494272 Thu Feb 28 14:40:18 -0800 2008 64 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 3444937 Who likes good ol' fashioned Rootbeer??? I like most of the standards... A&W, MUG, Sarsaparilla, Barq's. Also Thomas Kemper is good, but one of the best Rootbeer's I've had was made by the Coca-Cola Company and only available in fountain dispenser's called Ramblin' Rootbeer. Your Thoughts??? Drink Up!!:) check this out.... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_beer Thu Feb 28 14:40:18 -0800 2008 156480 someyoungguyy 1 3445733 I love root beer. My favorite commercial brands of root beer are IBC and Barq's. Not crazy about Mug or even A & W but will drink them in a pinch if I'm really in the mood for root beer. Thu Feb 28 19:19:00 -0800 2008 3444937 124476 FoodieKat 1 3445789 I've always loved Hire's Root Beer. I have friends who swear by Dad's but it doesn't seem that special to me. Thu Feb 28 19:39:55 -0800 2008 3444937 139180 Blush 1 3445930 well I am a fan of Hank's and lets not forget about Virgil's...and of course home brewed root beer is a good way to go... Thu Feb 28 20:28:19 -0800 2008 3444937 154250 chefjeffd 1 3445934 For Diet, A&W hands down. Thu Feb 28 20:30:34 -0800 2008 3444937 144814 livetocook 1 3445948 Wasn't Ramblin' Rootbeer a 70s thing? It's not still made is it? I was just talking over root beer the other day with a friend and we universally disdain the "Natural" brand root beer and enjoy A&W and Barq's most out of the major national brands. It's been ages since I had a Dad's but I did recently find a consistent source of Hire's and will be trying that out again soon. There's a local brewery here in Iowa called Millstream that does a decent root beer. Goose Island out of Chicago does an ok RB as well. What about Jones Soda? Do they make a root beer? Also, where does birch beer fit in for you folks? I'd never had it until I went to Philly for the first time about 7 years ago. Interesting, funky, definitely quite different. It's definitely not widely available in the MW. Thu Feb 28 20:36:07 -0800 2008 3444937 133145 bygnerd 1 3445983 Mug, Barq's. I used to work at A&W and even mixed the syrup for the root beer. I liked it a lot when I was a kid but find it to be a bit sweet now. Thu Feb 28 20:55:19 -0800 2008 3444937 25885 jwagnerdsm 1 3446025 Stewart's is my favorite diet (yes, it's really good) and straight up the best is Abita (an Abita root beer float is dinner for me sometimes... Thu Feb 28 21:12:06 -0800 2008 3444937 11524 chef4hire 2 3448298 Abita is my favorite too. Where do you get yours, chef? I also like (and just made last week) Zatarain's root beer extract mixed with sugar and water. Been drinking that since I was a kid. Fri Feb 29 17:17:03 -0800 2008 3446025 125577 mrsfury 2 3457519 Here in AZ, we have a local shop that sells MANY different kind of root beers, and a good selection of them (including Abita, which I love) are available to purchase online. http://popsoda.com/noname.html Mon Mar 03 22:58:22 -0800 2008 3446025 67548 azhotdish 1 3446298 I really like root beer. IBC is the best. Actually, along the same line of thinking, I have recently developed a love for birch beer. It's not as refined and creamy as root beer, but has a very interesting dynamic to it that's difficult to describe. Have you ever tried it? If not, you should. Lovers of root beer would appreciate it. Fri Feb 29 03:54:13 -0800 2008 3444937 142652 madgreek 2 3448523 I love birch beer. It's sharper, definitely has a good bite to it. They taste just like root beer barrel candies to me. Fri Feb 29 18:53:55 -0800 2008 3446298 112034 spellweaver16 1 3446768 Boylan's makes the best I have tasted. Their birch beer is also amazingly good. Fri Feb 29 07:29:00 -0800 2008 3444937 18385 CDouglas 2 3588915 Seconded. Sun Apr 13 00:36:09 -0700 2008 3446768 19148 aynrandgirl 1 3447894 http://listverse.com/miscellaneous/top-10-discontinued-sodas/ nice list of discontinued sodas.... Coke II, WTF??? I only remmeber NEW COKE and Vanilla COKE!!! LOL!!! Fri Feb 29 13:53:03 -0800 2008 3444937 156480 someyoungguyy 1 3448281 Root Beer is one of my all time favorite soft drinks, i'm a fan of the diet varieties (just don't like the syrupy flavor of the regular as an adult ). Stewarts is great, as is A&W but that's best served in the big frosty mugs. Diet mug tasted watery to me last time i had it. A nearby microbrewery also makes their own root beer and such...mmmmmmmm. Fri Feb 29 17:09:24 -0800 2008 3444937 153184 im_nomad 1 3448334 a&w, with a big frosty mug! can't go wrong with a bacon cheeseburger alongside too! Fri Feb 29 17:32:07 -0800 2008 3444937 160193 CPunches 1 3448696 I still remember Hire's. IBC is close but not quite it. Both tend to have a dry finish. Chilled and in a root beer float, that's important. Any one know where you can get Hire's? Fri Feb 29 20:27:49 -0800 2008 3444937 27275 ML8000 1 3448731 Here in New England, Polar has just released a Polar Classics series of soft drinks in 12-oz glass bottles. The root beer is outstanding, one of the best I've ever had. I take a certain bizarre pride in the fact that both my first name and my last name are the names of brands of root beer, although I don't think my last name's brand is still active. Fri Feb 29 20:51:10 -0800 2008 3444937 17548 BarmyFotheringayPhipps 2 3588123 Thanks for the tip. For those who are interested, the Polar Classic line is made with cane sugar. Sat Apr 12 16:28:48 -0700 2008 3448731 10400 Aromatherapy 1 3449796 My favorite is Barq's. I moved to Oregon about the same time Barq's became available there. The commercials were hilarious..."You'll never believe it in a million years, but you live forever when you drink Barq's Root Beer." It's not so syrupy sweet, has some bite to it. But I can't get it here, except in the fountain at Subway. (15 miles away, in the next town over, you can get it at the Kum & Go, but then I can't get my bottle deposit back without driving back over there, because the local bottle place won't take them back if no one in town sells it.) Sat Mar 01 12:00:21 -0800 2008 3444937 32586 revsharkie 1 3453064 Hire's, A&W, Barq's, and Mug gets my vote in that order. Sun Mar 02 17:19:03 -0800 2008 3444937 115828 hotteacher1976 1 3453095 Hansen's creamy root beer! Sun Mar 02 17:29:48 -0800 2008 3444937 70200 chelleyd01 2 4353162 Second that--since they changed from HFCS to cane sugar for sweetener we have been drinking this regularly. It has a nice deep almost anise taste. The elimination of HFCS seems to have clarified the flavor. Sat Jan 24 05:27:18 -0800 2009 3453095 109573 coney with everything 1 3453254 Dog n Suds rootbeer gets my vote; I've never had it at the diners, but it's available regionally in glass bottles. Rich, creamy, sweet depth of flavor with none of the obsequious, heavy-handedness of some small producer rootbeers: i.e. strong vanilla or cinnamon notes. I'm amused that many Europeans can't stomach rootbeer, birch beer, or sarsaparilla flavors...they associate them with medicinal and cleaning products. Sun Mar 02 18:24:10 -0800 2008 3444937 14985 aelph 1 3457428 On a trip to the Bay area about 10 -12 years ago, I stayed at the Westin at the airport and they served the best root beer I have ever had. It had a big red apple on the label and was named something like Harvest Time. Then when we went to the Napa Valley I had another microbrewed (??) root beer that was almost as good. I think I remember the root beer long after the wine. Mon Mar 03 21:55:00 -0800 2008 3444937 169994 pengcast 1 3457472 Sprecher's is tops! Not always easy to find. Definitely not easy to hoard - gremlins in the house find it fast. But it is worth seeking out. www.sprecherbrewery.com Mon Mar 03 22:20:28 -0800 2008 3444937 111267 meatn3 1 3457540 I'm a root beer aficionado, and the best I've ever tried is a cheap/discount brand called Big Shot, only available in Louisiana. I got a 2-liter bottle at a convenience store to last me for a long road trip from New Orleans back to Gainesville, FL, and it was the smoothest, creamiest root beer I've ever had -- almost like a blend of root beer and vanilla cream soda. On a later trip to N'awlins, I came home with a case of eight 2-liter bottles! Unfortunately, I haven't had it in years, won't be going back to the city any time soon, and the Big Shot company doesn't do any mail-order business or sales outside of LA. Speaking of New Orleans and root beer, the Barq's you can buy there in 10-ounce glass bottles tastes totally different from the usual Coke-owned Barq's you get in silver cans everywhere else. It tasted much better out there, and was perfect for washing down a muffaletta sandwich from the Central Grocery Store. I'm not a big fan of Barq's normally, though. As for everyday root beers, I'm still partial to IBC, with A&W as a close second. Those make the best frosty-mug floats with Breyer's Vanilla ice cream. Stewart's is good, but if I have my choice of Stewart's, I prefer their Orange and Cream soda. Now that my girlfriend and I don't drink, I'll often pick up a beautiful mini-keg of Virgil's high-quality root beer from Cost Plus World Market, and we show up to parties with it (where it is inevitably a huge hit, even among the alcohol drinkers). Mon Mar 03 23:18:32 -0800 2008 3444937 14120 Big Bad Voodoo Lou 2 3588545 oh man i didn't even think of big shot. didn't even know they were still in business. that is something i really miss from louisiana. Sat Apr 12 19:51:40 -0700 2008 3457540 92286 vttp926 2 3591022 Barq's is originally from Biloxi, MS, and the New Orleans bottlings (the Biloxi plant is long gone) IS the best. We have found it (Coca-Cola) in several areas, where we've lived, but still gravitate to the "real one," when in NOLA, or the Gulf Coast. Glad to see that you mentioned Stewart's, as I was not sure if they were still around. I responded with a rec. for them, before finding their name in your reply. Hunt Sun Apr 13 19:09:38 -0700 2008 3457540 11329 Bill Hunt 2 3591029 Speaking of New Orleans' Rootbeer, did you ever have the draught-drawn "Frost Top" offering? It is/was very good. Do not know how far abroad their franchise might have ventured. To me, it was head-n-shoulders above A&W. Hunt Sun Apr 13 19:12:42 -0700 2008 3457540 11329 Bill Hunt 1 3461081 My main brand of root beer has been Virgil's. As far as birch beer... I absolutely love Boylan's Creamy Red Birch Tue Mar 04 22:00:29 -0800 2008 3444937 139589 ATaleOfFiction 2 3481060 Mmm a second for Virgil's. That's definitely my favorite. My favorite growing up was Fanta rootbeer on tap at Friendly's- I think they've switched over to Barq's in the last 10 years. Tue Mar 11 07:33:17 -0700 2008 3461081 162278 heypielady 1 3461504 Our cottage is on Lake Champlain. On our many grocery trips to Vermont, there were many types of soda available that we couldn't get in Quebec - Shasta, Faygo (especially Red Pop - I was a kid, eh?), and a brand of root beer called "Nehi" that I thought was way better than Hires. Wed Mar 05 06:18:02 -0800 2008 3444937 48210 KevinB 1 3463670 Henry Weinhard's root beer is hands down the best one I've tasted. It's only sold in certain states - the only places I've had it are Minnesota and Colorado. Far better than Barq's, A&W, and even IBC. Wed Mar 05 14:58:38 -0800 2008 3444937 124125 seconds 2 3463788 http://www.bevmo.com/productinfo.asp?area=home&seref=froogle&pf_id=00000009979 Henry Weinhard's RB is sold at BevMo stores. $5.99 for a sixer and they will ship to you.:) Wed Mar 05 15:36:50 -0800 2008 3463670 156480 someyoungguyy 2 4352099 It's carried in many stores here in Oregon. Fri Jan 23 15:27:41 -0800 2009 3463670 237929 tracylee 1 3464000 I love root beer! While technically not root beer, reading this post reminded me of New York Seltzer's and maybe 5th Ave root beer flavor. Wed Mar 05 16:36:57 -0800 2008 3444937 22474 soft tofu 2 3475511 I used to love the New York Seltzer root-beer flavor! You can't still get it, can you? Sun Mar 09 13:42:23 -0700 2008 3464000 32586 revsharkie 3 3476440 There was a weird spurt of sightings of New York Seltzer items a few years ago, only in dollar stores, and bizarrely, all sugar-free with Nutrasweet. Apparently, someone bought the defunct company's trademarks and tried to relaunch it but failed. Shame: I loved their raspberry soda. Sun Mar 09 19:45:09 -0700 2008 3475511 17548 BarmyFotheringayPhipps 1 3476963 Mmmmmm... Root Beer! It's the only soft drink I have except for an occasional Cel-Ray. My fav is Souix City Sarsparilla. Mon Mar 10 04:14:49 -0700 2008 3444937 10732 JMF 1 3477040 My favorite root beers are: #1 Sprecher #2 Goose Island - made with cane sugar...mmm.. Mon Mar 10 05:31:45 -0700 2008 3444937 26725 swsidejim 1 3477130 Let's not forget the fave of Achievers everywhere - Sioux City Sarsaparilla! Mon Mar 10 06:19:26 -0700 2008 3444937 18057 Jambalaya 1 3477223 I like IBC, A&W, they are the best for an Old Time "Root Beer Float". How about Cream Soda, did we forget that one. Mon Mar 10 06:57:56 -0700 2008 3444937 51489 Jimbosox04 2 3591280 There's a local root beer by Fitz's, somewhat "licoracey" -- but their cream soda is just amazing! For root beer my favorites are IBC or Stewarts. Sun Apr 13 20:50:19 -0700 2008 3477223 95291 Richard 16 1 3588917 A&W is only good if you get some at an actual A&W restaurant. The supermarket stuff is horrid. Way too much carbonation, for one thing. Root beer should have very little carbonation. Sun Apr 13 00:39:02 -0700 2008 3444937 19148 aynrandgirl 1 3589697 When we were kids you could buy frozen root beer pops on a stick; now we make them with Stewart's rootbeer and an old Tupperware ice pop form. Some of the natural root beers and birch beers found at Whole Foods or TJ's are interesting..just pricey. Oh, and I think we'd all agree a frosty mug is the only way to go! Sun Apr 13 10:22:27 -0700 2008 3444937 36312 HillJ 2 3590843 A local restaurant here in the Berkshires, Dakota, features root beer that's made for them. Fabulous. But there's no indication on the bottle label of who's made it for them. Smart Dakota! When I was very young and would spend summers in El Paso, Texas, there was a drive-in chain called The Oasis that featured root beer frosteds. They were to die for (not an expression ever dreamed of in those days). I haven't come across them in the decades since, but still remember them with longing. Anyone else ever have a root beer frosted? Sun Apr 13 17:55:27 -0700 2008 3589697 137881 BerkshireTsarina 2 4353278 I think I remember those....weren't they called slush pops or something? Came in a load of flavours, but root beer was one of them. I love root beer flavored anything really...including those bottle cap candies...root beer was always my favorite. Sat Jan 24 06:49:15 -0800 2009 3589697 153184 im_nomad 1 3591016 Stewart's, if they are still around. It is/was a bit of a boutique rootbeer, but great. Who knows, the ads that I shot for them, years ago, still might be used in their PoP ads. Give this one a try. Hunt Sun Apr 13 19:06:01 -0700 2008 3444937 11329 Bill Hunt 2 3591946 I grew up in New Jersey and have very fond memories of Stewart's Root Beer in the frosty mug purchased at the Stewarts Stand. Thick, creamy and delish! I also recall that Sears (yes, as in Sears and Roebuck) used to have Hires Root Beer Stands in their concession area. This was a long time ago--in the early 1960s, but that was the best root beer I've ever had. Anyone else remember that? The canned or bottled varieties (Hire's or Stewart's) you can purchase in the supermarket now don't even come close. Mon Apr 14 06:44:47 -0700 2008 3591016 178560 SharaMcG 3 3759170 Like you Stewarts in NJ was the best. The major difference was preservatives. When you bought a quart of RB from Stewarts they told you to drink it in 48 hours. Yeah right, what was the chance of a quart of Stewarts lasting 48 hours in any house in NJ. Sat Jun 07 14:06:09 -0700 2008 3591946 11290 jfood 1 3591630 Hey! I love rootbeer so much, but you just can't get it in England - not even in the massive out-of-town stores. Well you can, but one place I know charges nearly £2 (about $4) for a 250ml bottle. I'm gonna look for a recipe - maybe I can make my own... *edit* bah - it takes nearly 2 weeks to "brew" Mon Apr 14 01:22:01 -0700 2008 3444937 180623 Soop 1 3759156 Love Hires but can't find it anywhere. Last time I saw it was at a grocery store in Vacaville, CA - The Nugget - and that was about 3 years ago. I always have Thomas Kemper in the fridge and they've just released a low cal version plus one with cane sugar. The Jones rootbeer has cane sugar but it's not to my taste. Now in Washington, had to get used to the "pop" vs. "soda" debate, so I settle for "soft drink". Kemper recently stopped making grape soda, so naturally that is all I want these days. Sat Jun 07 14:00:20 -0700 2008 3444937 136667 cmvbbay 2 3759702 Hasn't been available for years but at the Los Angeles County Fair I used to get one on tap. Ricky's Root Beer. Didn't matter if it was in a plastic cup or glass mug. It was the best, smoothest, creamiest root beer I've ever had. I've tried most listed here and none come close. I'll keep trying. Sat Jun 07 20:01:00 -0700 2008 3759156 12418 mar52 3 4350147 Sounds small time - maybe if you find ricky, he'll give you the recipe? Fri Jan 23 05:49:35 -0800 2009 3759702 180623 Soop 2 4351137 Oh God!!! the memories. I used to love Hire's Root Beer as a kid. Haven't seen it in years. Miss Vernor's Ginger Ale too. Fri Jan 23 10:27:42 -0800 2009 3759156 251167 billieboy 3 4352107 We're able to get the Vernor's Ginger Ale here at our local Kroger subsidiary, Fred Meyer's. Fri Jan 23 15:29:55 -0800 2009 4351137 237929 tracylee 1 4352146 Rootbeer- Worst thing I ever tasted. Fri Jan 23 15:48:12 -0800 2009 3444937 13239 honkman 2 4352165 Saranac brewery makes a good root beer. Fri Jan 23 15:55:55 -0800 2009 4352146 180133 Saddleoflamb 1 4352209 Posties Root Beer, from my home town, McAdoo, Pa! In Maine: Maine Root, Capt'n Ely's and Sea Dog. Stewarts and Bryer's in the cardboard cylinders of my youth. Fri Jan 23 16:10:02 -0800 2009 3444937 93538 Passadumkeg 1 4353611 Ellis Island Casino Restaurant and brewery in Las Vegas brews a nice root beer. Sat Jan 24 09:24:03 -0800 2009 3444937 28638 phantomdoc 1 4380130 I'm avoiding HFCS, and my two current fave Root Beers are from Jones Soda, and Hansen. I can buy the Hansens in my local Trader Joes markets, and I really feel like I can taste every one of the ingredients in the Hansens. The cane sugar really makes it! Mon Feb 02 09:34:34 -0800 2009 3444937 12752 MsDiPesto 1 4380441 For me, the magic went away when the gummint outlawed sassafras root; pre-prohibition Hires had a minty tang that was lost in the newer formula and never came back. But country folk have their own ideas about what's good for you - when a big sassafras tree on my brother's property blew down in a storm some years ago, he had visits from neighbors he'd barely known or never met, and all the exposed roots were gone in a week. I never liked root beer until a diner across the street started selling A&W the summer before I started 6th grade. That rich foamy brown stuff in a frozen mug, at just a nickel a shot, completely won me over. A Dog & Suds opened up when I was in high school, and that was good, too. Now I like IBC and Stewart's; I agree that Barq's on its home turf is vastly superior to the supermarket version, though it's possible that here in LA County our top purveyor of exotic sodas, Galco's in Highland Park, might have the NOLA version available. Mon Feb 02 10:47:11 -0800 2009 3444937 11478 Will Owen 1 4381076 The former Big Buck Brewery in Auburn Hills MI, used to have a in hose Root Beer/Birch Beer brew. REALLY miss that place. Now only the Gaylord MI location is still open (though I haven't been in years). Mon Feb 02 13:28:38 -0800 2009 3444937 170823 workinglunches2