Dominion Root Beer

Brand: Old Dominion
Brewed in: Dover, DE
Where to find: DC-area
Website: www.olddominion.com/

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Packaging/Label: Old Dominion's beers have really nicely designed labels but, unfortunately, their root beer got the cold shoulder on this one. Don't get me wrong, it's not a badly designed label (their typography is well done and readable - and who doesn't love the inclusion of woodland creatures?), but I do question their color palette. How so? Wellllllll, what do YOU think of when you see the colors medium brown and golden yellow together? What doesn't help the matter are the additional brown splatters on the 6-pack carrier. Commence bathroom humor!

Aroma: This one threw me for a loop. A sweet blast that faded to what I can only describe as... the scent of stale air (really).

Bite: Mild bite

Flavor: Welcome to the Rootie Rumble! There is a battle going on inside this bottle and the main event is honey vs sugar. They are both dominant and both want to overpower your taste buds but, much to their dismay, their battle is the focal point instead of a clear distinguishable taste. Some hints of vanilla float around and then there is this mysterious mild dry-tasting spice thrown into the mix (is this dry-tasting spice the culprit of the aforementioned stale smell?!)

Should you buy it? Buy a loose bottle or two, but I wouldn't invest in a case unless you're interested in finding out how quickly you can develop diabetes.

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Additional Notes:

I still have a few more bottles to drink up, so I'll keep this updated if they fair differently. As it stands though, while I'm not head over heels on what I've already drank, I'd be open to trying a diet version of this root beer (if it's out there) to focus more on the root beer flavoring.

Overall Rating:

Maine Root

Brand: Maine Root
Brewed in: Portland, ME
Where to find: Nationwide, health food stores/grocers
Website: www.maineroot.com

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Packaging/Label: The packaging is pretty unappealing to me. It says "I only eat organic raw foods while I practice my performance art tribute to dreadlocks in the wind for this year's Burning Man". Brown, green and abstract art deck this label and, while my vision sees this label's drawing as an abstract root, who really knows - because that's ART, man!

Aroma: Well, you'd think the scent of patchouli would come up and smack you in the face, but instead, it's a very sweet though mild scent.

Bite: Small amount of bite

Flavor: This is similar to Virgil's where there's a lot of different spices getting thrown around, but it's not nearly as offensive (this one doesn't have a strong licorice flavor invading your space) and there's no gnarly mouth-coating going on in Maine Root. This is just a straight up sweet-tasting root beer with hints of wintergreen and clove among other spices. Overall, the flavor is mild and rather watered down.

Should you buy it? If you're in Whole Foods (or one of those other healthy joints) and you're faced with choosing between this and Virgil's - pick this one! The root beer flavor isn't offensive and you'll be able to drink this whole bottle without cringing.

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Additional Notes:

N/A

Overall Rating:

Virgil's Rootbeer

 

Brand: Virgil's
Brewed in: LA, CA
Where to find: Nationwide, health food stores/grocers
Website: www.reedsinc.com/virgils

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Packaging/Label: You can't deny this brand has one of the best illustrated labels around - and bonus points for the excellent God-like beard being sported by ye olde gentleman server. It was a weird decision to lay that descriptive, thin black type over the bottom half of the illustration though. Nice one, guys - I can't freaking read any of it except for a sliver of the middle! As far as i know, this root beer is a "Natural A Root Rich And You'll It's Made In Heaven".

Aroma: Heavy on licorice, hints of vanilla; Overall, pretty strong scent but it's not overpowering or offensive.

Bite: Sharp, strong bite that quickly dissolves.

Flavor: Really, guys? Did i pick up a pack of Virgil's root beer or carbonated licorice juice? Because if i didn't know better, i'd say the latter. Like the smell, licorice is prominent with some bursts of vanilla, nutmeg and wintergreen. It's smooth (i wouldn't say creamy necessarily), but leaves an aftertaste and a coating in my mouth that i'm not real stoked about. Needless to say, I'll need a glass of water once i'm through with this bottle. It is unique, i'll give it that much.

Should you buy it? If you're really hankerin' for something different, go for it. Otherwise, i'd advise you to skip it unless you're just into collecting rad soda labels.

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Additional Notes: 

Just because it says it's gourmet doesn't mean it's good! They claim they are what "Ben & Jerry's is to ice cream, what Dom Perignon is to champagne" and i say to that, "Ho, ho, good sir! You are living in a world of fairy tales, blue genies and straight-up oblivion!"  There is a lot going on in this brew and i don't think all of these elements work as cohesively as they're daydreaming about over yonder at Virgil's root beer plant.

Overall Rating: