will bother to stock both.

I loved your friend's website. A&W rootbeer in the old longneck bottles?... Mmmmm I might have to order some for myself.

I will be interested to see if there are any responses in regards to retail stores that are trying to stock these "retro" sodas. I think I remember Liquid Solutions in Tigard had quite a few, but it has been a long time since I have been there.

Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls

Thanks. Liquid Solutions wasn't even on my radar. I looked them up and they appear to have a website with their inventory of sodas listed. Pretty decent selection. Not great, but good. See link. I wish they had the Jackson Hole Root Beer. I've been wanting to try it.

Ifs, Ands, and Butts is just a place in the town (Dallas) that my friend lives. He's a regular there. They let you do a mixed six-pack of whatever you want for a fixed price. I might be going down there next month for a BBQ trip to Central Texas and if I do, maybe I can bring back some soda. How many bottles can you fit in a carry on? It's a question aching to be answered.

btw, another good online source is:

http://www.popsoda.com

Can you believe there's a guy online who has tested 310 root beers??? I can't believe there *are* 310 root beers. (I think some are sarsparillas, birch beers, and cream sodas, though.

)

Link: http://www.liquidsolutions.ws/main/

I know New Seasons has an interesting selection of British and unique sodas, at least at the Seven Corners store. In with the beer, they have the sodas that must be kept refrigerated (Fentiman's, Fizzy Lizzy, and a few others). I do know you can buy by the case with a 20% discount.

Also Uwagimaya has some pretty interesting sodas, with the full Nehi line, a New England soda company called AJ Stephan's (black cherry, strawberry and lemon lime), the full Hawaiian soda industry represented, and 4 flavors of Lorina's french lemonade (berry, lemon, lime, and orange).

Another store I visited this weekend, Lady Di's British store in Lake Oswego, had british sodas (almost all by the can) and I believe one or two refrigerated bottle soda. I know it was something I don't like, so a cola of some sort. It might have been Dr Pepper.

As you can tell, I'm a soda lover. I'm still searching for breweries that make their own root beer. I like them with a very strong root flavor, little sugar and carbonation, and on tap. In California, a Petaluma brewery called Dempsey's occasionally makes their own root beer. Wonderful! I also like fruit sodas and love the availability of more sodas with a strong fruit taste and less sugar (Izze, Fizzy Lizzy, & Fentiman's, in order from okay to great).

Sarah