Pig Iron Cola

This label just drew me in:

… and the fact that this was brewed by a BBQ joint.


Brand: Pig Iron Cola.

Origin: Seattle, WA.

Purchase Place: Frattallones Ace Hardware, Burnsville, MN.

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This was a strongly flavored cola. (What would you expect from something that had a pig with a bull ring in it's nose on the label?) It had a slight earthy/fruitiness to it as well. It reminded me a BIT of Jarritos or Double Cola. Good flavor, and a nice cola.

Score: 6.5 out of 10.

Mom's Root Beer

This is made across the river in Minneapolis, and it donates a percentage to breast cancer research, so I was happy to try it.

Brand: Mom's Root Beer.

Origin: Minneapolis, MN.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This was weak and tasted "off." It wasn't good. The first sip tasted like water, and then it slowly starts to have a little root beer flavor. But it tastes a little unnatural (not that root beer is totally "natural") and chemical-like. Not great. Sorry Mom.

Score: 3.5 out of 10.

Review of my final 5 ciders

I just finished my final 5 hard ciders from my Total Wine stash:

Sonoma Apple Cider: The Hatchet ($2.99): This was one of the 3 most expensive ciders I purchased (of the 10 I picked up, 3 were $2.99), but it was NOT one of the 3 best. It was OK. It had a slightly dry bite to it, like a white wine. I don't want wine - I want a sweet cider. I didn't taste apple at all; it was just like wine. No thanks. Score: 4 out of 10.

Angry Orchard Hard Cider: Crisp Apple ($1.79): This had a super fresh and super crisp flavor. It tasted like farm-fresh apple cider, and hardly tasted alcoholic at all. Pretty tasty, but just a bit too "sharp." Score: 7 out of 10.

Redd's Strawberry Apple Ale ($1.49): This one surprised me a bit. I wasn't sure I'd like this being it was an Ale, but it was just the slightest bit "beery" (malty). The strawberry was very tart and strong. Each sip lead with a strawberry flavor, and it tasted a bit beer-like at the end. Not bad. Score: 7 out of 10.

Hornsby's Crisp Apple Cider ($1.49): This had a slightly berry aftertaste that was pretty good. There was another strange (slightly off) flavor in there as well, but it was subtle. Otherwise it was a sweet apple cider. Score: 7.5 out of 10.

Sonoma Pear Cider: The Pitchfork ($2.99): A little drier than I would have liked, but not too bad. It had a little strange aftertaste, but it had a decent pear flavor. Not my favorite, but I could see how some would like it. Score: 6 out of 10.

So I didn't have too many that were great in this 5. I liked my first 2 that I had back in August best. I'd like to head back shortly and get a few more ciders.  Click here of my review of the first 5 ciders.

Kickapoo Joy Juice

This bottle/label/name was just too amazing to pass up:

Brand: Kickapoo Joy Juice.

Origin: Atlanta, GA.

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

Sweetener: Cane Sugar.

Review: This was pretty weak. It was like watered-down, carbonated lemonade. It wouldn't be bad if it had more flavor, but it just didn't have enough of anything. OK lemony flavor, just too subtle.

Score: 4 out of 10.

Fanta Strawberry

Time for something sugary:

Brand: Fanta Strawberry.

Origin: Mexico.

Purchase Place: Kowalski's Market, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Sugar.

Review: This was sweet (Fanta seems to usually be sweet). I would never call the flavor "strawberry" - it was almost more cherry. Kinda just "red" flavored. It was sweet and OK. Nothing too great or memorable, but OK.

Score: 5 out of 10.

Avery's Gold Coin Root Beer

Time for a root beer:

Brand: Avery's Gold Coin Root Beer.

Origin: New Britain, Connecticut.

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

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup and Sugar.

Review: This was a pretty classic-tasting Root Beer. It was pretty smooth with just a little bite. It was a bit creamy with a little vanilla flavor. Classic, tasty, nothing too strange or "out there."

Score: 8 out of 10.

Sprecher Cherry Cola

This one said it had cherry juice from Door County, WI, and raw Wisconsin honey in it. It was sounding a little pretentious from the start (especially for something from Wisconsin*).

Brand: Sprecher Cherry Cola

Origin: Glendale, WI.

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

Sweetener: Glucose Syrup and Raw Honey.

Review: This was a very creamy cherry cola - it could have been labeled "cherry creme." The cherry flavor was a little unique with a slight sharpness to it. It was tasty. My only complaint is that there's a slight chemically taste to this soda as well. But overall, it's unlike any cherry cola I've had. I really respect this cola for trying something new and not just being another cherry soda. Unique and alright.

Score: 7 out of 10.

* I have to say that and feel that way because I'm from Minnesota.  It's in my blood.

Goya Coconut Soda

I recently finished off my small stash of sodas from the Mexican Food section of Cub that I picked up a few months ago.

Brand: Goya Coconut Soda.

Origin: Secaucus, NJ.

Purchase Place: Cub Foods, Minneapolis, MN.

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: I'm not a fan of coconut flavored things - I'll admit that. So the best coconut soda might only be able to reach a mark of 7 out of 10 on my scale. Well, this one will do just that. When I opened this, it had no smell what-so-ever, and that worried me. But the first sip was decent. The problem with coconut flavored drinks is that sometimes it tastes like you're drinking sunscreen, but this one didn't taste like that. It was a good, smooth coconut flavor. It tasted very clean and pure. If you like coconut flavored things, give this a shot - it was as good as it could have been.

Score: 7 out of 10.

Diet Stewart's Root Beer

I haven't reviewed a diet soda for a while…

Brand: Diet Stewart's Root Beer.

Origin: Rye Brook, NY.

Purchase Place: Kowalski's Market, St. Paul, MN.

Sweetener: Aspartame.

Review: This was OK. And for a diet soda, it was pretty good. It was "thin" and weak like many diets, but it had a good vanilla flavor and was very smooth and tasty. It had a slightly chemically aftertaste. Not a super fantastic soda, but not too shabby either.

Score: 6.5 out of 10.

Ely Wild Blueberry Soda

This was the other soda that my friends dropped off for me the other week. They grabbed it as they passed through northern Minnesota on their way down to the Twin Cities.

With the 3 acorns my son just brought home.

Close up of one of the BEST label designs I've ever seen.  EVER.

There's no contact info on the bottle, and I could find NOTHING online. This has to be a very small operation.


Brand: Ely Wild Blueberry Soda.

Origin: Ely, MN maybe? That would make sense. But who knows?...

Purchase Place: Zup's Grocery Store, Ely, MN.

Sweetener: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

Review: It smelled great! There was a strong blueberry scent that was a lot like blueberry pie! But then the flavor couldn't keep up to the smell. It didn't taste bad, it just tasted like 85% plain sugar with just a hit of blueberry flavor. Not the best. It was nice that it wasn't sharply carbonated (it just had a little fizz) because lots of carbonation would have made this even worse.

Score: 4 out of 10.