Original New York Seltzer Black Cherry Soda

I brought this to my class yesterday:

Brand: Original New York Seltzer Black Cherry Soda.

Origin: Walnut, CA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: So don't think that this is "soda" - it's really more of a flavored water. With 90 calories. But this was pretty good. The root beer version of this was OK, but this was a bit better. (Less weird than the root beer version.) It has a smooth black cherry flavor, and then a bit of "crispness" from the carbonated water. Not bad.

Score: 7.5 out of 10.

Jones Root Beer

After a race yesterday, I cracked into this:

Brand: Jones Root Beer.

Origin: Seattle, WA.

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

Sweetener: Inverted Cane Sugar.

Review: The first thing that hit me was the caramel flavor - it was a very "caramel-y" root beer. It wasn't too bad. It was pretty smooth with just a little bit of a foamy head. I thought it was OK. If you really like a bit of caramel flavor, then try this for sure. But I'll give it a slightly-above-average score of 6.5.

Score: 6.5 out of 10.

Carousel Orange Soda

My kindergartener is home with some spots on his back (waiting on test results to see if it's chickenpox), so he played Legos as I enjoyed this:

Legos alllll over our table. 

Brand: Carousel Orange Soda.

Origin: Arlington Heights, IL.

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

Sweetener: Sugar and/or Corn Sweetener.

Review: This had a soft, subtle flavor. It was OK, but just a little weak. And it's hard to rank on the "sharp" to "smooth" scale because each sip starts a little sharper and ends a little creamier. Not bad. Not great either. Nothing fancy. Cool label though.

Score: 5 out of 10.

1893 Citrus Cola (by Pepsi)

I grabbed this from Target this weekend:

Brand: 1893 Citrus Cola (by Pepsi).

Origin: unknown.

Purchase Place: Target, Minneapolis, MN.

Sweetener: Fair trade certified sugar.

Review: I was ready for an "orange" punch, but after a sip, it was clearly a "grapefruit" flavor. And then, sure enough, I noticed that it said it was infused with "grapefruit essence." If you like grapefruit, then give this a try - the grapefruit flavor was pretty spot on. It was OK, but their plain 1893 Cola was much better.

Score: 6 out of 10.

Soda Can Portrait

Here's a portrait of Michael Jackson done by Seaton Brown that was made out of 1,680 recycled soda cans:

Close up.

Hosmer Mountain Black Cherry Soda

I opened this yesterday on my birthday:

Brand: Hosmer Mountain Black Cherry Soda.

Origin: Willimantic, CT.

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

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: This was OK, but not amazing. It had a decent flavor, and ALMOST verged on "black cherry CREAM." Nothing exciting, but was decent. I'll rate it just barely above average.

Score: 6 out of 10.

Pennsylvania Dutch Birch Beer

I cracked into this yesterday:

Brand: Pennsylvania Dutch Birch Beer

Origin: Pennsauken, NJ.

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

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: I'm never quite sure how to describe a birch beer. Maybe like a "cleaner" or crisper root beer? I dunno. This one is easier to describe. First of all, it's good. Secondly, I'd describe the flavor as a mix between a deep cola mixed with a light root beer. This was REALLY good. It had some fruity undertones (like a good cola would have), but then a slight herbiness like a root beer. I enjoyed this a lot. This one gets a pretty high score.

Score: 9 out of 10.

Frostie Orange Soda

I was getting some "specialty" ingredients for a recipe at Lunds last week, and I walked down the soda aisle and grabbed this:

Brand: Frostie Orange Soda

Origin: Detroit, MI.

Purchase Place: Lund's Grocery Store, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: "High Fructose Corn Syrup and/or cane sugar."

Review: The first sip was good, but then there was a "sharpness" that didn't belong in an orange soda. I didn't expect it to be "smooth," I just didn't expect it to have that strange bite. It wasn't TOO bad, but it wasn't that desirable. I'll give it a middle-of-the-road score.

Score: 5 out of 10.

Final 3 Hard Sodas: Jack Daniel's Black Jack Cola, Best Damn Cherry Cola, and Not Your Father's Hard Root Beer

I recently finished my final 3 hard sodas from Total Wine:

Jack Daniel's Black Jack Cola, Best Damn Cherry Cola, and Not Your Father's Hard Root Beer.

Jack Daniel's Black Jack Cola: this was a nice mix of booze and soda for me. I like the flavor of hard liquor, but (almost every time) it's a bit much. This is a WAY toned-down version of Jack Daniel's that has a little carbonation and a cherry kick. This fella thinks thinks that's a great combo. Score: 8 out of 10.

Not Your Father's Hard Root Beer: I still don't like hard root beers. I just don't think that beer and root beer flavors go well together. It tastes like burnt root beer. I thought it was a bit better than Best Damn Hard Root Beer and that I'd give this like a 3 out of 10. Sure enough, I went back and looked at my review of Best Damn Root Beer, and I gave that a 2.5. So Not Your Father's is better, but I'm still FAR from being a fan of either. Score: 3 out of 10.

Best Damn Cherry Cola: this was the surprise of the group. I really REALLY didn't like Best Damn Root Beer when I tried that last year, and I expected this to yield similar results. But the slight beer-y flavor works much better with the cherry cola. It's a very "black cherry" cherry flavor that is really deep. And then the beer-y kick in the end isn't bad. If you like beer and cherry cola, then for sure give this a try! Score: 7 out of 10.


Sidenote: here's my review of my first 3 hard sodas from Total Wine.