Welcome!

November 14, 2011
Filed under: random junk — anthony @ 12:56 pm

Hello and welcome to the oldest, largest and frankly the best root beer reviewing site in the world! over 625 brands reviewed so far! i also throw in birch beer and sarsaparilla reviews occasionally while i am at it since to me, they are the same genre. once in a while i even detour into other branches of the root beer tree, such as spruce beer, dandelion & burdock and the like. a new review publishes every week on Monday with the random post or review of root beer related stuff every once in a while. feel free to submit your own ratings, check out the rankings from me and other visitors, see what sodas are available near you and more. make a float, tap a keg or mix some extract up and enjoy!

anthony (me) started reviewing root beer related drinks in '96 but has always loved the delicious joy of root beer and birch beer and just kept it going ever since. if you have any suggestions of features you'd like to see or sodas you want reviewed, let me know!

 
 

Harmony Springs Root Beer

May 22, 2017
Filed under: root beers — anthony @ 5:00 am
Type: Root Beer Comes In: 12oz glass bottle
Available: MA, NY

Obtained in: store in Brooklyn, NY
Head: Medium Sweetener: cane sugar
Calories: 110 Sodium: 0mg
Carbs: 24g Sugar: 24g
Caffeine: No
Website: http://drinkharmonysprings.com/

it is time for the final piece of the triforce as presented by Harmony Springs! granted they have many other flavors and I'm sure don't see it that way, but it is how i roll and this is my website so i'm setting the rules right now. I did actually get a few other flavors from their lineup and was rather impressed with their ginger beer as well, so use that information as you'd like.
so, the root beer, will it be solidly tasty yet not quite top shelf as the birch beer and sarsaparilla were? well, it is interesting, i'll give it that. it is quite 'rooty' tasting, almost as much as the sarsaparilla, which is unusual, a bold move. i mean, it is recognizable as a root beer but not as sweet or traditional tasting. they chose a flavor profile i don't love, even if i think of it as more a sarsaparilla, it is just decent. not bad in any way and better than many many root beers out there, but a step below the birch and sarsaparilla in their stable. there is a very low level of carbs and sugar in this drink, yet it is still sweet enough, so it sort of straddles that line between regular and diet soda. if you think of it that way, as a low calorie beverage, it is exceptional. the carbonation is actually spot on as well, not too much that it interferes with the flavor yet enough to make its presence known.
Ingredients:carbonated pure artesian spring water, pure cane sugar, natural flavors


Anthony's Rating: 82
User's Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
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Harmony Springs Birch Beer

May 15, 2017
Filed under: root beers — anthony @ 5:00 am
Type: White Birch Beer Comes In: 12oz glass bottle
Available: MA, NY

Obtained in: store in Brooklyn, NY
Head: Small Sweetener: cane sugar
Calories: 120 Sodium: 0mg
Carbs: 26g Sugar: 26g
Caffeine: No
Website: http://drinkharmonysprings.com/

I always get a little excited to try a new white birch beer. i just like them a lot as a genre. this one is as clear as water, it is rather impressive in that regard right off the bat. i do hope this one is as good of a birch beer as the sarsaparilla was for its soda type.
smells good, that is a plus, a solid wintergreen scent is wafting through the air upon opening the top. the taste is marvelous as well, that balance of wintergreen, sugar and birch goodness. yet the carbonation is a little too sharp i feel for it to reach that upper echelon of soda supremacy. as i drink it more, i agree more with that assessment. it does have a solid taste but the carbonation style takes away just a little from that flavor profile.
Ingredients:carbonated pure artesian spring water, pure cane sugar, natural flavors


Anthony's Rating: 85
User's Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
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Harmony Springs Sarsaparilla

May 8, 2017
Filed under: sarsaparillas — anthony @ 5:00 am
Type: Sarsaparilla Comes In: 12oz glass bottle
Available: MA, NY

Obtained in: store in Brooklyn, NY
Head: Medium Sweetener: cane sugar
Calories: 110 Sodium: 0mg
Carbs: 24g Sugar: 24g
Caffeine: No
Website: http://drinkharmonysprings.com/

I really thought I would have to go to Massachusetts to get this one, along with the other flavors in their line up. but one day i noticed that it was sold at a store in Brooklyn, which is significantly closer to me, huzzah!
i am rather surprised at the low level of carbs / sugar in this drink. most sodas seem to have around 40 grams of sugar, give or take 5 or 10 grams. but 24 grams is super low, as is 110 calories for the whole bottle.
now that i think about it, a sarsaparilla does not really need to be too sweet, if done right. just a low level along with sufficient herbal flavors will make it work. ok, let me see how this stacks up.
yup, they definitely work the herbal flavors here, it is for sure a sarsaparilla in my book. high licorice level, check! cinnamon, check! random other somewhat earthy, kind of bitter flavors that are not overwhelming the sugar, check! yes indeed, this is a very tasty sarsaparilla. if you do not like licorice i am sure you will disagree. it took me a few swigs to warm up to this drink, but now I quite like it. it is not crazy unusual but not a lot is.
Ingredients:carbonated pure artesian spring water, pure cane sugar, natural flavors


Anthony's Rating: 89
User's Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
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Zia Root Beer

May 1, 2017
Filed under: root beers — anthony @ 5:00 am
Type: Root Beer Comes In: 12oz glass bottle
Available: NM

Obtained in: trade with Sagi
Head: Large Sweetener: cane sugar
Calories: 148 Sodium: 0mg
Carbs: 39g Sugar: 39g
Caffeine: No
Website: ziaenenergia.com

the persistent and ever driven Sagi found this brand on a trip through New Mexico. they claim it is nano-brewed, which i don't think i've ever heard of and which i definitely can't define. i especially don't know if that is smaller than batch brewed or if there are nano particles in here or something. i venture to guess they just mean they don't make a lot at once. they donate a portion of their proceeds to a local native american tribe and sustainability projects, which is quite rad. and also a change of pace from all the companies giving money to tigers and whales and the like.
there are some very promising ingredients here, this could be a very delightful beverage if it all comes together well.
it does indeed come together well! it has a very complex and ever changing flavor. you are first hit with the vanilla and clove i believe which then fades to reveal the malt a little bit before the licorice and anise slides in, subtly to linger on your tongue for a while. it is quite an enjoyable and unusual beverage. they pulled this off. it does not quite get to the real upper echelon, although I am not sure just what would get them there, this is tasty and unique. something intangible i suppose is needed.
Ingredients:filtered and carbonated water, cane sugar, natural root beer flavor (anise, licorice, clove, mint), roasted barley malt, yucca root, madagascar bourbon vanilla, citric acid


Anthony's Rating: 94
User's Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
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