New York Seltzer Root Beer Soda

My wife brought this home for me from the grocery store: 

This was sort of an accidental re-review. I had this YEARS ago and I felt like I didn't like it, so I've been ignoring "New York Seltzers" when I see them around. But as it turns out, I ranked it a 6.5 when I first had it nearly 6 years ago, and that's not horrible. So when my wife brought this home for me, I had to try it again.

Brand: New York Seltzer Root Beer Soda.

Origin: Walnut, CA.

Purchase Place: Fresh Thyme Farmer's Market, Minneapolis, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: Yep, not horrible. It has a decent root beer flavor, but you NEED to keep in mind that it's water. If you want "root beer," don't have this. This is a sparkling root beer flavored water. Check out my first review, because that still holds pretty true. I think it's time to try a few more of these seltzers...

Score: 6.5 out of 10.  (still)

A Minor Refill at Blue Sun Soda

Last night, I dropped my boys off at Grandma's house, and I celebrated my freedom by going to a soda and candy store. Of course. The last time I stopped at Blue Sun Soda was pre-COVID back in November. Back then, we stopped by for a cream soda tasting. But now (without the boys), I could take my time.

Colas on the left, root beers on the right.

This note was hung on the wall with no explanation. Perfect.

"Summertime Sodas:" lemon limes, an orange cream, and some novelty "fair" flavors.

Love all the greens and yellows in the lemon lime section.

Worth noting: MN legal "fireworks" are cheap now!

  

Also note that the fireworks are in their "soda fountain" area. Both the soda fountain and the arcade are not open because of COVID-19. That's understandable (I wouldn't have gotten a fresh-made soda while there, and I SURE wouldn't have been playing pinball that all kinds of grubby hands have been on) but still sad. Here's a post from a year ago that shows the soda fountain and arcade pretty well.

The main reason I stopped was because my stash at home was running very low: I was down to 2 sodas! Maybe sometime in 2013 (shortly after starting this blog) my stash got that low, but this was the 2nd lowest it's ever been.  So I picked up a random assortment of 10 bottles at Blue Sun Soda Shop: a few of their Whistler bottles, some random flavors, and even a novelty soda. That should get me through the end of summer.

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.

Tree Fort Classic Cola

My wife was at Cub Foods in St. Paul over the weekend, and she sent me this picture and asked what I wanted:

I had her grab a Tree Fort Cola and a Cheerwine. I started with the Tree Fort Cola:

Brand: Tree Fort Classic Cola.

Origin: Minneapolis, MN.

Purchase Place: Cub Foods, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: I wasn't sure what to think after the first sip. This had a very deep almost "brown sugar"-like sweetness. After a few more sips, I realized it was a sweetness that was a bit like very almond-flavored frosting. It was a VERY unique cola, and I ended up liking it in the end. But it was so different, that it took me a bit to warm up to it. I'll rate is just above average.

Score: 6 out of 10.

Original New York Seltzer Root Beer Soda

I was intrigued by this tiny bottle, so I brought it to class with me today:

Brand: Original New York Seltzer Root Beer Soda.

Origin: Walnut, CA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This first struck me because it only had 4 ingredients: carbonated water, cane sugar, citric acid, and natural flavors. That's not unheard of, but definitely on the lower end of ingredients. So I was ready for this to be more of a "flavored water" than a "soda." I sniffed it, and it smelled like root beer. The first sip was totally root beer. And then there's a sharpness and crispness that comes later in the sip that's the normal "carbonated water" experience. So really, it's like a carbonated water drink that's flavored like root beer. The sharpness is a LITTLE weird at the end of each drink, but it's not bad. The root beer flavor is pretty classic and smooth (until the sharpness hits). It's a very unique experience - I'll give it a slightly better-than-average score.

Score: 6.5 out of 10.

p.s. Under the cover, there was a message. They were founded in 1981, so it asked "What's the best thing 2 happen 2U in 1981?" Well, I was born. So that was good.