Cock N Bull Bitter Lemon

I opened this last night:

Cool bottle cap!

Brand: Cock N Bull Bitter Lemon.

Origin: Columbus, OH.

Purchase Place: Grandpa Joe's Candy Shop, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Pure Cane Sugar.

Review: OOOOOoooooo LAWD this was bitter! This tasted like I was biting a grapefruit. Really, the flavor wasn't very "lemon"-like, but much more like a grapefruit. I couldn't handle it at first. But it was good when I put some in a mixed drink last night.

BUT, it got better as it sat in the fridge overnight. I took another drink this morning, and it was much more subtle. The carbonation was adding to the intensity, and once that subdued a bit, it was much more of a pleasant lemon soda. 

Not drinkable on its own, good in a mixed drink, and more palatable after a night in the fridge. 

Score: 3 out of 10.

Uncle Scott's All Natural Root Beer

Yesterday after class, I cracked open a root beer:

 
Brand: Uncle Scott's All Natural Root Beer.

Origin: Mooresville, NC.

Purchase Place: Grandpa Joe's Candy Shop, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: "100% pure cane sugar."

Review: This wasn't my favorite. It had too much anise flavor, and almost tasted "burnt." I checked the ingredients list, and I was happy to see "vanilla" (which I could taste a little), but then next came "cinnamon oil" which might be adding to that burnt taste. Later on down the list was both "licorice root oil" and "anise oil" which combined provided the TOO MUCH ANISE flavor that I didn't care for. The root beer flavor was OK, but the other flavors were just too much. Not a great root beer. Dang.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Big Red Soda

I didn't know what kind of soda this was... "big red" isn't much of a flavor description. But based the the tiny circle that says "so sweet - so smooth" on the label, I figured it might be cream soda-like.

 
Brand: Big Red Soda.

Origin: Plano, TX.

Purchase Place: Marshall Stop, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: My hunch was right - it was like a red cream soda (and "red cream soda" is a thing). It was pretty sickly sweet. I LIKE sweet sodas, but this was a lot even for me. I think my wife would have recoiled at this. Honestly, I couldn't finish it. It was just TOO sweet. A bit chemically, and just too much - too sweet, too weird, no thanks.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Lester Fixins Ranch Dressing Soda

I opened this "Ranch Dressing" soda with my extended family on a trip up north recently:

I thought it could pair well with Buffalo Wing Soda.

My youngest was ready to try a shot of it...

...but he immediately spit it into the sink

My brother-in-law and I sniffed it...

Drinking it!

 

Trying not react to the flavor! Ha! (We agreed ahead of time to try to not show our disgust.)

 

Brand: Lester Fixins Ranch Dressing Soda

Origin: Incline Village, NV.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Pure Cane Sugar.

Review: You know, this WASN'T horrible. It smelled quite like ranch dressing. And then the aftertaste left a ranch dressing-like film in my mouth (but not in an ABSOLUTELY horrible way). 

The biggest positive for this is that the carbonation really helped. And it had a perfect amount of sweetness to cut the almost savory ranch flavor. Both my brother-in-law and I agreed on this. 

It sure isn't a soda that I'd grab on any given day saying "boy, I sure could go for something 'ranch dressing' flavored right now!" But it wasn't BAD. The ranch dressing flavor was about spot on, so give this a (humorous) try if you're a fan of ranch. This had POTENTIAL for being scored at 1 or 2, but it's honestly better than that.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Cool Mountain Root Beer

I was in a bad mood and wanted some good root beer, but unfortunately I only had this: 

Brand: Cool Mountain Root Beer

Origin: Des Plaines, IL.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Bloomington, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This wasn't great. It was too caramely with nothing else going for it. Ehh. No thanks.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Bull's Head Root Beer

I opened this yesterday afternoon as I was painting my living room:

My living room is all plastic and paint fumes.

Brand: Bull's Head Root Beer.

Origin: Canada.

Purchase Place: "Minnesota's Largest Candy Store," Jordan, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: I wanted to like this so badly, but I just didn't. It wasn't good. But listen: it MIGHT be for you. It had a SUPER woodsy, earthy, and herby taste that was just too much for me. Some people might like it that strong, but it wasn't for me. It had such a unique bite because of that flavor but it was a "miss" for my palate. I'm giving it an extra point because it tried so hard. 

Score: 3 out of 10.

Polly's Pop Donutology Glazed Donut

Being I was still hanging out with family earlier this week, we all sampled this treat:

On the counter on vacation.

Brand: Polly's Pop Donutology Glazed Donut.

Origin: Kansas City, MO.

Purchase Place: "Minnesota's Largest Candy Store," Jordan, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: When I opened this, I passed it around for everyone to sniff. Because it TOTALLY smelled like those waxy Hostess mini chocolate donuts. I was excited to try it. But then it tasted a little "off." The aftertaste was a bit chemically and it just tasted like odd sweetness. It was just OK. I'm shocked to think that the beef jerky soda from earlier in the week was better than this!

Score: 3 out of 10.

Beefdrinker Teriyaki Beef Jerky Soda

On our summer vacation recently, I opened this to share with family: 

On the railing of our (rented) cabin.

First of all, I was ready for this to be gross.  I mean, obviously. I liked the tagline on the bottom of the label: "For that deep carnivore thirst." Nice. I poured out sips for everyone to try:

My son smiled saying it wasn't too bad.

My nephew wasn't sure what to think.

My brother-in-law didn't mind it.

My niece was the only one who didn't really care for it.

Brand: Beefdrinker Teriyaki Beef Jerky Soda.

Origin: Gardena, CA.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: As far as novelty sodas go, this wasn't too bad! It wasn't overly smokey or salty, which were 2 of my worries. My nephew described the flavor PERFECTLY: he said it tasted like what Cheeseburger Hamburger Helper powder smells like. And that was spot on. My brother-in-law noted after his first sip that it reminded him of some kind of cream soda, and that wasn't a bad point either. As I sipped more and more, it started tasting more and more like beef. In the end, it wasn't really all that tasty, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be, so I'm calling this "3.5 out of 10" soda a "win" in my book.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Yacht Club Strawberry Soda

I opened this earlier today: 

Brand: Yacht Club Strawberry Soda.

Origin: Centredale, RI.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Pure Cane Sugar.

Review: The best thing I can say about this is that it's got an "adult" flavor as it's not too sweet. However, it needs MORE sweetness. It's a really subtle sweetness and strawberry flavor. It needs more of a punch. Speaking of "punch," it tastes like a poorly-made bowl of punch put out a some mid-90s high school graduation. Not great.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

 

Excel Gooey Butter Cake Soda

Up at the cabin this past week, I cracked into this beauty:

Brand: Excel Gooey Butter Cake Soda.

Origin: Breese, IL.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Pure Cane Sugar.

Review: I poured out little sips for all my family to try, and there were no horrible reactions (which is a little rare with a "novelty" soda). Some of the younger kids even liked it. I took a sniff and it didn't smell like much. When I tasted it, the flavor was quite subtle. There was a true hint of butter, but not rich, thick, super creamy butter. Just a nod of the flavor. And that was about it. It was just a "light butter" flavor, with no real "cake" flavor at all. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't something that I would drink a bottle of, so I have to rank it kinda low.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Love Potion #69 Soda

I opened this last night:

I had a get a better photo showing just HOW purple it was.

It claims to be a slight aphrodisiac.

Brand: Love Potion #69 Soda.

Origin: Gardena, CA.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: This smelled "perfume-like" when I opened it. I had no idea what flavor it was going to be. And after drinking this bottle, I still can't tell you. It's a bit fruity, but with a weird (and again, slightly perfumey) aftertaste.

When I looked at the ingredients, that explained a little of it: there's a LOT of flavors crammed into this. There's a herbal blend that consists of "Siberian Ginseng, Jasmine, Buchu, Dillweed, Ginkgo Biloba, Clove, Echinacea, Damiana, Kola Nut, Dong Quai (Angelica), Brazilian Guarana, Gotu Kola, African Capsium, and Chamomile."

I can kinda taste the kola nut (a flavor that I've enjoyed in some interesting colas I've had), but one the the things that comes out in the aftertaste is the dillweed. Yep, dill. That's NOT really something that's tasty in a soda. When has ANYONE EVER thought "Mmmm... what this soda could use more of is dill!" Never. Three out of the 4 of us in our house did not care for it.

Score: 3 out of 10.
 

Scary Soda Black Lemonade Private Reserve Soda

This looked... interesting. I cracked into this yesterday:

"Animal testing was consensual." Sassy.

More sassiness.

Brand: Scary Soda Black Lemonade Private Reserve Soda.

Origin: Gardena, CA.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: OK, the first thing is that this is not just a dark brown "cola" color. When I poured some in a glass, it left a true blueish-black ring. It's really dark. That's odd.

It was almost shocking that it tastes like lemonade! And it was STRONG. It is not a "chugging" soda - it's a "sipping" soda. It would be good as a mixer with alcohol because it's so strong and lemony. As is, it's too sour for me to drink. I'd label this as a "lemon sour" and not a "lemonade." So if you like a strong and sour lemonade / lemon sour, then this is a fun one for you to try! I don't think it's necessarily bad, but I just couldn't drink it as is.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.
 

Bawls Guarana Cherry

We stopped at "Fresh Thyme" grocery store over the weekend, and my wife asked "hey, have you had all of these?" as we walked through the soda section. I found a Bawls Cherry that I hadn't tried before:

Hard to photograph - had to hold it in the right spot to make out the label.

Brand: Bawls Guarana Cherry.

Origin: Twinsburg, OH.

Purchase Place: Fresh Thyme Grocery Store, Minneapolis, MN.

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: My first Bawls soda / energy drink was a bit of a let down. They made sodas with a super high caffeine content - one of the ingredients is guarana extract which is about twice as potent as coffee beans. This bottle had 64 mg of caffeine. But I still wanted to try this. It wasn't great. The cherry flavor was OK the moment it touched my tongue, but then it immediately became very "chemically" tasting. And it was weak/thin tasting. Both of those things I ended up saying about my first Bawls soda as well. Not a fan of Bawls.

Score: 3 out of 10.

Dead World Goon Bitters Cherry Cola

I cracked into this just now, but unfortunately I think it's been my least favorite "Dead World" soda:

Brand: Dead World Goon Bitters Cherry Cola.

Origin: Detroit, Michigan.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: For being "novelty" sodas, I've quite liked most Dead World favors. But this one was a bit of a let down. The cola flavor was just OK, and there wasn't much of a cherry flavor at all. And it was oddly harsh. It wasn't great.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Farmer's Brew Butterscotch Root Beer

Sorry, I haven't posted this month yet! I've had this soda sitting in the fridge for the past 4-5 weeks, and I finally opened it up today:

Brand: Farmer's Brew Butterscotch Root Beer

Origin: Shawano, WI.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: I like butterscotch. And I like root beer. But often, the 2 flavors don't mix that well. I could really only taste the butterscotch here, as it tasted like a "butterscotch soda" (or maybe a "butterscotch cola"). It just wasn't something I enjoyed. I feel bad, because there wasn't something I HATED about it. I just didn't like it.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Dad-Gum-It! Root Beer Butterscotch

I opened this last night, and my wife and I both had similar (undesirable) reactions:

Brand: Dad-Gum-It! Root Beer Butterscotch

Origin: Camarillo, CA

Purchase Place: "Minnesota's Largest Candy Store," Jordan, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This tasted a bit like rancid root beer. It's so sweet that there's almost a bite from over-sweetness. I don't taste much of the butterscotch. I have another Dad-Gum-It soda in the basement, and this makes me not excited to try it.

Score: 3 out of 10.

Bundaberg Lemon, Lime & Bitters

Last night, I cracked into this. I didn't have high hopes because my last Bundaberg soda wasn't that great, and the flavor didn't sound all that interesting:

The Bundaberg tab on top.

Brand: Bundaberg Lemon, Lime & Bitters.

Origin: Queensland, Australia.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: The first sip started like Lemon Lime soda, but then the "bitters" part kicks in and leaves quite a bitter aftertaste. This wasn't that enjoyable to drink, but I can imagine it mixed with booze and being quite good. As a stand-alone soda, it was too bitter.

Score: 3 out of 10.
 

Ramblin' Butterscotch Root Beer

I opened this during my boys' nap time today:

Brand: Ramblin' Butterscotch Root Beer.

Origin: Atlanta, GA.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: This wasn't great. It was OK, but a bit "chemically." The butterscotch was overpowering and a bit too much. It just didn't impress me and wasn't that good. You MIGHT like it if you REALLY like butterscotch, but that's about the only good thing I can say about this.

Score: 3 out of 10.

Whistler Cookie Dough Soda

I cracked into this while my boys were napping this afternoon:

Brand: Whistler Cookie Dough Soda.

Origin: Spring Lake Park, MN.

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: The first thing I noticed is there was no carbonated "SSsssss" when I popped the top, so this wasn't seal properly. It didn't taste like it had "gone bad," it just tasted like it lost it's carbonation. The flavor was weird: like a mild cola with a LOT of caramel. I see what they were going for, but it was odd. Maybe it was because it was no longer carbonated, so I think I might have to try this soda again to be fair. For right now, it was weird...

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Manhattan Special Black Cherry

I opened this adorable 10 oz bottle yesterday afternoon:

Brand: Manhattan Special Black Cherry.

Origin: Brooklyn, NY (not Manhattan, oddly enough).

Purchase Place: Blue Sun Soda, Spring Lake Park, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This had a very "adult" taste. It was not overly sugary or syrupy. It had a deep flavor, and then I noticed that "black cherry concentrate" was the 3rd ingredient (and "grape skin extract" was 4th, which makes this soda sound a little like a serial killer). Overall, it could have used a bit more sweetness. The taste was just a bit harsh. Even though this was a small bottle, I didn't/couldn't finish it all.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.