The Root of All Deliciousness
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009The wait is finally over. After what seemed to be an eternity, the bottle of Root I ordered nearly 2 weeks ago arrived yesterday afternoon (Woohoo!) …and I’m here to tell you, it’s worth every single highly-anticipated second of that wait time. In fact, I cracked it open just as soon as I got home last night.
It’s probably because I’ve always had an affinity for the smell and taste of Root Beer that explains the excitement with which I opened this handsome bottle of liquor. Something about the smell of root-anything reminds me of the summer trips of my childhood to North Carolina, visiting my extended family and sitting out on the front porch looking up at the stars. Even now, during the occasional walk past the Home Brew section in our warehouse, I catch a whiff of our Root Beer Making Kits and it sends me back to those warm, homely thoughts of childhood summers.
Produced by Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction (Art in the Age for short), Root takes us back to the pre-Temperance Era before Root Tea became the soft drink Root Beer that we know nowadays. That is, this baby’s got alcohol.
At 80 Proof, this deep reddish-brown, caramel colored liquor has a smooth flavor – just as root beer would (and should) if it had a kick. It is a well-balanced blend of natural herbs, spices and alcohol – without being overly herbal or overly boozy. Best of all, it leaves a wonderful after taste that is somewhat spicy, yet totally refreshing and very much root beer-like. Even the bottle seems to throw back to its days as an herbal remedy – which was Root Tea’s original, native purpose.
Popping the cork, the blended aroma of anise, cloves, orange and lemon peel, birch, cardamom, nutmeg and cinnamon wafted from the bottle. A wayward drop of Root soared into the air and came to rest on my finger, giving me my first taste ever… Delicious!
Nothing about Root, its flavor, packaging, or promotion says "pretense." Nor does it reek of effort – which is always a good thing in my book. Overall, this is pretty much a low-profile liquor that deserves every bit of the attention and spotlight it gets - and more.
If you’re lucky enough to have a liquor store near you that carries Root, I recommend you pick it up; otherwise, you’ll have to order it. See Art in the Age’s website for details.
TAGS [ ROOT LIQUOR | ROOT BEER LIQUOR | ROOT TEA | ROOT BEER ]
has been for a lot of others. We’ve been feeling some serious hot weather in this neck of the woods the past couple of weeks (…cough…finally), so being in need of a great summer seasonal, here are my 5 that will fit the bill nicely.
Summer is quickly escaping us. It’s getting darker sooner, everyone’s weekends are jam-packed with last minute getaways and the back to school commercials are hitting the airwaves. Another one has come - and it’s almost gone.
Hefeweizen is pale straw to a dark gold in color, with a thick, mousy, long-lasting white head, which looks particularly pretty in those big, fluted glasses designed specifically for them. Due to the high protein content in the wheat, clarity is always a bit impaired, but a haze is somewhat variable. The aromas these beers give off are very phenolic (spicy); the two biggest culprits being clove and banana. There is little to no noble hop character, combined with a citrusy tartness, some vanilla, and some bubblegum. 
English Pale Ales have some malt aroma, with a touch a caramel. Fruitiness is mild to moderate, as is hop aroma. They’ll appear yellow to light copper in color, with good to brilliant clarity and a low to moderate off-white head. These are light to medium bodied beers with low carbonation, although bottled versions tend to have a bit more. Flavor-wise, these beers have medium to high bitterness, but low to moderate hop flavor with about the same amount of malt. Balance is often noticeably bitter, but it wont overpower the malt flavor.
Yah, typically in my beer reviews you get a nice photo, shot at home, complete with the beer poured into a glass for a better, more complete look, but I was swimming and I just wasn’t in the mood to dry off, find a pint it the pits of my mother’s kitchen, ready a shot, etc. So, you just get this picture of the bottle, this time.
