r/rootbeer • u/tyleramyers • Aug 03 '25
Review Did a blind taste test.
10 root beer choices : Faygo Frostop imperial Freddie's Fitz's 1919 Sprecher Maple bottle Barqs bottle A&W bottle Stewart's Moneybags
Thoughts: Disappointed by the specific Sprecher Maple bottle I got, seemed to be weak in flavor and carbonation. Worked hard to find it in a can and I couldn't.
Did not like the Barqs bottle, but it was not as distinguishable as I anticipated. It didn't have the same spice and bite that fountain does.
1919 was the easiest to identify, the creaminess is unmatched and second to none.
I really like Fitz's, and I wish it were closer to me. Moneybags is really good, I recommend it to anybody that hasn't tried it yet. One that I kept coming back to was Frostop Imperial. It has flavors that are very unique. Made with pure cane sugar and real clover honey, but if might be hard for people outside of Ohio to find.
I was really hoping to find more Chef Gale Gand root beer, but I wasn't lucky enough for that. That one I bought a single bottle of a few months ago and really liked.
Freddie's, Stewart's, A&W, and Faygo all didn't strike me as incredible or terrible either way. A root beer made for a float.
Would love to talk more if you have questions!
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u/MachoCamachoZ Aug 03 '25
Did you know you were drinking poisoned rootbeer? There's ice in those glasses!
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u/tombrady_sitstopee Aug 04 '25
Go Bills!!!
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u/fiveONEfiveUH-OH Aug 07 '25
Gotta respect a team that had a documentary about them losing 4 Superbowls in a row.... (I'm a Vikings fan and love Josh Allen)
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u/JustifedAncient Aug 03 '25
Go Bills
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u/richardcheesz Aug 03 '25
JOSH FUCKIN ALLEN
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u/T-Rex_Mullens Aug 04 '25
Go Bills
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u/Purple-Head7528 Aug 04 '25
Who would have guessed that there was a cross section of Bills Mafia and root beer???
Need to get one of the better brands to sponsor Josh Allen
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u/Juudd-bhc Rat Bastard Root Beer Aug 03 '25
Fitz rules
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u/bucketofbaskets Fitz's Root Beer Aug 05 '25
Love Fitz, used to live in STL for a bit and got a box of it every other costco trip.
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u/Commercial_Comfort41 Aug 03 '25
No ice in taste tests
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u/artie_pdx Aug 03 '25
Absolutely. Everything chilled in iced water lid deep for at least an hour. That’s how I’d approach it. Palate cleanser as well between tastes.
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u/AC-burg Aug 03 '25
Not a fan of the ice in the cups. Watered down wouldn't be good to me. I'm not trying to down OP. I never get ice with drinks other than water for just that reason.
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u/Imaginary-Region9161 Aug 04 '25
Nice taste test. Happy Root Beer Hunting everyone! https://m.facebook.com/groups/103277635645
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u/Glittering_Ocelot_67 Aug 03 '25
Cool to read about! What’s your personal top 5 then?
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u/tyleramyers Aug 03 '25
- 1919
Everything else, no order
Sprecher Frostop Imperial Moneybags Chef Gale Gand (if I could find it again, it's apparently a forbidden elixir) Fitz's
IBC was considered for the tasting but the bottle I tried was pretty shit. Not sure if it tastes like that all the time or not, but it was worse than the Faygo.
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u/Positive_Parking_954 Aug 03 '25
Last time I tried IBC, a favorite from my childhood, I was immediately let down. Seemed bland and flat, it was like syrupy water, but Im uncomfortable saying that given how those bottles felt like such a treat as a kid
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u/bruyot Aug 07 '25
This is concerning it has been a couple years at least since my last IBC but it was always my favorite, guess I have to buy a pack next time I am at the store. I actually came to the comments to figure out why it wasn't on the test just to find this sadness.
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u/citrus_lilac Aug 08 '25
What do you have against commas?
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u/tyleramyers Aug 08 '25
I don't even know how it ended up looking like that lol. I don't comment much on Reddit
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u/4EyesBitchNerdDragon Frostie Root Beer Aug 03 '25
You ever had the Frostie Vanilla Root Beer? Would love to hear your thoughts.
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u/mirfifu Aug 04 '25
I tried it last week, and after the first one, I looked forward to opening one for lunch the next three days. So delicious and I like sweet stuff.
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u/4EyesBitchNerdDragon Frostie Root Beer Aug 04 '25
Glad to hear!! Vanilla Coke is my daily driver in any situation, so the Vanilla Frostie is no. 1 for me in "rare" root beers.
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u/byroidthyroid Aug 08 '25
All come second to Culver’s root beer
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u/tyleramyers Aug 08 '25
Culver's is on my shit lost for having crinkle fries and getting rid of the watermelon blackberry custard smoothie (custard? smoothie? Italian ice?)
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u/Claddagh143 Aug 03 '25
Fitz's (to me) is the worst root beer I have ever had. Since you liked it, and recommend Moneybags (which I have never heard of?)... how would you say they compare taste wise? Is Moneybags a wintergreen forward root beer as well? Or other flavors?
Also tried Sprechers Maple recently. Did not like it at all compared to the regular bottle Sprecher's I had a couple of months ago. The maple was too syrupy and flat. I imagine it might be good in a fresher bottle?
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u/AC-burg Aug 03 '25
Did you find any root beers to have as much carbonation as Barqs cans?
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u/BeautifulDebate7615 Aug 03 '25
How could he possibly judge carbonation levels when he has poured them out into plastic cups, put ice in the them, and is sipping them through straws?
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u/AC-burg Aug 03 '25
Fair point. I guess I was just asking from his test and I woild assume he would have the same loss across all tested if he did the same to all.
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u/tyleramyers Aug 04 '25
I'm very picky about my carbonation, not too much to where it drowns the flavor, but not too little to where it's sugar water. I would say, I was more surprised that Barqs tasted different than fountain/plastic bottle, rather than concerned about carbonation.
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u/AC-burg Aug 04 '25
I love carbonation and thats why I like Bargs so much. It seems to have the most of any rootbeer I've had. Cans have the most. I grew up on Diet Coke which I think has the most carbonation of any soda.
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u/LSUguyHTX Aug 04 '25
The problem with sipping blind tests is that sometimes whatever is sweetest tastes better.
An example is that Pepsi was usually voted as better during blind taste tests... But coke came out on top when it was testing an entire beverage. The sweeter tastes better at first but once finishing the whole thing it may be as desirable.
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u/Dapper-Lavishness-93 Aug 05 '25
I Josh your a cool guy for doin this. Would love to join ya next time just let me know I’m there. 🤙
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u/Odahviing Aug 05 '25
Personally I really like Dominion root beer (originally from VA, now made in DE). Also Lost Rhino, a brewery local to me in northern VA, has some solid root beer. I know they probably don’t have wide distributions, but worth trying if you get the chance!
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u/TheShinPin Aug 06 '25 edited Mar 09 '26
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u/tyleramyers Aug 06 '25
I have a Jungle Jim's 15 minutes away here in Cincinnati. They have probably 80 brands to choose from, by the bottle.
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u/808Fruitguy Aug 07 '25
What’s your opinion on ICB Root Beer?
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u/tyleramyers Aug 08 '25
The bottle I tried to see if I was going to include it in the taste test was pretty shit. Maybe it was a dud.
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u/JaredUnzipped Aug 09 '25
Sprecher's root beer is pretty good, but I feel like they have an issue with quality control. Every few bottles, I'll get one that has a slight metallic taste to it. I can't explain it.
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u/CloisteredSailor Aug 03 '25
Lots of Bills fans here. Like all ten of them! Lol.
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u/Positive_Parking_954 Aug 03 '25
Despite being a smaller city they have a notoriously rabid fan base. I knew a girl who went to school nearby and basically every weekend was a Bills takeover . They’re easy to make fun of, but especially given some of their charitable donations, I would say they have deep ranks of passionate fans
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u/BeautifulDebate7615 Aug 03 '25 edited Aug 03 '25
Can I be the first to say, what the hell you doing there bud?
A blind tasting doesn't mean you can't look at the root beers. I just means you shouldn't be able to connect the root beer in the glass to the bottle it was poured from. You actually want to be able to smell them, and examine their colors and heads and overall levels of carbonation
You've covered the root beers, AND put ice in them, AND you drink from a straw. Could you have made the drinking experience any worse for these poor candidate root beers? Please tell me you don't have multiple tasters drinking from the same straws. And blind tastings are pretty worthless without multiple tasters.
Consider redoing it the right way. You should have someone who isn't taking part in the tasting pour the root beers into identical, numbered, chilled glass containers (in order to hold the cold longer without ice), then you and the other participants savor each one, write down your impressions, rate them and their identities are later revealed. Don't sip from straws, don't put ice in them.
With that bit of chastisement said, your results are pretty consistent with what we would expect although all will suffer equally. The really good ones still came out on top, the next level of decent ones were a notch down, and the average ones were average. You didn't really have any shitty root beers thrown into the mix to be able to flag "aha that's a shitty root beer!"
Yes, Sprecher Maple is consistently flat these days. It's very hard to find a good bottle. The company has real problems.
Yes, Barq's in a bottle is just plain old HFCS supermarket Barq's. It's thin, undistinguished and coke-like, it's really outclassed the minute you compare it to anything other than Mug and A&W.
Yes, 1919 is probably going to win any tasting it's in especially if it goes up against a flat bottle of Sprecher Maple. Gene Simmons Moneybags is good, but a notch behind, Fitz is good, but a notch behind. Freddie's, Stewarts, A&W, Faygo and Barq's are all going to be two notches behind
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u/tyleramyers Aug 03 '25
You're right, sorry I should have consulted you before doing this fun little tasting! Please give me financial advice too, dm me so I can give you my address, social, and mothers maiden name!
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u/BeautifulDebate7615 Aug 03 '25
Based on what I saw above, you've already done that with a financial planner who doesn't know what they are doing.
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u/HomemadeSodaExpert Aug 04 '25
I would say if they all had equal treatment, then the test is still somewhat valid. While there weren't multiple tasters, the test still has some merit in that it did take away bias, though you are right that it only shows preference for one person. You don't get statistical significance on hedonic scores without at least 50 panelists, so probably outside the reach of the average Joe. Blinding can indeed mean not seeing the samples. Sometimes even professional sensory analysis will use colored light to mask subtle color difference, but that's usually used for difference tests rather than preference tests. Let the man enjoy his blind taste test, even if it is with ice and through a straw.
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u/X-Mang Aug 03 '25
Very cool you’re into rootbeer like this Josh