Better Living Through Thinking

Boylan's Root Beer

Mon, 11 Sep 2006

This really is a tasty root beer. It has a unique flavor, probably the yucca listed on the label. I don't quite know what to compare it to, but I could drink this frequently.

Scott's Score:

7 (out of 10)

Barrel Brothers Root Beer

Thu, 09 Mar 2006

Cute label, slightly better than average root beer. There's a quality about this root beer that bothers me in the same way that Henry Weinhard's does.

The flavor is fine--one of the best heads on a root beer I've seen, but nothing to make this cowboy say "Whoa!"

Scott's Score: 6 (out of 10)

Briar's Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

Bland and fizzy is about all I have to say (but not quite as you'll see). The flavor is fine--just a hint of vanilla in there. We tried this one at room temperature and refrigerated.

A friend and I agree that a bit more of the flavoring might make this a competitor, but as it is, it's too weak to be considered.

Scott's Score: 2 (out of 10)

Jones Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

Jones is not popular with many people, but I like it. The labels are always fun and the root beer is certainly adequate for a national brand. Better than Weinhard's but not quite as good as IBC, imo.

Scott's Score: 7 (of 10)

Henry Weinhard's Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

Lot's of hype, beautiful bottles, an abundant lore all combine to make this an average root beer. The honey component is novel (at least the quantity they put into it) but I'm not sure if the quality of the honey is poor or they're just not quite able to temper it, but the aftertaste is somewhat displeasing to my palate.

Update: Thu Mar 1 14:15:33 MST 2007

I like this less and less as time goes on. The unique taste in this ...

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Howie's Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

Sugary and carmelly. A nice mellow rootbeer with all that sugar. Bottled right here in Utah.

Scott's Score: 7 (out of 10)

IBC Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

This is one of my favorite national brands. Only sold in glass bottles, IBC knows why plastic just doesn't cut it as a root beer receptacle. (Correction -07/09/07: we've seen 16oz IBC cans around the valley now).

The flavor has a "peppery" component to it, definite personality.

Scott's Score: 8 (out of 10)

Sprecher's Root Beer

Mon, 17 Oct 2005

Made in Wisconsin. This is good stuff!

Updated: Thu Mar 1 14:01:40 MST 2007

After going head-to-head with Bulldog, I have some additional comments about Sprecher's. Sprecher's taste is darker than other root beers I've tried--I love it. It grabs the palate in the front and spreads joy all the way to the back. Great brew.

<bulldog.html>

Scott's Score: 9 (out of 10)

Root Beer Ratings

Thu, 22 Sep 2005

My good friend Rus just sent me this root beer rankings list:

"Luke's Root Beer Pages"

<http://www.lukecole.com/Root%20Beer/lukes_root_beer_home.htm>

My own tastes are fairly close to Luke's preferences. I see Sprecher's ranking high, as well as Boylan's. I don't see Jones as high up as I ...

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