Root Beer Review: Boylan

Sip a tasty Boylan Root Beer

A while back, I read a review of Boylan sodas, saying that the cane sugar gave them a more refined, “white collar” taste. I honestly have no idea what that means, but I got a chuckle out of it all the same. What I can say about Boylan’s root beer is that, like the other cane sugar varieties I’ve been sampling of late, Boylan’s is mighty tasty, and it’s a large step ahead of the corn-syrup stuff you find at your local gas station.

Boylan has been making root beer since 1891, so they’ve had plenty of time to perfect their recipe. It shows. Boylan has more head than most of the others I’ve tried, and it tastes creamier than most. It also has more vanilla flavor than any say perhaps the Tommyknocker, and the cane sugar taste is more apparent (Tommyknocker is also sweetened with maple syrup, so there is a bit more complexity to the sweetness).

If there is any knock against Boylan, it’s that the sweetness is a little too strong, and the vanilla seems to to be trying just a little too hard. Don’t get me wrong” real vanilla is one of my very favorite flavors. But I miss the balancing root beer “bite.” While the flavor is terrific, its not nearly as complex as some of the others. The sweetness makes a little less refreshing as well. That said, Boylan Root Beer is terrific, and it’s one I’ll buy again.

By the way, their grape soda, also made with cane sugar and natural ingredients, is amazing. Growing up, Fanta Grape was my favorite soda. I tried one recently, and I have to admit … the stuff they make today doesn’t match my memory. I don’t know whether Fanta has changed, or whether my tastes have. A little of both, most likely. Boylan Grape, though, that’s what grade soda should taste like.

Give it a try, and let me know what you think!

One more root beer review: Abita Root Beer

Sip an Abita Root Beer, straight from Louisiana

Like more than a few of the better microbreweries, Abita also brews a root beer, which it boasts is made from pure Louisiana cane sugar. I have no idea what’s different about Louisiana cane sugar, but it’s mighty tasty in Abita Root Beer. Like all the (admittedly few) cane sugar sodas I’ve tried of late, that puts it well ahead of the cloying corn syrup-sweetened sodas you can pick up at your local gas station. To me at least, the cane sugar tastes smoother, less sticky, and both tastier and more refreshing.

Abita is a fine root beer, with the traditional, familiar root beer taste of, say, IBC or Sprecher. As soon as the cap is popped (pun intended), the scent is pure licorice-root beer, and the taste matches. The color is dark and the carbonation is solid, although (alas!) the head fades quickly. The familiar root beer bite is there, more pronounced, even, than in the Sprecher variety, and with the vanilla smoothness to balance. It disappoints only in the aftertaste—there really isn’t any. The finish is almost watery, surprising after the boldness of the flavor mix in the first sip.

If the aftertaste is lacking, Abita wins with its sweetness. It’s not overpowering; it’s simple, balancing, and delicious, with hints of something subtle that reminds me a little of honey. I can’t remember tasting anything quite like it, even in the rarified spectrum of cane sugar sodas. I should also mention that I’m writing this in August, and the balance of flavors, the subtle sweetness, and perhaps even the weak aftertaste, make it especially refreshing. Recommended.

Okay, I promised book and music reviews. They’re coming soon, along with a couple more cane sugar soda reviews—neither of which are root beers.

One More Root Beer Review: Sprecher Root Beer

Try a yummy Sprecher Root Beer

Earlier this week, I praised Tommyknocker Root Beer, calling it delicious, one of the best sodas I’ve tried, but somehow not a root beer. Sprecher is a classic root beer … in fact, it may be the Platonic ideal of root beer.

Taste-wise, it falls right smack between A&W and IBC … it has all the liquorice and sassafras zip you expect, with a hint of something like wintergreen and the creamy finish of good vanilla. It’s also a good step above, a likely consequence of it’s being fired brewed, whatever the heck that is. It’s absolutely one of the best plain old honest root beers I’ve tried. If IBC were made with organic ingredients and pure cane sugar, this is likely what it would taste like.

Sprecher is sweetened with corn syrup, but there is a hint of honey in the taste. The vanilla is also apparent, especially in the after taste, but no other spice or flavor is obvious. The flavors blend harmoniously. There’s a mild, spicy aftertaste that reminds me of what a vanilla wafer might taste like if it were backed with the merest tease of ginger. The bite is mild and short-lived.

Sprecher is a little more syrupy than, say, the Jones or the Tommyknocker, but it’s nowhere as cloying as you expect from corn-sweetened sodas. I’d love to try a cane sugar batch. All the same, it’s truly tasty, and quite refreshing for summer. Sprecher doesn’t just live up to the taste expectations you have for a root beer — it comes mighty close to defining them. It’s an absolute treat.

One hint: root beer should be sipped from a frosty mug if at all possible, or at least served very cold. There’s a reason for that, aside from the obvious aesthetic one. The cold blunts the sweetness ever so slightly, so that the other flavors become more apparent. Save a sip or two, and try it after it’s warmed a little. You’ll see what I mean.

Root Beer Review: Tommyknocker

Try a delicious Tommyknocker Root Beer

Last weekend, I created a new tab for root beer here on the ol’ blog. Figured I might as well make use of it, huh? Anyway, turns out there are quite a few “gourmet” root beers out there, all made with real cane sugar which, as far as I’m concerned, is a must in any soda. After discovering and reviewing Jones Root Beer, I was eager to try more. My local market carries quite a few, so I picked up one called Tommyknocker. Tommyknocker also makes a few tasty beers, and they use all natural, organic ingredients, including Tahitian Vanilla Extract and pure Maple Syrup. I have no idea what Tahitian Vanilla is, but real vanilla is one of the world’s truly great under-appreciated flavors. And how can you go wrong with real maple? Besides, it’s named after a creature from Celtic myth, which is certainly a way to my heart.

The Tommyknocker did not disappoint. Like a good ale, the pleasure comes in waves, beginning with the nose, proceeding through waves of flavor, and ending with a bit of an aftertaste. I drank it from the bottle, so I’ll have to skip the usual description of the pouring experience. The maple scent is pleasantly present as soon as the bottle is opened, and the taste is the most evident in the waves of flavor that follow when sipped. The vanilla is more subtle, but it balances the other flavors beautifully. Seriously, the real vanilla and natural maple combine to create a truly pleasant experience. More, with the real cane sugar, it’s not as sticky or overly sweet as corn-sweetened sodas can be. As a matter of fact, I’d go so far as to call Tommyknocker Root Beer one of the very best sodas I’ve ever tried. It is not, however, a good root beer.

I’m not sure I can describe what root beer tastes like. You either know it, or you don’t. There’s the liquorice/sassafras twang made delicious with the vanilla finish. From A&W to IBC to Braq’s to Jones, there’s a continuum of flavor — an almost indefinable essence of root beerness — that they all share in common, even while each stakes out a spot of individual distinction. Tommyknocker doesn’t seem to fit in that spectrum. It’s a neighbor, sure, but one that lives a few blocks away. With Tommyknocker, the root beer flavor seems almost like an afterthought, something added to balance the maple and vanilla. It might almost be closer to a cream soda, although it’s still a block or two from that street, too.

That’s not necessarily a complaint, mind. Tommyknocker is delicious and refreshing, and the quality of its ingredients are very apparent in the well crafted recipe. I guess Tommyknocker Maple Vanilla soda would have been too hard a sell? Tommyknocker may not be root beer, exactly, but it is mighty tasty and well worth a try. Whatever the heck it is.

On a related note, I found a variety of A&W made with the real cane sugar at Kitsch’n 155, which also happens to serve one of the very best burgers I’ve ever tried — made with high quality, local organic ingredients, and at fast food prices. It’s a new favorite. But I digress. The difference between the cane sugar A&W and the regular stuff you get at a gas station or grocery store is night and day. I’m telling you, there is something to this real sugar soda stuff. If you can find it, give it a try. It really does make a difference.

Root Beer Review: Jones Root Beer

Enjoy a tasty Jones Root Beer

You know, I had to add a new category for this one.

Anyway, the simple truth is, I drink a lot of root beer. I have for years. When I was 16, a co-worker at the Northlake Mall B. Dalton Bookseller said I was like a cartoon character, like Linus with his blanket … I’m the one who’s always drinking the root beer. I’ve tried a number of varieties, and there is just about always a case of Diet A&W in my fridge (the real aged vanilla makes it a treat). It makes a great nighttime soda. If I had to pick a favorite, I’d usually stick with one of the classics, venerable IBC (the king) or ubiquitous A&W. My tastes tend to the simple.

But since I’ve found Jones Root Beer, I may have to reevaluate. It’s got all the classic sassafras root beer taste with a very pleasant vanilla aftertaste. It’s a little sharper than you might expect; it’s a grownup’s soda. But it’s surprisingly delicious. The Jones Root Beer has one secret that lifts it above so many others: it’s made with real cane sugar, not high-fructose corn syrup.

Now, I’m not debating the relative health benefits of either product, especially since I am pretty sure that neither one has any. But to me at least, cane sugar just tastes better, and that difference is especially obvious in soda. It has a subtler sweetness, and a slightly different taste that’s hard to describe. It’s also less, well, sticky, and more refreshing. In summer especially, that’s a good thing.

I actually forgot to photograph my first delicious root beer float, so I was forced to make another. Truly, a dedicated blogger's work is never done. You're welcome.

I found Jones Root Beer at my local Kroger, and bought it more or less on impulse, since they were out of my usual Diet A&W. The bigger Krogers also carry the cane sugar version of Coca-Cola (in little glass bottles on the bottom shelf of the Mexican food aisle), so they may single-handly start a cane sugar soda Renaissance. I hope so. Try some. The difference will, I think, surprise you. Jones also makes a heck of a root beer float. Use the Breyer’s All-Natural Vanilla with the real vanilla bean specs. If the store is out, go elsewhere. Do not repeat my mistake and let yourself be conned into getting the extra-creamy variety. It’s not the same thing. It’s just not.

Anyway, Jones Root Beer, on its own or as a key ingredient in a a root beer float, is a perfect summer treat. Even if, like me, you have to wait until your wife is out of town.