# Rootbeer: America vs. the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 12, 2007, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863 "2007-05-12T19:45:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/41 "2007-05-13T01:33:44Z")
[QUOTE=DMark] But you could say the same for peanut butter (very few non-Americans like it very much) or for the Europeans love of Nutella (very few Americans like it very much) [/QUOTE] I love root beer, peanut butter, AND Nutella. And birch beer. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/42 "2007-05-13T01:43:07Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] I love root beer, peanut butter, AND Nutella. And birch beer. [/QUOTE] :: _DMark looks up “sweet tooth” in dictionary and is not surprised to see photo of OpalCat_ :: ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/43 "2007-05-13T01:45:13Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] I love root beer, peanut butter, AND Nutella. And birch beer. [/QUOTE] Peanut butter: love, especially really good peanut butter without alot of additives. Nutella: Never had it, but from the description probably wouldn’t like it. Root beer: Not my favorite but yeah, it tastes good at the right times. IBC regular and diet are both pretty good. Birch beer: Had it once or twice as a kid, good. Vegemite: Introduced to it in Australia when I was 29, like it. And I’d be willing to try that carcinogenic Scottish brew too, at least once. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/44 "2007-05-13T01:48:58Z")
Don’t forget, Root Beer was the Drink of choice for the Famous WWI Flying Ace. ---
**Author:** ![Idlewild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@Idlewild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idlewild)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/45 "2007-05-13T01:50:58Z")
I grew up on sarsparilla in Australia, which was not a generally popular drink with my peers but I loved it. Root beer in the US seems to hit similar enough flavour notes for me. Mind you, I was introduced to Barq’s first, so the caffeine really helped get me hooked. Now I like small batch local stuff if/when I can get it. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/46 "2007-05-13T01:51:41Z")
[QUOTE=DMark] :: _DMark looks up “sweet tooth” in dictionary and is not surprised to see photo of OpalCat_ :: [/QUOTE] Comes as no shock to me. For example, I can only drink alcohol that is sweet. That means no beer, no white wine, and lots of frou-frou girly mixed drinks. I also put about as much sugar as coffee in a cup, and I like my iced tea crunchy. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/47 "2007-05-13T01:53:42Z")
FWIW, the vast majority of Americans detest rootbeer. I don’t though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/48 "2007-05-13T01:58:02Z")
Cite? ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/49 "2007-05-13T02:04:37Z")
vast majority? Where are you getting that data? My personal experience says otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![kath94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/67e7ee/32.png) [@kath94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kath94)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/50 "2007-05-13T02:05:42Z")
The hubby is from Brumajem (that’s Birmingham, England, for the uninitiated) and he has told me that Root Beer tastes like Germolene, which apparently is some sort of anti-bacterial paste or cream from England. Whenever he’s run into other Brits, they tend to discuss how disgusting Root Beer is. I guess I can see his point, it does have a wintergreen-y, pepsin kind of flavor & smell, but, Hey! I grew up on the stuff! How can you NOT like it?!? Mmmm… creamy Root Beer from Pizza Man. Do they still make that? It was the BEST! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/51 "2007-05-13T02:07:38Z")
[QUOTE=kath94] Whenever he’s run into other Brits, they tend to discuss how disgusting Root Beer is. [/QUOTE] This, from people who eat Marmite. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/52 "2007-05-13T02:07:59Z")
I wish medicine tasted like root beer. Seems like most medicine I get tastes like that horrible sickly cloying “cherry” crap or has that weird “green Nyquil” flavor that makes me vomit about 1/3 of the time. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/53 "2007-05-13T02:16:34Z")
> [@](#): > > But you could say the same for peanut butter (very few non-Americans like it very much) or for the Europeans love of Nutella (very few Americans like it very much)… What? I know plenty of Americans who probably don’t have a clue what Nutella is, but none who have tried it and not liked it. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/54 "2007-05-13T02:25:26Z")
[QUOTE=Fretful Porpentine] What? I know plenty of Americans who probably don’t have a clue what Nutella is, but none who have tried it and not liked it. [/QUOTE] Nutella is very popular in Thailand, but mainly a children’s food. Sort of a chocolaty peanut butter. Root beer is popular here, too. The two brands are Mirinda and A&W. There’s a clear difference in how they taste, too. Mirinda is much sweeter. Does anyone remember Dad’s Root Beer in the U.S.? Is that even still around? THAT was good stuff. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/55 "2007-05-13T02:26:11Z")
[QUOTE=Fretful Porpentine] What? I know plenty of Americans who probably don’t have a clue what Nutella is, but none who have tried it and not liked it. [/QUOTE] It is not terrible, but it is too sweet. I do like that Hazelnut in it. [QUOTE=Operation Ripper] FWIW, the vast majority of Americans detest rootbeer. I don’t though. [/QUOTE] Can you back this up at all? I can’t even find a poll of American’s likes as far as softdrinks. Jim ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/56 "2007-05-13T02:32:15Z")
Loganberry pop. It’s a Western New York thing. Never acquired a taste for it, but folks there LOVE the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/57 "2007-05-13T04:11:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Here’s an ingredients list (scroll down) for Virgil’s Microbrewed Root Beer, the best root beer in the history of the universe. According to their website, you can buy Virgil’s by the keg. Why am I just hearing about this now? ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/58 "2007-05-13T04:14:36Z")
[QUOTE=Little Nemo] According to their website, you can buy Virgil’s by the keg. Why am I just hearing about this now? [/QUOTE] When I go to parties with my girlfriend (who doesn’t drink, which means I don’t drink anymore either), we go to Cost Plus World Market (a great store if you have one near you) and buy a mini-keg of Virgil’s Root Beer. It’s a very attractive full-color metal keg with a built-in tap, for about $15 (or less if we get e-mailed coupons), and the root beer is delicious – one of the best I’ve ever had, and I consider myself an aficionado. It’s always a huge hit at parties. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/59 "2007-05-13T04:16:00Z")
[QUOTE=InvisibleWombat] Try a Hires, a Henry Weinhart’s, a Barq’s, and an A&W, and see how different they are. [/QUOTE] Or just try the HW’s, and leave the also-rans for somone else to judge. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2007, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863/60 "2007-05-13T04:22:28Z")
And since I’m a root beer aficionado, I’ll talk more about it: A&W and IBC are my everyday favorites. They are the best to have in root beer floats, but you need a good vanilla ice cream, preferably Breyer’s. None of that tasteless soft serve crap, please. Stewart’s is another good brand, but pricier than IBC for similar quality (4 bottles cost the same as an IBC 6-pack), and if I’m going to spring for Stewart’s, I’d rather have their orange and cream soda anyway. I’ve only ever liked the taste of Barq’s in the 8-ounce glass bottles they sell in New Orleans. It originated there, and I swear it tasted different when I had it there. It could have been the atmosphere, or the formula, or the contrast of the glass bottle against the cans and plastic bottles I’m used to. It was the perfect thing to wash down muffaletta sandwiches from the Central Grocery Store in the French Quarter. Mmm, that brings me back. The best root beer I’ve EVER had also came from New Orleans. It’s called Big Shot, and came in 2-liter bottles. Nothing fancy, pretty much a cheap local brand that was sold in supermarkets and convenience stores around the Big Sleazy. But it was so smooth and creamy – almost like a blend of root beer and vanilla cream soda. Last time I went (as part of a bachelor party with a dozen guys), I begged them to stop so I could bring back ten 2-liter bottles. I haven’t had it in years, and they don’t sell it anywhere outside of the New Orleans area. I’ve even e-mailed the company, to no avail. It is THE BEST. I love shopping at Big Lots, which gets random closeout items from other stores throughout the country. You can often find cool, unfamiliar food products there, and I’ve gotten lucky with non-regional root beers there before. I’ve found Dad’s root beer in 1-liter plastic bottles (as well as Dad’s cream soda, orange and cream soda, and bizarre red and blue cream sodas), and also Dog ‘n’ Suds root beer, apparently from a shrinking Iowa-based chain of hot dog and root beer stands. Both were good, but not as good as my tried-and-true usuals. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rootbeer-america-vs-the-world/403863.md?page=4)