Root beer update

[jwgh]

This morning the bottle of root beer was hard so I put it in the fridge for a few hours and then, after a lengthy period of bleeding off excess carbon dioxide, gave it a try. I think it turned out quite well!

No video this time but here are some photos:

Comments

[secritcrush.livejournal.com]

Oooooh looks good - not nearly as dark as I expected.

[jwgh]

Yes, between the brown sugar and the honey I thought it would be pretty dark, but it's more yellow. Makes me wonder why commercial root beers are so brown.

This is the extract I used: http://www.greenmountainflavors.com/natural.html

[jwgh]

If you look you'll see a strip of lemon zest floating in the glass of root beer, slightly behind the straw.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

They usually put caramel coloring in root beer to make it dark, don't they? I guess there might be coloring in the extract.

[jwgh]

Ah, yes, caramel coloring -- that would explain it.

The extract I'm using has as its ingredients 'grain alcohol, vegetable glycerine, pure essential oils and other natural flavors, water.'

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

That's probably why it's not so dark.

[doctroid.livejournal.com]

I think I once found a brand of clear, colorless root beer. Tasted good, but seemed weird.

[jwgh]

I've seen that too.

[secritcrush.livejournal.com]

I thought sarsaparilla was usually colourless.

[doctroid.livejournal.com]

The root beer extract I've used ("Old Fashioned" appears to be the brand) makes dark stuff. Can't find an ingredients list at the moment though.

[oh6.livejournal.com]

I have to try these recipes some time when I'm not on a diet.

[muffyjo]

Oooh! And what is your take on the taste? Does it have an edge, is it smooth? Does it foam a lot?

[jwgh]

On second sampling, the taste is kind of complex and I might try a simpler recipe next time. (It tastes pretty good, but there's a lot going on.)

When I first opened the bottle there was a lot of bubbling as I bled off the CO₂ but after that there wasn't really any head.

[bigevilgrape.livejournal.com]

Glad that your root beer came out well. My first shot was a flop, and I haven't gotten around to trying again yet.