This is a brand i thought i may never get. they bottle their sodas in returnable glass bottles and are only distributed locally in Wisconsin. i actually feel quite bad that i probably will not be returning this bottle. perhaps i will send it back. they seem to very much rely on returns to remain financially solvent. i really admire brands like this, pressing on, doing what they love to do and know how to do well. it is a rare thing these days. i can understand why they don’t do mail order as they would lose those bottles from their circulation. plus these bottles are very thick, heavy glass so postage would be quite crazy. happily, Jon was willing to trade me a bottle for some stuff i could get over here. it is one of the coolest bottles i have come upon, so they do win points for that. i wish i had gotten to sample Hill Billy Beverages who originally made this glass bottle, but i assume they are gone for good. i don’t think i have come upon a 16 oz bottle this tall yet, other brands seem to go for the stability and stoutness of a fatter bottom instead of expanding upwards. i like this. since the bottom is so thick and heavy, it works just fine.
when i pop this open, the excellent smell makes me smile. traditional root beer scent but stronger than usual. there is not a lot of fizz upon opening but perhaps that changes once i drink a bit. the taste is excellent, lighter than many sodas i have had, yet still creamy enough with a little bite happening. nonetheless there is an aftertaste that i don’t like. it almost reminds me of a diet soda aftertaste but on a much smaller scale, kind of a pull at your stomach from the back of your throat if that makes sense. if it were not for that, this would probably be in my top 10 or 15 but as it is, it gets dragged down a bit. alas. i really enjoy that this is not as heavy as is typical, yet the flavor is very full. there is a unique taste here, perhaps cinnamon, brown cinnamon that is, not red.
Anthony’s Rating: 89
User’s Rating: 0
# of ratings:0
Log in to rate & save your personal root beer list!
| Type: | Root Beer | Comes In: | 10oz glass bottle, 16oz glass bottle |
| Available: | WI | Obtained in: | sent by Jon |
| Head: | Small | Sweetener: | corn sweetener, sugar |
| Caffeine: | No |
Ingredients: carbonated water, sugar or corn sweetener, caramel color, artificial and natural flavors, citric acid, gum acacia, preserved with sodium benzoate
Anthony,
Is this an old bottle that is being used? Does the bottle have a bottling city name on it and a zip code?
There was an old Hillbilly root beer and I think it was from CT or MA (reference stuff not at hand) and had a different logo, almost like a Mt. Dew hillbilly pose.
A side note – have you ever heard of or tried GUMMI ROOT BEER BARRELS? Tried some recently and was disappointed. I’m glad I didn’t order a large volume for my shop.
Thanks for keeping up the good reviews.
Jerome (aka Dr Rootbeer)
i do believe it is an old bottle, yes. i will try to find it and check for city or zip codes on it but i don’t believe there was one.
i have tried gummi root beer bottles, but not in some time since i gave up gelatin. i liked them but i like most gummi things. actually i like gummi cola bottles better, but keep that to yourself! =)
Hi, I just found a bottle in my friends garage.
Hill-Billy Root beer Bottled by Lowell bottling Co.
53 Lawrence St. Lowell, Mass.
It has a picture of a hillbilly on the front wwith a shot gun and a jug, he’s laying down resting his head on his arm and barefoot.
just thought you might like the info.
Hillbilly Root beer was bottled in Methuen Ma by the Kenoza bottling co. in 1951 then I believe it was sold to the Lowell Co.
I was just in Appleton Wisc, I found this brand at a local store, they also now do the butterscotch rootbeer. I have not tried the B.S one as of yet. This one was pretty sweet, almost to sweet for me. I thought it had a faint root beer flavor due to the sweetness, I give this a 65.
The one I tried did not come in a returnable bottle. It just came in a throw away bottle with the Twigs logo on the front (I’m assuming this is the same recipe as the one that is in their Hillbilly bottles). I was not expecting much, but I was actually slightly impressed. This has a “typical” root beer flavor, but just pulled off better than the rest. I could see myself buying this again; however, it is near impossible for me to purchase. I can’t really describe the flavor too much, other than it being a “typical” good flavor. I liked the carbonation and the fact that it does not have a bitter flavor. 85 out of 100.
[…] I apologize for not labeling it. this is bottled by Twig’s who also make their own regular root beer. I think they also make a few other brands but I could be mistaken about that. the label proclaims […]