Mug Root Beer

   Well true to our word we really will review any soda if given to us for free by our fans.  Today’s review is Mug Root Beer, given to us by one Double R.  I really think that he meant for this review to be difficult.  Anyone can review an odd drink, pointing out what makes it unique… but a mainstream root beer that most everyone has tasted could be much more difficult.  Mug of course is one of the three big name root beer brands out there, the other two being Barq’s, and of course A&W.  I have a co-worker that refers to Mug as “the working man’s root beer”, or the “blue collar” root beer.  I really enjoy thinking of it that way, and the bulldog on the front of the can offering me a frosty glass of root beer seems to give off the feel of a “blue collar” kind of guy.  Speaking of the can art, it looks as if I’m picking up a frosty mug overflowing with suds.  Nice touch Pepsi… I mean Mug.  Enough with the chatter, let’s crack it open.

   I’m realizing now that I’ve never truly smelled Mug Root Beer… and upon doing so I realize that its root beer smell really isn’t that strong.  I kind of thought all the chemicals inside of it would have increased the aroma, but I’ve been wrong before… ONE TIME.  Time for some drinkin’.

   To be honest with you, and I always am, I haven’t had a Mug Root Beer in a while.  This tastes much more watery than I remember.  Mug doesn’t have the “bite” of Barq’s, or the creamy taste of A&W.  In fact it has a muted, less impressive version of the characteristics that make the other two root beers loved by so many.  A positive attribute of Mug how clean the taste is for a mainstream root beer.  There are definitely cleaner tasting root beers out there, but this one does pretty well compared to its A&W Rival.  As you might expect this is a very safe drink.  By safe I mean that you pretty much know what it’s going to taste like when you pick up a can for the first time.  It’s going to taste like boring root beer.  Now I recognize that I’ve probably become a root beer snob over the past two years, and I’m sure that’s affecting this review.  If you love Mug Root Beer and don’t understand why I’m not rating it higher, go out and try some Virgil’s, Boylan’s, or Bundaberg Root Beer and tell me they aren’t heads, tails, slugs, and snails better than Mug.  Until then I’m sticking with this…

~A

Faux Fact: Twist was the original mascot for Mug, but he asked for too much money

Dad's Root Beer

   Today’s installment from the Popcast is Dad’s Root Beer… which I know Mike hates.  How do I know this, well he seems to tear off bits of my soul with his stare when I mention it.  I know it’s not going to be that bad, so here goes the review.   The label is pretty boring, but it’s an older drink so I guess we can let that slide.  Moxie on the other hand is one of the oldest drinks, but has a fantastic label… so I take back my previous “slide” for Dad’s.

   Upon opening Dad’s it smells rather odd for a root beer.  It almost has a minty smell, with some cinnamon undertones.  It’s like you tried to make your first pie, and just added all the smell good spices in hopes that something positive will come out of doing that.  Well we all know that cinnamon/basil pie wouldn’t be that great, so let’s see what the drink equivalent tastes like.

   While this certainly does not taste like a root beer, Mike’s supreme hatred for this is unwarranted in my book.  Sometimes a drink just tastes badly to someone for no reason other than the fact that their taste buds are wired a bit differently.  My example of oddly wired taste buds is the fact that I don’t like watermelon.  People think I’m crazy for hating its taste, I’m not, but my taste buds missed out on watermelon day when being created.  Moving on.  This to me honestly tastes like Pepto Bismol Root Beer.  Which is another reason why Mike probably hates this, and I don’t mind it.  I like the flavor of Pepto Bismol.  Would I ever mix Pepto and Root Beer?  No, I can assure you I wouldn’t, but now that I’ve tried it I can’t say that it’s horrible.  To summarize… Dad’s Root Beer doesn’t taste like root beer.  It tastes like Pepto Bismol flavored root beer.  Don’t you wish you’d just skipped to the end now?

~A

Twist was feeling nauseous, so he missed picture day

Old Town Root beer Company – Sarsparilla

   Today’s installment, also found on Popcast Episode 11, is Old Town Root Beer Company – Sarsparilla.  It’s spelled “sarsparilla” on the bottle even though Word wants me to spell it sarsaparilla.  First off this has to be one of the most generic bottle labels I’ve ever seen.  Oh look it’s font with a root beer mug.  What’s this?  The bottle cap is a solid gold color... how fancy can you get?  Oh look their website is @msn.com.  Seriously, this is one of the most boring bottles I’ve seen in a long time.  It’s like when you create a team on a video game, and you end up with a two colored clip art image of an exploding basketball/football/baseball/soccer ball/hockey puck/lacrosse ball?/Frisbee/bowling ball/badminton bird/tennis ball/curling stone/rugby ball/fishing rod.  Let’s just open this up with hopes that the aroma can woo me.

   Wow, surprisingly good aroma this drink has.  This sarsparilla has a noticeable sweet vanilla scent when you first open it.  I’d say it’s inviting, but I was going to visit regardless of the smell.  Time to drink.

   I know sarsparilla isn’t the same thing as root beer, but it’s hard for me to convince myself it’s really something else.  Thankfully this has a flavor that differs a bit from root beer… a cream soda/root beer hybrid if that makes sense.  Drinking it creates such a smooth sensation, which I would have to attribute to the vanilla, that I actually enjoy the mouth feel of this drink equal to the flavoring.  I normally like to have longer reviews, but this drink is pretty simplistic.  It won’t wow you in any way, but it’s a very enjoyable beverage.  If you see some, pick it up, it’s that simple.

~A

Twist decided it was time to don his trademark hat again.  Very dapper!

Moxie

   Well here we are at review 100.  First off thanks for your readership as we moved from our humble beginnings on livejournal, to the multi-million dollar corporation we are today.  Oh wait… we haven’t made a dime, but we’re millionaires at heart.  Today’s beverage was the most suggested beverage when we asked our readers what the 100th review should be… Moxie.  If you listened to the Popcast you'd know that.

   Moxie is one of the oldest sodas out there, some say THE oldest.  Really it’s very close between Moxie, Vernor’s Ginger Soda, and Hire’s Root Beer.  Looking upon the label I can tell you right away that this is no longer the original formula.  Replaced with chemicals I assume, with one exception that reads “Gentian Root Extractives”.  I’m pretty sure that one ingredient is going to give off a very unique flavor.  Before I go any further I just want to mention how much I enjoy the label art of Moxie.  The label is a man in a business suit pointing at you… it’s amazing.

   Upon opening up the bottle, with a rather bland cap I might add, it smells like it’s going to be one of the most awesome, unique root beers you’ve ever had.  I would even go so far as to say that it smells like a root beer/cola mix.  Let’s drink.

   The initial taste of moxie is great!  It has that root beer cola flavor you thought you would taste after smelling it.  It’s cool, refreshing, unique… something you could really see yourself buying from here on out.  “To Hell with Coke!” you’d say “I’m a Moxie Man now!”  Then something would go wrong in your mouth.  That sweet root beer/cola taste would fade away as the Moxie started its journey down your gullet.  What was once good, would now be replaced with evil.  The taste of pennies, dirt, and un-sweetened envelope glue now dance upon your tongue.  Your first reaction is to drink some more.  “This can’t be the aftertaste,” you’d say, “More Moxie should fix this right up.”  It won’t.  Sure, as long as the liquid stays in your mouth you avoid the horrible aftertaste, but who’s going to walk around with Moxie constantly swishing around their teeth.  While I don’t agree with pouring sodas over ice, this (ironically our 100th review) is a soda which must be.  Fortunately, pouring Moxie over ice cuts the horrible after taste in half.  It’s like watching your favorite sports team do really well against someone they weren’t supposed to beat, only in the 2nd half to have your entire team break their legs.  This is such a historic drink, with such a unique flavor that I have to recommend you try it.  So there you have it, one of the oldest sodas available, and our 100th review.  The next milestone is probably 250, so be patient, and keep reading.  Thanks!

 ~A 

Thank goodness Twist's taste buds aren't real

Boylan's Root Beer

   You may remember when I last reviewed a Boylan's product, Boylan's Grape Soda.  Now whether or not you remember that, or just read it, you know I was disappointed by it.  This could have been because I hyped it up so much in my head that it couldn't live up to my expectations, or because it was just average... I really don't know which.  Either way I'vedecided to give the Boylan's brand another try with Boylan's Root Beer.  I won't really go into the bottle art like I normally do, it has the same classic style as always.  As with previous Boylan's brands they have a solid list of ingredients, and that is worth mentioning again.

Carbonated Water, Cane Sugar, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Caramel Color, Natural Yucca Extract, Citric Acid, and our old friend Sodium Benzoate which preserves the flavor.

  That stellar list of ingredients seems like it would go well into a root beer.Ok... with the first sip I can tell you it’s a good root beer, there’s no denying that.It’s not that clean of an after taste though.Honestly I think its’ a bit too creamy to have a clean aftertaste, but that’s ok.To use root beer that most people drink in comparison, this tastes like a Barqs/A&W mix.It has a bit of a bite, but the aftertaste is more A&W.Now I’m not saying that this beverage is of the same quality of the mainstream brands, far from it, I’m just giving you something to compare them too.If offered this root beer along side the mainstream brands, I would take this one every time.Boylan’s root beer has one odd aspect about it.When you place the bottle to your lips, as soon as you start to drink... for a flash of time it has the essence of a regular beer.Some of that burn that some beers have exists in the product, if not for just a brief moment.Now take that for what it’s worth as I rarely drink beer... I could just be crazy.Mike has tried Boylan’s root beer as well, but says it tastes a lot like birch beer.The root beer/birch beer argument is one that we’ve shelved in the “Can’t Talk About” warehouse, along side soccer ties, Indiana Jones: The Temple of Doom, and pizza toppings.

~A

Hansen's Creamy Root Beer

Ok, so we've now done two higher end Root Beers back to back.  My choice was Hansen's Creamy Root Beer.  I picked it because in large print on the front of the can it says "NATURAL CANE SODA" as well as "With Real CANE SUGAR".  So obviously they are very proud of their ingredients.  Well since they're so proud of their ingredients let's take a look...

PURE TRIPLE FILTERED CARBONATED WATER, CANE SUGAR, CARAMEL COLOR, NATURAL SPICES OF WINTERGREEN, BIRCH, ANISE, SASSAFRAS, TAHITIAN VANILLA EXTRACT, CITRIC ACID.

Well then, that's quite the impressive list of ingredients.  Let's give it a taste.  It's got a sharp beginning (or a bite) much like Barq's Root Beer, if you're a fan of that.  It doesn't foam up very much, which is a strike against it in my book.  I prefer my Root Beer to have some sort of head to it.  The ending taste is smooth, but not Virgil's smooth (nothing is Virgil's smooth as far as I've seen).  The bottom line is this is a good root beer... but in my opinion not worth the high cost unless you're just looking for an all natural root beer that's cheaper than Virgil's.

Purchased From: HEB

Cost: 6 pack will cost you around $4.50

~A

Virgil's Special Edition Bavarian Nutmeg Root Beer

This is it... this is the current Holy Grail of Root Beer for me.  This is... Virgil's Special Edition Bavarian Nutmeg Root Beer.  This cost me $4.25 a bottle online to buy... but it had to be done.

The flavor does not disappoint.  It's got the greatness of Virgil's Root Beer, with a kick of nutmeg in it.  You know how some things say "Now with *ingredient*" but you can't taste it?  You can most definitely taste the nutmeg in this.

Another high point is the fact that the water used in this is from a well in Bavaria, considered one of the most pure sources of water in the world... that's freaking cool in my opinion.  Put all of this together in the best bottle I've ever seen anything in, and you have a winning combination.

I'm going to have to agree with Mike on this one though.

~A

I’ve never officially reviewed Virgil’s Root Beer, pretty much because one of us would take care of one beverage at a time, however, being that it’s a new year of The Soda Jerks, this will be our first beverage that we both review.

First of all the bottle. I mean, look at it. This is obviously the real deal here. Can you believe I’m going to give points to a drink for being “fun to open?”

Secondly, the water. This soda is made with water from a well in Bavaria. Wow. I mean, really? Talk about fancy.

Whatever is in the water it’s got a very crisp taste, just like the original. I’d say the key difference between this and the original is the nutmeg. It kind of brings out the vanilla flavor most of all.

The other difference is the price. It’s about $5 a bottle. A bottle. As noted we’re moving on to store brand and discount sodas.

I’m scoring this the same as the original because the price balances out the slight advantages it has over the original.

-Mike

Steaz Green Tea Root Beer

Ok, this is my last 'root beer' entry for a while. I realize that I've only done two, but it's easy to get pigeon holed into only reviewing root beers since they each have such a variety. I believe that Steaz Green Tea Root Beer proves my point here.

Root beer made with green tea seems like something up Mike's alley, but I happened to stumble upon it first... which I guess mean I get to write the review. Steaz Green Tea Root Beer (which from here forth will be called Steaz) comes in a four pack and costs around $5. When you look at the packaging, it's really nothing special. It calls itself organic, and who am I to argue. The green tea flavor doesn't shine through, which is good... and because of it's special ingredients one serving (8oz) contains 60% of your daily value of vitamin C. I do like the fact that it's a 'healthy' root beer, but I'm not writing about it because of the health values. It's all about the flavor.

Steaz has an ok flavor, not good, not horrible, and certainly not great. I compare it to a flat root beer with a hint of cream soda. It doesn't seem to be to terribly carbonated, which in my opinion hurts it. This root beer has very little 'bite' to it which hurts it in my opinion, because if it did it wouldn't be nearly as boring as it is. If you're looking for a 'healthy' root beer that doesn't taste like diet (or as I like to call diet root beer 'sewer water') then spend the extra money and go with Steaz. I'd happily drink a Steaz before any diet root beer; but I would take a good old fashioned coke/pepsi/rc before I'd reach for a Steaz. Slightly off topic but "Reachin' for a Steaz" sounds kind of dirty. Sorry.

~Aaron

Virgil's Root Beer

Video is from 8/12/2022. The original written review from 3/25/2008 is below.

Tastes so pure, it must be made in heaven.... oh how freaking true that is. I passed by Virgil's several times in my local shopping facility. Every time I passed it I would look and see the cost, close to $8 with tax. With your $8 you get 4 twelve oz bottles, and that to me is insane. It was so insane to me that I had to show my friend Mike. We took a look at the packaging and noticed that it had taken home the award for 'Outstanding Beverage' at the International Fancy Food and Confection Show in '94, '96, and '97. Outstanding Beverage, not outstanding Root Beer. Mike being the crazy dare devil that he is bought some.

We took it back to my apartment to enjoy it with some pizza, and a bad movie (Transformers, but I digress) so we threw em in the freezer to chill. Now you may wonder, "Hey, why not just throw some ice in a glass and pour it over that". You will never see me use ice when reviewing these drinks. I strongly believe that ice dilutes the true flavor of a drink, and would definitely be blasphemous in this case. While it was chilling we read the ingredients:

Virgil's Ingredients List

Virgil's Microbrewed Root Beer contains these key all-natural ingredients:

carbonated water

unbleached cane sugar

Along with these natural herbs and spices (including point of origin):

anise from Spain

licorice from France

vanilla (bourbon) from Madagascar

cinnamon from Ceylon

clove from Indonesia

wintergreen from China

sweet birch from the southern US

molasses from the US

nutmeg from Indonesia

pimento berry oil from Jamaica

balsam oil from Peru

cassia oil from China

Needless to say, that's a pretty impressive ingredient list. We were especially intrigued by the wintergreen. After the bottles had chilled I took mine out, opened it and sniffed it. The aroma was amazing. I know that sounds like something you'd hear about wine, but it really was the best Root Beer I'd ever had, and all I'd done was smell it. I took my first sip, it was the cleanest root beer I'd ever experienced. It doesn't leave a syrupy taste in your mouth, and the aftertaste is non-existent. In fact I compare the after taste to almost a mountain spring water... basically Virgil's is the most refreshing soda I've ever had, and the reason we started this site. I took a bite of pizza, pepperoni, and noticed that my palate was now permiated with pungent pepperoni. (I like alliterations, what can I say) I took a swig of Virgil's to see how it reacted with the taste, and it cleansed my palate... a root beer cleansed my palate... that is insane. Over all I highly recommend Virgil's root beer to anyone. Yes it costs $8 with tax included, and that's one reason it's kept from being a perfect beverage, but still go out and try it.

~Aaron