Americana Honey Lime Ginger Ale

I enjoyed this with lunch yesterday:

Brand: Americana Honey Lime Ginger Ale

Origin: Mukilteo, WA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: I'm not the BIGGEST fan of the hardcore BITE produced by a good ginger ale. But the honey and lime cut through that powerful bite in this soda. It was one of the most interesting ginger ales I've ever had, and the flavor combination was fantastic. There's still just too much bite in the back of my throat from the ginger, but it was one of the best ginger ales I've had.

Score: 7 out of 10.

Americana Huckleberry

I was in the mood for something berry-like the other day:

Brand: Americana Huckleberry.

Origin: Mukilteo, WA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: I didn't know what huckleberry tasted like, but this was pretty good. It smelled a bit "sharp," but the taste (thankfully) wasn't as harsh. It seemed to be a bit of a mix of blueberry and strawberry. If you're a berry lover, you'll like this. Unique and pretty tasty.

Score: 7 out of 10.

Americana Cherry Cola

I wanted to crack into my new stash from "Minnesota's Largest Candy Store" this past weekend, but I still have a few bottles from Frattallone's Ace Hardware that I told myself I should drink first. I grabbed this one earlier today because I needed some caffeine:

Brand: Americana Cherry Cola.

Origin: Mukilteo, WA.

Purchase Place: Frattallones Ace Hardware, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This is a decent "adult" cherry cola. It's not overly sugary and sweet like some. The cherry flavor is deep and rich, not just like a piece of hard candy. It starts of almost creamy, and ends with a little bite. Good deep flavor.

Score: 7.5 out of 10.

Americana Black Cherry

I brought this to class with me to enjoy today as my students had a work period:

(Yes, a few students thought I was drinking beer.)

Brand: Americana Black Cherry.

Origin: Mukilteo, WA.

Purchase Place: Frattallones Ace Hardware, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: You know, this was OK. Nothing great. It had a bit of a sharpness to it that I didn't care for. Maybe it was the "dark sweet cherry extract" in the ingredients list. I could see this as a flavor that SOME people would really love, but it was just too harsh for me. It was OK - very drinkable - but not the best.

Score: 4 out of 10.

Americana Honey Cream

I cracked into this in my classroom between classes:

Brand: Americana Honey Cream.

Origin: Mukileteo, WA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar and Pure Organic Honey.

Review: This is sort of what I hoped it would taste like. It has the smoothness and plainness (I mean that in a good way) of a cream soda. But there's a strong honey flavor as well. I guess that makes sense - it's called "honey creme" after all. The flavor is pretty good, but it lingers a bit in my mouth. Not bad - worth a try if you like honey!

Score: 6 out of 10.

Americana Root Beer

This had the same "Vintage Soda" cap that was on the Jic Jac Sodas (that were mostly simply OK to me in the past), so I didn't have super high hopes for this.

Enjoyed this while working on my new garage last weekend.

Brand: Americana Root Beer.

Origin: Mukilteo, WA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar and Organic Honey.

Review: This was pretty good. It had a bit of licorice flavor, but not too much. It also had sassafras root (which, as I understand it, is really only used by micro brews because it's been banned for mass production by the FDA because it is a known carcinogen) which lends a nice subtle bite. A pretty "traditional" tasting root beer, but with a slight twist. Try it!

Score: 7 out of 10.

Minnesota's Largest Candy Store (and their hours)

Last night, my family was driving up Hwy 169 back to St. Paul from visiting family in southern Minnesota. And it's hard to miss THIS while driving through Jordan, MN:

"MINNESOTA'S LARGEST CANDY STORE" along Hwy 169 about 40-45 mins south of the Metro.

Stockpiled with all kinds of sweetness.

SODA!!

MORE SODA!

YET MORE SODA!

And this is ALL ROOT BEER.  They have a sign that boasts "191 kinds of root beer."
(When we were there a year ago, they only had 92 kinds of root beer, so someone's been busy.)

My son and lots of pumpkins.

The flat-roofed section in the foreground was added since last year - it just keeps getting bigger!

I left with a piece of candy for my son, some Cow Tales and some "Fizzies Grape Drink" for me...

... and 10 different kinds of root beer:

We found out that they are open until December 1st, and their hours are 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. every day. (They don't have a website and it's hard to find info on this place - the owner is older and "old school" like that.) But if people are around, they'll stay open later - we got there at 7:40 p.m. and the place was still hopping. They said they were going to be closing at 9 p.m. that night.

Check back soon for reviews of these root beers... I have one waiting in the fridge for me tonight. And check out more photos on my other blog (including photos of their "bacon" section!).