Ramblin' Maple root beer

Background information: (from the Monarch website) "A quick history of Ramblin' Root Beer. Following its introduction in 1979 Ramblin' became one of the most popular root beers in America.

The vintage brand's first commercial featured a cameo by a young Sarah Jessica Parker, and the accompanying jingle, "Ramblin' Root Beer's something more!" would be in the minds of Americans for years to come.

Today, with a lineup of new flavors and fresh, new package designs, the best root beer is back and brought friends along to remind the passionate fans what they've been missing."

So yeah, the website is pretty light on information. Not the worst I've seen (there have been some extremely sparse websites), but very basic.


Product details: 12 fl. oz.  Bottled by Rocket Fizz under the authority of The Monarch Beverage Co., Inc. Atlanta, GA 30326. 150 calories, 37g sugar.  Glass bottle with twist off top. www.rocketfizz.com


Ingredients: Carbonated Water, Cane Sugar, Caramel Color, Potassium Benzoate (as preservative), Natural Flavor, Quillaia Extract, and Phosphoric Acid.


My thoughts: Having reviewed the regular Ramblin' root beer in the past, I'm curious to see if any of the basic traits remain, as that one had a very strong vanilla, but slightly watered down sassafras rootiness. This one, however, adds maple and is bottled by Rocket Fizz, rather than directly by Monarch Beverage.

Well, in the place of vanilla this one has an extremely strong maple taste to it, just like maple syrup. Following in the footsteps of the regular Ramblin' root beer, the sassafras flavor is fairly weak, perhaps exacerbated by the overwhelming strength of the maple. The flavors are somewhat complimentary, so it's not like the two are battling out in the flavor arena with two completely different taste directions in mind, so it works, but I'd call this a maple flavored soda first and a root beer second. There still is vanilla in there, with it being noticeable both in the initial taste as well as the aftertaste. The rootiness becomes pretty thin feeling in the aftertaste, again, just like the original Ramblin'.

I'm going to be lazy with this next part, as my previous review holds true for this one as well: Sweetness is pretty good, though perhaps a tad on the sugary side, as it leaves a moderately stronger than usual sugary feel in my mouth. That sensation is odd, seeing as how it has less sugar (37g) than the average root beer (generally 40-45g). Carbonation is decent, with a very fine bubble structure that doesn't prick the tongue. I wouldn't mind a slightly more aggressive effervescence to it, but it certainly isn't flat. As for smoothness, this is one of the creamier root beers, likely aided by the inclusion of quillaia extract, which usually lends a hand in this regard. It goes down nice and smooth.

So, my final thoughts. It's pretty good (better than I had anticipated after catching my first whiff of the super-maple scent) and an interesting flavor addition, but as a root beer, it feels like it's more of a maple soda than a root beer, so my scoring takes that into account with it tasting good, but not necessarily being a great root beer. I'd certainly drink it again and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it if you're in the mood for maple. If you are really craving root beer, perhaps look elsewhere.


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

Ozark Mountain Bottleworks root beer

Background information: (from the website) "Ozark Mountain Bottleworks, Inc. was started in 2009 as a way to share our unique recipes."

"The OZMB team is comprised of the mother and daughter combo of Debbie Walters and Tina King. Tina’s husband, Chris King, is also a joint owner in the company. The OZMB team brings together years of business experience and an entrepreneurial spirit to form a company based on family values and community involvement."

"Our Root Beer is handcrafted with 100% pure cane sugar. It is designed to highlight the classic flavors of Root Beer and Sarsaparilla to create a unique taste unlike anything else on the market."


Product details: 12 fl. oz.  Ozark Mountain Bottleworks, Branson, MO. 160 calories, 30g sugar.  Glass bottle with twist off top. www.ozmb.com


Ingredients: Carbonated Spring Water, Pure Cane Sugar, Natural Flavors, Caramel Color, Quillaja Extract, Phosphoric Acid, Sodium Benzoate (Preservative), Potassium Sorbate (Preservative).


My thoughts: With a lower than average sugar content, I'm curious to see how this root beer turns out. I'm always happy when I see quillaja as an ingredient, as I know it'll have an excellent creamy sensation, so hopefully this one doesn't let me down. Okay, time to drink!

The root beer flavor is strong with this one...but in a generic way. It has a strong sassafras taste, but seems to lack most of the usual spices that add variety. Oh yeah, except the "punch you in the face" wintergreen, which almost overwhelms the rest of the flavor. There might be other things going on in their mix, but I can't taste it over the mint, which becomes even more pronounced as an aftertaste. While I don't mind a mintier aftertaste and I like a little wintergreen, this one is too much for me. If you're a wintergreen fan, this might be the root beer you're looking for.

Carbonation is nice, with smaller feeling bubbles that provide just a little bit of sting. It seems to be fairly consistent through drinking the whole bottle, only slightly lessening in strength as I reached the bottom. The quillaja extract makes for a nice, creamy sensation, helping it to feel smooth and frothy. Sweetness is spot on, which comes at a bit of a surprise with only 30g of sugar instead of the 40g or so in the average root beer. It doesn't leave my mouth feeling overly syrupy or sugar coated.

While the flavor is pedestrian and too minty for my taste, I like what Ozark Mountain Bottleworks is doing with the other aspects. They certainly nailed the carbonation, smoothness, and sugar, but those aspects are overshadowed by the taste. I'd like to see what they could do with better proportioned ratio of the spices they use. Alas, I don't think this will be one I'd make the effort to buy again.


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

Stubborn classic root beer

Background information: (from the website) "To create something great, you've got to do it the Stubborn way. That's why our sodas are made with no artificial sweeteners, no arificial colors, and no high fructose corn syrup. We also use natural flavors and fair trade certified cane sugar to create only the best products."


Product details: 12 fl. oz.  Manufactured by Stubborn Soda, LLC, Riviera Beach, FL 33404. 100 calories, 25g sugar.  Glass bottle with twist off top. www.stubbornsoda.com


Ingredients: Carbonated water, sugar, caramel color, natural flavor, sodium benzoate (preserves freshness), phosphoric acid, purified stevia leaf extract, citric acid, calcium disodium edta (to protect flavor).


My thoughts: I'm a little apprehensive about any "low calorie" root beer, but at least this one is a split of good ol' regular sugar and stevia, instead of just the latter. I've had sodas sweetened by only stevia before and they were downright terrible. With only 33% less sugar than the average root beer, I'm hoping this isn't complete garbage.

My initial impression is pretty positive. This root beer has a nice, strong rooty flavor with a lot of vanilla; typically something I enjoy. And I have to admit, I like it, but can tell the taste isn't quite right. Where the flavor starts to break down is the aftertaste, as the flavor quickly fades and the dreaded stevia taste becomes noticeable, but never overbearingly so. It's certainly there, but doesn't completely ruin the root beer. I think the lingering vanilla helps to cover it up. Though the longer I let the aftertaste sit, the worse it becomes as all the other flavors fade away and leave a more noticeable stevia taste behind. As far as root beers in general go, it's not beating out everybody due to the stevia flavor that lurks beneath the surface, only becoming more pronounced as an aftertaste. As a lower-calorie, lower-sugar root beer, it's probably the best one I've had.

Carbonation is really good, with crisp, biting bubbles. They settle down a bit in intensity by about half way through the bottle, but still leave a little sting. I like it that way. It offers a pleasant juxtaposition with the smooth, creamy body. As far as texture goes, they are doing a lot right with this root beer. Sweetness is my biggest qualm, not because of how sweet it is, but with the side effect the stevia has on the taste. If you don't mind stevia, then this isn't a problem. But for somebody like me that finds the flavor objectionable, it's a bummer that such a great root beer is let down in this way. What I find equally confusing is why they'd do this to the root beer, as that gap between fully sugar sweetened root beer and this Frankenstein's monster of a drink is narrow. There is still so much sugar that it doesn't make sense to use stevia for that last little bit of sweetening. Just go all in one the sugar!

In the end, I wouldn't get this over a run-of-the-mill store brand root beer. Though this has a better initial taste, the aftertaste, with all it's stevia induced baggage, isn't worth it. If, however, you're looking to cut back your sugar intake and the extra 12g and 50 calories is a make it or break it proposition, then this would be the root beer for you. I'd love to see this same root beer formula but with a fully sugar based sweetener. I think it would have a more consistent place in my fridge, if so.


Rating: C-
flavor: A-
aftertaste: D
sweetness: D-
smoothness: A
carbonation: A