Steelhead root beer

Background information: Steelhead Brewery was a restaurant and brewery in Eugene, OR (and Eugene's first major brewery) that, after 32 years in business, shut their doors in March 2024. Besides their alcohol beverages, Steelhead made a root beer (in partnership with Orca Beverages). I only heard about this root beer over a year after they closed, so I thought I had missed my chance to ever try it.

Alas, a good friend was up in Oregon recently and the restaurant they were eating at had bottles of root beer, so he sent me a picture and asked if I had ever had Steelhead. He thought they might have gotten (and were drinking) the last bottles available, but the restaurant found one more that he brought back for me, so this might be the very last bottle of Steelhead root beer.

Product details: 12 fl. oz.  Produced and Bottled by Orca Beverage Inc., Mukilteo, WA 98275. 160 calories, 41g sugar. Glass bottle with twist-off top. www.steelheadbrewery.com (no longer functioning) www.orcabeverage.com (not listed on their site)

Ingredients: Carbonated Water, Cane Sugar, Honey, Maltodextrin, Natural & Artificial Flavors, Caramel Color, Sodium Benzoate (A Preservative), Real Vanilla, Phosphoric Acid, Salt.


My thoughts: When I first started this root beer review blog, I decided to grade on an A-to-F scale, with the middle "C average" represented by what I considered to be an all around average root beer; A&W. Now, some may think a "C" is a bad score (in a world where any movie that isn't an "A" is a terrible movie), but it truly represents the average expectation for what a root beer should be. I've been a fan of "dirty sodas" for some time now, but wonder how close a factory produced soda can come to a soda with real dairy creamer in it. Let's see if A&W manage to capture lightning in a bottle.

The forward flavor is rooty, but not particularly strong. I can tell it has honey, which always adds a nice flavor profile and the vanilla is present without being overpowering. The aftertaste lets the honey flavor shine a little more as the fairly weak rooty sassafras flavor doesn't stick around, but unlike a lot of weaker flavored root beers, this one doesn't feel thin, just less intense.

Carbonation is definitely not a strong point on this one, with just a hint of effervescence letting me know that this is supposed to be a carbonated drink. It does not prickle my tongue at all and I can barely detect any bubbles. Sweetness, on the other hand, is dialed in. Between the cane sugar and honey, it doesn't feel too sugary (at least for a sugar-based soda) and the honey also ends up playing double duty by giving it the aforementioned flavor profile. While it's hard to accurately judge smoothness without the accompanying carbonation, I like how thick this root beer feels. Usually the weaker flavored root beers feel thin and watery, but not this. It has a body to it that I really enjoy.

It's too bad that Steelhead Brewery shut down and this root beer will no longer be made. I like the flavor profile (even if it could use a little more rooty oomph) and always enjoy a honey-sweetened and flavored root beer. I can't help but wonder if the lack of carbonation is due to being an older bottle since new ones are no longer getting produced, so would have been interested in revisiting this one. Alas, I'm glad I got to try it, even with some of the shortcomings.

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