Mug Zero Sugar Root Beer

I stopped at our local "corner store" and grabbed a Zero Sugar Mug:

 
Brand: Zero Sugar Mug Root Beer.

Origin: Purchase, NY.

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

Sweetener: Sucralose.

Review: This really did NOT taste "diet" or "low calorie." It still had that pretty standard DEEP Mug Root Beer flavor. I was pleasantly surprised! I expected it to be a solid soda, but didn't expect it to taste THAT "normal." If you like Mug and want a diet option, then you need to try this. 

Score: 8 out of 10.

Quick Stop at an "Up North" Candy Store

When my boys and niece and nephew and I took at 4 day trip up to Grand Marais, MN, we swung by a candy store on the way home.  It was the Sweetly Kismet Candy Store just south of Duluth near Jay Cooke State Park. It's a new "suburban barn" looking candy shop just off the freeway at the Carlton exit.

Some cold sodas...

... and a lot on the shelf!

The bathroom is fun too.

I'm a sucker for traditional "Cow Tales," but I haven't seen all these flavors!

I grabbed a few sodas that I'll have to try shortly. Here are more photos from the Grand Marais trip with the 4 kids!

Root Beer Socks

Yes, it's mid-July, but I just opened this as a late Father's Day present from my family:

It LOOKS like a can of root beer...

... but the top pops off to reveal socks inside!

And the "nutrition facts" are kind of fun.

Liquid Death Killer Cola Flavored Sparkling Water

On Saturday, I stopped at "Five Below" with my son so he could shop for his girlfriend, and I grabbed a Liquid Death. On Sunday, I opened it while I cooked supper:

I was ready to "murder my thirst" as it says at the bottom.  ;)

 

Brand: Liquid Death Killer Cola Flavored Sparkling Water.

Origin: Los Angeles, CA.

Purchase Place: Five Below, Roseville, MN.

Sweetener: Agave Nectar and Stevia Leaf Extract.

Review: First of all, you have to note that it's a "flavored sparkling water" and not a "soda." It's not nearly as sweet as you'd expect a soda to be. But with both agave and stevia, it's still PLENTY sweet - it's not like a La Croix or something.

I don't know if I would have labeled this as a "cola" by just sipping it blindly. It had a real fruity / floral sweetness to it, and a bit of that "sharpness" that stevia tends to add. It wasn't a bad flavor, but it really wasn't what I'd say was "cola." In the end, I didn't care for the sharpness it had (even though it was only slightly carbonated which helped, because otherwise it would have been VERY "sharp"), and the flavor wasn't what I expected. The sweetness was good, so I'll give this a middle-of-the-road score.

Score: 5 out of 10.

'Rocket Fizz Soda Pop & Candy Shop' in the Mall of America

We were at the Mall of America this past weekend celebrating my youngest son’s birthday, and we stopped at Rocket Fizz Soda Pop & Candy Shop for the first time. I had been to Rocket Fizz in Vegas 12 years ago, but didn't realize I had one so close to home:

Sodas were kinda expensive at $2.99/bottle, but they had a huge selection of novelty sodas if you’re into that sort of thing!

Lots of candy and novelty metal signs as well. (And sodas down low.)

The middle part of this cooler is all birch beer, root beer, and sarsaparilla.

I didn't get anything, but I'd stop back (if I was willing to spend a little more) if I wanted to find some funky flavored novelty sodas! I think I've had all of the root beers in the image above, but I wouldn't be surprised if I stopped in sometime to grab a few other sodas. 

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.

Grandpa Joe's Marshmallow Old Fashioned Soda Pop

I opened this last night with my boys:

 

Brand: Grandpa Joe's Marshmallow Old Fashioned Soda Pop.

Origin: Pittsburgh, PA.

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

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: It SMELLS like marshmallow! Truly! And the first sip had a bit of a marshmallow flavor, but first came an overly sweet "cream soda" flavor. It was decent, but VERY sweet - my boys loved it and my wife thought it was too much. I'll give it a pretty average score.

Score: 5.5 out of 10.

7-Up Syrup

Someone found a bottle of 7-Up flavor syrup in their grandma's house:

Fitz's Cardinal Cream Soda

I opened this with supper tonight:

 

Brand: Fitz's Cardinal Cream Soda.

Origin: St. Louis, MO.

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

Sweetener: Pure Cane Sugar.

Review: I didn't know what this would be like under this big aluminum can (the neck is painted aluminum and not the color of the soda). Honestly, I enjoy the screw-top aluminum bottles like this - I think more places should try that.

On to the flavor... it was a bit of a mix of Dr. Pepper and a cream soda. It had a deeper flavor like Dr. Pepper, but then was REALLY creamy. I had to pour some out into a glass to see what color it was, because it could have been cola/brown, clear, or red, and it turns out it was a pretty deep red. It was LIKE their cream soda that I had years ago, but this had a little more depth and interestingness to it. Not bad!

Score: 7.5 out of 10.