Welcome!

Hello and welcome to the oldest, largest and frankly the best root beer reviewing site in the world! i also throw in birch beer and sarsaparilla review while i am at it. 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 soda review publishes every monday with the occasional random post or review of root beer related stuff. 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. anthony (me) started reviewing sodas in ’96 but has always loved the delicious joy of root beer and birch beer.

Cascade Traditional Sarsaparilla

so the Australian sarsaparilla reviews keep on coming! again, the bottle is a unique shape although there are a couple of US sodas that come in a bottle something like this. the graphic design is also very good. more old school modern lines meets 50s America but in a good way. the company tagline is “Refreshingly Tasmanian” which honestly means nothing to me. i really have no impression or preconceived notion of what Tasmania is like or how it is distinct from the rest of Australia. the cartoon Tasmanian Devil is about all i can conquer up and i know that is not at all what a real tasmanian devil looks like anyway. i suppose that is my uneducated American poking its ugly head up. alas.
so going to the website, i find that this company is owned by Fosters, which is Australian for “beer” and all of that. interesting. although they do not even list the sarsaparilla on the site as an option. weird. oh wait, there it is, under “Traditional” right by “Ice Cream Soda.” what?! i need someone to tell me what Ice Cream Soda tastes like. i am very curious… wow, all of the flavors are like the weird ones, strawberries & cream and peaches & cream as well as not just lemon, but lemonade, lemon & lime AND lime quench. wow, they like their citrus fruit flavored carbonated beverages! so do i actually. there is no cola, but there is a cola-cream. i gather they like dairy products in their sodas. i would not count most if any of those things as “classic” soda flavors, but i will assume in Tasmania, stuff is different, traditions and the flow of toilet water and so on. plus they have been around since 1883 and i have not, so they know better than me here.
well anyway, on to the soda!
with liquorice expressly listed in the ingredients, i expected that to be a strong flavor, er flavour, but it is not. it is there but more of an undertone, you have to think about it. in fact, there is not much of a flavour at all. it is very watery. sugary water mind you, but it does not have a strong taste. you know you are drinking soda, it has that “soda essence” and carbonation but i may not even guess this was a sarsaparilla. it could be a weak cola or even ginger ale. i am not telling you it is bad, it just is.
Ingredients:carbonated water, sugar, natural colour (150d from wheat syrup), flavours (liquorice & sarsaparilla), food acid (330)

Anthony’s Rating: 71
User’s Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Chuck Wagon Sarsaparilla

i happen to come upon this brand in my relentless web searches for new sodas i have not tried. let me tell you though that it is such a wonderful feeling to actually find a new brand, never mind a brand that makes root beer, birch beer, sarsaparilla AND diet root beer, let alone one from which i can mail order all or any of these things. so it was an exceedingly happy day when i came upon this company’s website!
i really like the concept of this company too, they seem to have this mobile soda fountain on a wagon which they take to various events. plus they sell the whole set up to other people who want to do the same. although, to me, it seems rather hard to transport a chuck wagon with all of this stuff, it must not be so bad really.
so how is it you may ask?
the answer, dear readers, is “really stinkin’ good!” the flavor is very full and up front and strong but not overwhelming. it starts a little sharp, then the sweetness comes in with the root flavor and finally that fades into a licorice taste. i quite enjoy this and am glad i got a couple of bottles of this. i am very curious how the other sodas are and if they are all that different from this one. i mean, if i were to guess, i would call this a root beer, not a sarsaparilla, but it is a tough call.
Anthony’s Rating: 93
User’s Rating: 84
# of ratings:9
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Columbia Soda Works Sarsaparilla Soda

wow, so that sidebar “sodas i need” thing really is working! a wonderfully friendly gal from Columbia Soda Works contacted me and offered to send a bottle my way for review, so terribly kind! of course i mainly forgot about it, partly since i just have no long term memory it seems and partly since people have promised to send stuff in the past and it only actually happens about half the time. so when this did come in the mail i was slightly confused until i checked my “root beer” email folder and refreshed my memory on the origin of this bottle.
wow, i think in the past i have had maybe 10-15 sodas with non-twist off caps but there have been at least five in the past month! wacky stuff. i suppose i could have added that as an attribute in my database but there is no real reason people would want to know that i don’t think, besides whether they will need to pack a bottle opener if they happen to bring the brew on a picnic or something. yet, i would think the target audience of most sodas is the under-18 demographic, most of which would not have a bottle opener on their person. yet perhaps microbrewed sodas appeal more to the older audience who just might, or else at least would enjoy this beverage in their home which has a well stocked kitchen including many bottle opening devices.
let me try this soda, ok?
whoa, holy licorice spider-pig! my gosh, that is so much of the flavor! mind you, this is not a bad thing, i like licorice, luckily for Columbia Soda Works. the licorice/anise taste seems to be one of the biggest distinguishing things between what makes something a root beer versus a sarsaparilla. no, this is not always the case at all, but more often than not, sarsaparillas have a licorice taste. besides that, the taste here is good, sweet let with a little bit of a bitter bite to it, which may be the licorice again. it is hard to ignore that aspect of this drink.
i applaud this company for going all out with the licorice taste, it distinguishes this pop, yet i think it might be too much for some people. those people though are not reviewing it right now and i think it is pretty tasty! although it is not something i would crave all the time, much like candy licorice, it is something i think i would really want sometimes.
the carbonation and foaming levels are pretty low, which is ok by me although i do enjoy the look of a good head on my soda pop. not that that really affects the taste or anything anyway.
i do wish they would not use high fructose corn sweeteners but i do understand the financial pressure to do so.
Ingredients:carbonated water, high fructose corn sweetener, caramel color, natural and artificial flavors, citric acid and gum acacia

Anthony’s Rating: 88
User’s Rating: 90
# of ratings:22
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Cooper’s Cave Ale Company Sarsaparilla

the sarsaparilla at long last! (just the diet root beer to go after this). a very light colored soda, that is rather unusual. more of a ginger ale color going on here. the taste is rather good, better than the other 2 flavors so far i would say. a light flavor too actually. thirst quenching but leaving you wanting more. i can’t place the taste exactly, seems like a cane sugar thing with a slight bitter thing that hits your tongue. and a nice aftertaste. i always appreciate a nice aftertaste. and a good bottle. this has both.
Anthony’s Rating: 81
User’s Rating: 80
# of ratings:6
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Cooperstown Brewing Co World Series Sarsaparilla

alright, so they don’t want to tell us what they sweeten this with… very sneaky Cooperstown! i would think the “natural & imitation flavors” listing would hide their secret recipe well enough. i don’t know if sugar counts as a natural flavor, it is possible. i don’t see why not, it is a flavor of sorts and it is natural or imitation. nonetheless, perhaps they actually don’t sweeten it at all. after tasting it, that may in fact be true. whoa, this is probably the most bitter soda i have ever had! it is honestly quite bad. the flavor is harsh and does not make my taste buds sing. instead i think they are hiding, hoping for some chocolate or something. i do enjoy some bitter things i will admit, but i suppose beverages are not something i like when they fall in that sub-genre. sweet? yes, sign me up! salty? ok, i will give it a try! bitter? uuuummmm, probably not. it just does not even taste like sarsaparilla or root beer in any way, to me. since i am the only one drinking this, that is all you get unless you want to ingest this yourself or someone else on the intertubes reviews it.
so, in summary, if you enjoy bitter, kind of sharp yet watery drinks, race to Cooperstown and buy up their stock as this may be for you. it is definitely not for me.
Anthony’s Rating: 20
User’s Rating: 34
# of ratings:3
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Crazy Ed’s Sarsaparilla

i don’t taste the smoke. that is a good thing, i hate smoked stuff, cheese, meat (well, i don’t eat meat, but i didn’t like it when i did comsume flesh) and so on, so i was wary of this beverage. it has a faint taste of something natural i suppose. not something i love, but i am not offended by it. not too sweet, a little bitter. yeh, it is alright.
Anthony’s Rating: 80
User’s Rating: 64
# of ratings:12
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Empire Bottling Works Sarsaparilla

it has been much too long that i have had this soda in the fridge. i cannot say it is as unique as the rootbeer was. i mean, it is quite tasty but it in a much more generic-ly good root beer way, not so much in a sarsaparilla way. i find that weird really, that the rootbeer would be the more herbal one while the sarsaparilla is the normal one. oh well. i don’t have a lot to tell here, it is good, i like the cane sugar flavor. it does not stand out but i don’t mind that so much really.
Anthony’s Rating: 87
User’s Rating: 93
# of ratings:6
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Free Natural Sasperilla

just the fact that they spelled “sarsaparilla” totally wrong should have clued me in here. the second clue being how bad the root beer was. i mean, if you can’t do root beer right, can you possibly do a decent sarsaparilla? but i thought the best of them and gave it a shot. i think this may take the title of the worst beverage i have ever had. it is a little bad coming in the mouth, gets worse as it fully hits the tongue and just hits bottom when you swallow it. bitter, foul, malty awfulness fully abounds here. my gosh this is just SO bad!

DANGER avoid this at all costs!
Anthony’s Rating: 3
User’s Rating: 55
# of ratings:22
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Hansen’s Signature All Natural Sarsaprilla Soda

from the get go, you know this soda is wacky. the bottle is strange looking, it is 14 ounces instead of the usual 12. then you see it has a “blend of Madagascan, Indonesian and Tahitian Vanilla Extracts.” what the heck is that about?! at first, i always enjoy this soda. it is very full bodied, you can taste the honey and vanilla distinctly. yet, as i drain more and more of it, i always feel a little sick. it is too rich perhaps. i do not know. not that it is a bad sick always, sometimes it is kind of nice. overall, it is not really a sarsaparilla but more of a creamy, rich root beer.
Ingredients:Triple filtered carbonated water, cane sugar, caramel color, malic acid, natural spices, blend of Madagascan, Indonesian, and Tahitian vanilla extracts, honey, wintergreen extract and natural flavors.

Anthony’s Rating: 79
User’s Rating: 72
# of ratings:67
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!

Health Valley Sarsaparilla Root Beer

i don’t understand this stuff at all. there is no real brand on it, yet it is not generic or anything i do not think, especially at like $1.50 a bottle… plus it is only sold by the individual bottle at this one Grand Union. maybe it is other places but not that i have seen. another, it is kind of lame, too herb-y really. that weird anise / licorice flavor going on but it still doesn’t work well i do no think. just ok really. and how does one classify it?! i need to pigeon hole! i cannot compare against peers if i do not know if it is a sarsaparilla or a root beer! well, since they make an “Old Fashioned Root Beer” or whatever also, perhaps this is the
Ingredients:Sparkling spring water, fructose, molasses, our own natural sarsaparilla flavoring of licorice root extract, natural oils of anise, cherry bark extract, and herbal extracts.

Anthony’s Rating: 36
User’s Rating: 60
# of ratings:38
Log in to save your ratings and personal root beer list!