Abita Root Beer

Now that I'm back from sampling 2 sodas in Israel (here and here), it was time for some root beer:

Brand: Abita Root Beer.

Origin: Abita Springs, Louisiana.

Purchase Place: Frattallone's Ace Hardware, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: No beating around the bush: this is one of the best root beers that I've had in recent memory. Actually, it's THEE best in recent memory, and one of my favorites of all time. The sweetness from the Louisiana cane sugar can't be beat. There's a great smoothness to this root beer, and just a little bite (just the perfect amount of bite for my taste). This goes down easy and tastes great.

After well over 100 reviews on this blog, I've never given a "perfect 10" before. But I could NOT taste anything wrong with this - it was everything that was right with the world. I can't wait to get my hands on another bottles of this!

Score: 10 out of 10!

Spring Strawberry Banana Flavored Fruit Nectar (More Israeli Soda)

During my last full day in Israel, I headed to a little grocery store for a snack. I looked for any unique sodas to try, but it was just a lot of basic Pepsi and Coke products (and a lot of the last soda I reviewed, which seems to be all over in Israel). This looked interesting, so I walked out with this:

On the 3rd floor balcony of my hotel room near downtown Tel Aviv.

Brand: Spring Strawberry Banana Flavored Fruit Nectar.

Origin: Rehovot, Israel.

Purchase Place: "am:pm," Tel Aviv.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: This is non-cabonated, and is more like a "Naked Juice" from the US. But it's much sweeter and tastier than a Naked Juice. It's a little thick (not as thick as "Naked"), and still very drinkable.

Score: 7 out of 10.

Cider Galilee (Drinking Soda in Israel)

I've been in Israel for a few days. So I HAD to try some local soda when I got a pita:

Great lunch!

Brand: Cider Galilee.

Origin: Netanya, Israel.

Purchase Place: "Meat and More," Eilat, Israel.

Sweetener: None?... I think. It said it was just apple juice and carbonation.

Review: This was crisp and tasty. It was a good, "clean," and "pure" tasting apple juice with a nice amount of carbonation. If you want a sweet soda, this won't satisfy. But if you want some tasty carbonated juice, this is right up your alley. Natural and tasty.

Score: 8 out of 10.

GuS Grown-up Soda Dry Root Beer

I had one other GuS "Grown-Up Soda" last year and it wasn't the best, so I took a risk trying their root beer:

Brand: GuS "Grown-up Soda" Dry Root Beer.

Origin: New York, NY.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: The initial flavor was pretty good, but it was thin and watered down. There was a bit of a strange aftertaste that didn't feel natural. The other GuS "Grown-Up Soda" that I had had SOME potential, but I just didn't care for this. The birch oil was an interesting touch, but it just wasn't for me.

Score: 4 out of 10.

The Pop Shoppe Cream Soda

I grabbed this from the basement fridge because I thought it was a cherry soda… then I noticed it was a cream soda:

No bonus points for the unique bottle, even if it is cute.

Brand: The Pop Shoppe Cream Soda.

Origin: Ontario, Canada.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This was VERY smooth and creamy - almost to a fault. It was syrupy and sugary. The red color kept throwing me off - it DID just taste like "cream soda," but at times I thought I tasted cherry (but that was just due to the color). If you like smooth, creamy, and sugary, then try this. If you like a little kick or a little bite, this isn't for you.

Score: 7 out of 10.

Druthers Black Cow Vanilla Creme Root Beer

I thought I'd try some vanilla creme root beer yesterday:

Brand: Druthers Black Cow Vanilla Creme Root Beer.

Origin: Oglesby, Illinois.

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

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: This was really smooth. It was strong on the vanilla (as the name implies), and it was good! It didn't have a ton of carbonation, and it had just a slightly "off" aftertaste, but other than that, it was better than average. Good, smooth, vanilla flavor! I'd love to try some of their other sodas.

Score: 8 out of 10.

Boylan Black Cherry

I really didn't care for Boylan Root Beer (see this post), but I still bought their Black Cherry to try:

Brand: Boylan Black Cherry.

Origin: Teterboro, NJ.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This was a decent Black Cherry. It leaned a little to the "sharp" side - it wasn't very smooth. It was good, but nothing fantastic, so I'll give it a just-better-than-average score.

Score: 7 out of 10.