Hippo Size root beer

Background information: (from the website) "Orca Beverage was created in the 1980’s by owner Mike Bourgeois while he was studying a new and emerging class of beverages called the “New Age Beverage Category” at the Albers School of Business at Seattle University."

(from the bottle label) "Looking for a drink with GARGANTUAN flavor?  Go for the Hippo.  The original Texas size drink, Hippo Beverages satisfy that immense craving with a selection of great flavors using our best extracts and flavors.  Open wide and experience the little bottle with big taste - Hippo Size Beverages since 1927."


Product details: 12 fl. oz.  Bottled by & under the authority of Orca Beverage Soda Works, Mukilteo, WA 98275.  160 calories, 43g sugar.  Glass bottle with twist off top.  www.OrcaBeverage.com


Ingredients: Carbonated water, cane sugar, natural & artificial flavors, caramel color, extract of wintergreen, sodium benzoate (preservative).


My thoughts: For a root beer with a Hippo logo, I'd expect a gargantuan taste of root beer flavor.  Alas, 'tis not so.  There is a moderate flavoring initially, but that flavor quickly thins out and is replaced with a very strong wintergreen flavor, too much in my opinion.  Carbonation is also certainly not 'hippo sized' as it comes up short, though the added flatness makes it feel creamier.  The sweetness isn't spectacular either; initially it is okay, but my mouth and throat felt like it had a thick syrupy coating on it after drinking, requiring me to drink something else to clear the sugary film off.  I really wanted to like this root beer more than I did, but there isn't anything to recommend about it.  If I need my hippo fix, I'll watch some BBC nature documentary instead.


Rating: D+
flavor: C-
aftertaste: D+
sweetness: D
smoothness: B-
carbonation: C-