Earlier this summer, I was watching an episode of Modern Marvels on the History Channel. The episode was about soda pop. In the hour long show, they interviewed someone who reviews root beers online. He had a bottle of Dang! That’s Good Butterscotch Root Beer to do a taste test with during the show. I thought that sounded interesting, but had never seen that brand in my area. Recently I was able to get acquire some. I learned that this root beer was brewed and bottled by Imperial Flavors Beverage Company out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Besides root beer the company also makes energy drinks.
Here is the ingredient list for this root beer: carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup sweetener, caramel color, citric acid, natural and artificial flavor, and sodium benzoate (a preservative).
So it this good butterscotch root beer or should the company be sued for false advertising?
They are right, this is good butterscotch root beer. They saved themselves by not calling it Dang! That’s the Greatest Root Beer You Will Ever Drink. It has a nice butterscotch flavor, like someone took those candies you use to find in your grandma’s candy dish, melted them down and carbonated them. The strength of the root beer is not what I hoped for. Despite that I still very much enjoyed the drink and think it would be excellent with some vanilla ice cream.
Where to Buy
I got mine through the online business of the Old 52 General Store. They have over 300 other flavors of soda pop. Their physical store is located in Sabin, Minnesota.
Oh how I love root beer. There are so many great root beers on the market to choose from. I don’t think I will be ever done reviewing root beers (and that’s a good thing). Today I am going to review a root beer made by Sprecher, who is a brewery out of Glendale, Wisconsin. Their root beer comes either in a 16 oz glass bottle or a 20 oz plastic one. It has a picture of a crow coming out of a crest, holding a bottle of Sprecher and a frosty mug. The ingredient list on my bottle reads like this: carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, malto-dextrin, WI raw honey, natural & artifical flavors, sodium benzoate (preservative), phosphoric acid, quillaia/yucca extract, sodium chloride, caramel color, and vanilla. This root beer is caffeine and gluten free.
I liked this root beer. The flavor was nice, a bit on the sweet side, but in a good way. The carbonation was alright. I had a plastic bottle, so glass would be a better judge of carbonation. It’s not too spicy and goes down well with any meal. I will buy this again.
Where to Buy
Here are a few places where I know you can get Sprecher:
Ski’s Meat Market (Stevens Point, WI)
The Produce Station (Ann Arbor, MI)
Wilson’s Cheese Shoppe (Pinconning, MI)
Hiller’s (Ann Arbor/Detroit area)
Holiday Market (Livonia, MI)
Looking to buy it online, check out:
Located in Sabin, Minnesota, this store offers Sprecher Root Beer through their online business.
This year has been a “peachy” peach season here in Michigan. And as it comes to an end what better way to celebrate than with some peach soda. Peach has always been one of my wife’s favorite flavors of pop, so I was excited when I had the chance to acquire some Nehi Peach to share with her. Nehi has been around since 1924. It comes in a clear 12 oz glass bottle. The ingredients of Nehi Peach are: Carbonated water, sugar, citric acid, malic acid, potassium benzoate (preservative), potassium citrate, artificial flavor, gum acacia, red 40.
I knew I was in for a treat when I first popped the cap and my nose could detect a fresh peach scent, despite the fact the drink is artificially flavored. The flavorful was wonderful and you could not ask for the carbonation to be any better. You will be hard pressed to find carbonation this good in a plastic bottle or can. This peach soda pop is now at the top of my list (my wife’s too) of the best peach carbonated drinks. I look forward to getting my hands on some more Nehi beverages in the future.
Where to Buy
I got mine through the online business of the Old 52 General Store. They have other Nehi flavors available for purchase as well as over 300 other flavors of soda pop. Their physical store is located in Sabin, Minnesota.
When it comes to the ingredients in a good soda pop, the fewer ingredients is usually better. That is what you get with Virgil’s Black Cherry Cream. It contains only the following ingredients: Purified carbonated water, unbleached cane sugar, vanilla extract, black cherry flavor, natural flavors, malic acid.
Just as the other Virgil’s flavor this one comes in a 12 oz glass bottle with a wonderful message around the bottle’s neck.
“Virgil’s Black Cherry Cream Soda is a classic cream soda recipe made naturally using the finest vanilla beans and unrefined cane sugar. The brewing process gives Virgil’s, a rich, creamy body and a taste so pure, you’ll swear it’s made in heaven. We searched the world for the perfect black cherry cream taste. We hope you will find this to be the best cream soda you have ever tasted.”
This is one really good black cherry soda. It has a genuine cherry taste, not like that cough syrup your parents might have shoved down your throat when you were a kid. You first taste the cherry, and then the vanilla hits you. It has a nice amount of carbonation with a creamy texture. This is definitely one of the top black cherry sodas on the market.
Where to Buy
Virgil’s is becoming available at more and more places. I typically buy it at Whole Foods, who seems to carry the most flavors and they often have sales. Meijer store in the midwest are now carrying Virgil’s. You can also buy their root beer at Trader Joe’s.
Another great place to pick up Virgil’s soda is from the Old 52 General Store in Sabin, Minnesota. They have a great online business where you can buy over 300 flavors!
Everyone drinks root beer. Well pretty much everyone. But what about birch beer? You may have seen it on a store shelf near you and wondered what it was. Well now you can find out as I review Boylan’s Creamy Red Birch Beer. Birch beer is made from the bark of the birch tree. It is similar to root beer, except I think it has more of a wintergreen taste. It’s a nice alternative to root beer and can be used to make floats just like root beer.
Boylan’s Creamy Red Birch Beer contains the following ingredients: carbonated water, cane sugar, pure birch oils, natural flavors, vanilla, natural yucca extract, vanillin, citric acid, caramel color, red 40, sodium benzoate (preserves freshness).
This drink is the reason to give birch beers a try. It’s a wonderful creamy drink with a lot of complex flavor. It would make an excellent float. The amount of carbonation is perfect. It’s the best birch beer I have ever had, so you should give it a try too!
Where to Buy
I purchased this flavor at Busch’s in Saline, Michigan. It can be found at quite a number of places. Click here to see some places you can buy Boylan’s products in Michigan.
If you are looking for a place online to buy Boylan’s check out:
they have a great selection of Boylan’s flavors including Creamy Red Birch Beer, Original Birch Beer, Lemon, Ginger Ale, and more!
As we near the end of August, my thoughts are turning towards fall. I love the fall season. The colors, the cooler weather, and especially the apples! So I thought today would be a good day to review an apple drink. Reed’s Spiced Apple Brew was one drink I couldn’t wait to get my hands on. Reed’s is known for their spicy ginger ale, so they know what they are talking about when it comes to using spices in drinks. I bought the brew in a 4 pack of 12 oz glass bottles. The drink is gluten free, caffeine free, and contains no preservatives, or alcohol. Each bottle has this message around the neck: “Before modern soft drink technology existed, non-alcoholic beverages were brewed at home directly from herbs, roots, spices, and fruits. These hand-crafted brews were then aged like wine and prized not only for their taste but for their tonic, health giving properties. Reed’s Brews are a delicious revival of this lost home-brewing art and are made the original way using the finest fresh herbs, roots, spices, and fruits. Each batch is carefully brewed and aged with great pride by our expert brewmasters.”
The ingredient list reads like this: Freshly brewed from sparking filtered water, apple juice from concentrate, fructose, fresh ginger root, lemon juice from concentrate, cinnamon and other spices.
This certainly is one spicy brew. You immediately smell the cinnamon when you open the bottle. Drinking this drink brings my memories to fall. It has a good apple flavor with a small or champagne-like carbonation. I can’t think of another drink like it on the market.
Where to Buy
I bought my 4-pack at Busch’s in Saline, MI. So far it’s the only place I have seen it at.
Looking for more Reed’s products?
has Reed’s Extra Ginger Brew available to buy from their online store.
Orange & cream, their names just flow so well together. Most companies that make soda pop will almost always have an orange flavor and that is no different with Virgil’s. The bottle comes with this message upon it’s neck : “Virgil’s Orange Cream is a twist on a classic cream soda recipe using the finest vanilla beans, natural orange flavor and unrefined cane sugar. The brewing process gives Virgil’s a rich, creamy body and a taste so pure you’ll swear it’s made in heaven. We searched the world for the perfect orange cream taste. We hope you will find this to be the best orange cream soda you have ever tasted.”
Most orange cream sodas are meant to taste like the classic orange creamsicle that has the vanilla center. This however does not and I think that is a good thing. It’s not overly sweet, it has the acidic flavor you would get from eating an orange. This drink has a creamy texture finished with the taste of vanilla. The carbonation is perfect. It’s a complex orange soda pop, one of the best and most unique on the market.
Where to Buy
Virgil’s is becoming available at more and more places. I typically buy it at Whole Foods, who seems to carry the most flavors and they often have sales. Meijer store in the midwest are now carrying Virgil’s. You can also buy their root beer at Trader Joe’s.
Another great place to pick up Virgil’s soda is from the Old 52 General Store in Sabin, Minnesota. They have a great online business where you can buy over 300 flavors!
Question: Where to Buy Boylan’s Soda in Michigan?
Answer: Quite a few places carry Boylan Soda in Michigan. They don’t all carry the same flavors, it depends on the store. Whole Foods for example only carries the flavors that do not contain sodium benzoate. Here is my list:
Busch’s (they recently started carrying single 16 oz glass bottles)
Meijer
Nino Salvaggio
Whole Foods Market (flavors without sodium benzoate)
Plum Market
Cost Plus World Market
The Produce Station
Hiller’s
One of the things that I love to do on this website is post reviews for different, unique beverages that I find. Usually I find a couple things at one store, a few at another, etc. But I discovered a place where you can find more than just a couple unique drinks. This place is the Old 52 General Store in Sabin, Minnesota. They have over 300 flavors of bottled soda pop waiting for your enjoyment! They have classic brands from years long ago, like Nesbitt’s, NuGrape, and Nehi as well as the hip brands of today like Jones, Reed’s, and Virgil’s. Not only do they have these wonderful creations, but they also have an old fashioned soda fountain, where you can buy the classic Phosphate, among other flavors. They also sell ice cream, take and bake pizza, Spring Prairie Meats (chicken, beef, ham, bacon, jerky, and more), as well as classic candy.
They are located at 23 Main St, Sabin, MN. Their phone number is 218-233-4600. Click here for their website.
Aren’t in the Sabin, MN area, don’t worry, they have an online store, where you can purchase their drinks and candy.
One of my favorite soda pop makers that I have come across since beginning this site, is the Jackson Hole Soda Company. They make some pretty strong flavored soda pop. The company is out of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I attempted to find out more about the company but their website is currently not working.
Where to Buy
There drinks can be found at a variety of places:
1. I purchased my bottles at Brennan’s in Madison, Wisconsin.
2. in Sabin, Minnesota or through their online store.
3. I also heard someone saying they found them at a Fred Meyer store in Burien, WA.
I have reviewed 4 different Jackson Hole flavors on my site:
Ginger Beer
High Mountain Huckleberry Soda
Buckin’ Root Beer
Snake River Sarsaparilla (my favorite flavor!)
There are two more flavors that I know of, but I haven’t gotten my hands on yet:
Outlaw Orange Cream
Strawberry Rhubarb (now that is a unique flavor!)
Earlier this summer, I was watching an episode of Modern Marvels on the History Channel. The episode was about soda pop. In the hour long show, they interviewed someone who reviews root beers online. He had a bottle of Dang! That’s Good Butterscotch Root Beer to do a taste test with during the show. I thought that sounded interesting, but had never seen that brand in my area. Recently I was able to get acquire some. I learned that this root beer was brewed and bottled by Imperial Flavors Beverage Company out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Besides root beer the company also makes energy drinks.
