Interesting Fact – In 1875, Charles Elmer Hires introduced the first commercial brand of root beer, named Hires Root Beer. Hires initially wanted to name the product to be “Root Tea,” but chose “Root Beer,” to make the beverage attractive to Pennsylvanian coal miners. Hires, who did not drink alcohol, marketed root beer as an alternative to alcohol.
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Who first created root beer?
Root Beer 
Root beer originated in North America and remains most popular in North America. Historically made using the root of the sassafras plant with that being its primary flavour, there is no standard recipe. Root beer can vary from mild and easy drinking to strong and more challenging, but to give a very general definition it is a sweetened, carbonated beverage.
- The origins of root beer can be traced back to 18th century American farm brewers who adapted native North American recipes to make very low or non-alcoholic family drinks, known as a small beer.
- This was a widespread and popular practice and George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin are all said to have had their own favourite root beer recipes.
These small beers were made from all sorts of herbs, barks and roots. Favourite ingredients were sassafras root, ginger, sarsaparilla, hops and birch bark, but wintergreen, vanilla beans, liquorice allspice, coriander, juniper, burdock root, dandelion root, spikenard, guaiacum chips, spicewood, wild cherry bark, yellow dock, prickly ash bark and dog grass were also used.
After extracting the flavours from these naturally occurring products by heating them in water to produce what is known as the wort, sweetener in the form of honey, maple syrup or molasses (which was cheapest and added flavour and colour), more water and yeast were added and the wort was then barrelled to ferment.
If a very low alcohol beverage was required the liquid was bottled and corked straight away and then cooled after a day or two to stop fermentation. The amount of alcohol in these instances would have been akin to what is found in a loaf of bread. Fermentation produced carbon dioxide as a by-product which resulted in some carbonation (fizzing) of the drink.
- Farming families believed that the beverages they made were good for them and given that they were brewed from boiled water from what might sometimes be a tainted source they probably often were a healthier option than water.
- What’s more, the tiny amounts of alcohol had an antimicrobial action as did the carbon dioxide.
Root Beer is first known to have been marketed commercially at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition in 1876 by a teetotal Philadelphia pharmacist named Charles Hires who is said to have discovered a recipe for a delicious herbal tea while on his honeymoon.
He introduced a commercial version of the tea which he sold in 25-cent packets of powder, each of which yielded five gallons of root beer. He claimed the powder was a solid concentrate of sixteen wild roots and berries. In 1893, the Charles E. Hires Company began supplying Hires root beer in small bottles.
A & W Root Beer, which is still widely for sale today, is another early brand. It was created by Roy Allen, who began marketing root beer in 1919. Non-alcoholic versions of Root Beer were particularly popular during Prohibition and the constraints of the period probably contributed to preserving the domestic art of making traditional root beers.
- Sassafras extract from the roots of the very fragrant deciduous sassafras tree was once a primary ingredient in root beers.
- Unfortunately it was found that the safrole (also once used as a fragrance in perfumes and soaps, food and for aromatherapy) contained in sassafras is a carcinogen and Root Beer took a terrible hit in 1960 when the United States Food and Drug Administration banned its use in commercially mass-produced foods and drugs.
Commercial root beer brewers had to reformulate their recipes, either balancing out the missing sassafras with other roots or synthetic flavours or by removing the safrole from the sassafras root oil. In 1994, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act removed the ban on sassafras oil and microbrewers once again began to use sassafras, but it is now unlikely to be found in big commercial brands.
Most mainstream brands of root beer are unadventurous in their ingredients, fairly ubiquitous in taste and are often very sweet. More interesting variations are made by many North America microbrewers and the home brewing tradition survives to this day. Flavourings commonly included in the more interesting modern root beers include vanilla, wintergreen, cherry tree bark, liquorice root, sarsaparilla root, burdock nutmeg, acacia, anise, cinnamon, dandelion, ginger, juniper and cloves.
Modern sweeteners include aspartame, corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, molasses and most commonly, sugar. Many brands of root beer contain sodium benzoate as a preservative. Most are caffeine-free but one or two contain caffeine. Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic root beers can have a head, to any degree of thickness and foam when poured.
This is often enhanced by the addition of yucca or Auillaja saponaria extracts. Most modern root beer brands are artificially carbonated by injecting carbon dioxide gas or mixing the root beer syrup with carbonated water (as with a soda fountain). Sarsaparilla, a soft drink, originally made from the Smilax regelii plant, can be classified as a root beer, and some consider it to be the father of root beer.
: Root Beer
What brand of root beer is the oldest?
3. Hires Root Beer – Year Created: c.1876 Country of Origin: United States of America Inventor: Charles E. Hires photo source: Wikimedia Commons Hires Root Beer is known as America’s original root beer, According to the brand’s official history, Philadelphia pharmacist Charles Hires first tasted root beer in 1875 while he was on his honeymoon. However, historical accounts vary and the actual time, place, and how Hires invented his root beer is unknown.
- What is known is that Hires began selling his version of a root beer in 1876.
- Initially, the root beer was sold as a powder and in 1884, Hires began making a liquid extract and syrup for use in soda fountains.
- In 1890, the company started selling bottled root beer and claims that they sold over a million bottles by the end of the next year.
Although Hires was the first and oldest root beer on the market, it is not widely available today. The company is owned by Dr Pepper Snapple Group and other Dr Pepper root beer brands like A&W Root Beer are more popular.
Was the first root beer alcoholic?
Root Beer and the Small Beer – As we have pointed out, and you probably know, root beer is not beer, as it does not have alcohol. However, many believe it was not always like that. Today, water is undoubtedly the healthiest thing to drink. However, there was a point in history when it was not due to water pollution.
- During this time, many preferred brewed drinks to try and avoid getting sick from contaminated water.
- One of those brewed drinks was the small beer.
- Many believe that small beer is the origin of what we now call root beer.
- However, unlike modern-day root beer, this drink contained some alcohol, albeit only a low percentage.
Small beer used to have only as high as 12% alcohol. On the other hand, it could have as low as 2%. There are a few ways brewers made this drink, but it almost always used some bark, berries, and herbs. However, the belief is at least one of its varieties bears similarities in taste to modern-day root beer.
What started root beer?
Root Beer in Colonial America – European colonists brought their own traditions to the Americas, including the medieval tradition of “small beer.” Small beers were low-alcohol beers (hovering at 1-2% ABV). Europeans brewed small beers because they were safer than water, cheap, nutritious, and unlikely to get you too drunk during the day.
Colonists made small beer by shortening the fermentation time of the brew or by re-using grain from a stronger beer. When European colonists observed indigenous people using sassafras, sarsaparilla, wintergreen and other roots, barks, and berries for their health benefits, the colonists did what they knew best—made small beer.
Colonists used Sassafras and Sarsaparilla roots—among other local plants—to brew a type of small beer they (unimaginatively) named root beer. Generally, colonists did not drink root beer to get drunk. Instead, they drank root beer to hydrate safely and get (real or perceived) medicinal benefits.
Families passed down their recipes for root beer like heirlooms. Countless varieties of root beers made from different blends of American plants, water, sugar, and yeast emerged. This practice continued for many years. In the early days of the United States, merchants sold in small shops and drugstores throughout the country.
Still, the general public largely saw root beer as a niche health drink.
Is root beer an American thing?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Not to be confused with Beer,
| A mug of foamy root beer | |
| Type | Soft drink |
|---|---|
| Region of origin | North America |
Root beer is a sweet North American soft drink traditionally made using the root bark of the sassafras tree Sassafras albidum or the vine of Smilax ornata (known as sarsaparilla, also used to make a soft drink, sarsaparilla ) as the primary flavor. Root beer is typically but not exclusively non-alcoholic, caffeine -free, sweet, and carbonated,
Like cola, it usually has a thick and foamy head, A well-known use is to add vanilla ice cream to make a root beer float, Since safrole, a key component of sassafras, was banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1960 due to its carcinogenicity, most commercial root beers have been flavored using artificial sassafras flavoring, but a few (e.g.
Hansen’s) use a safrole-free sassafras extract. Major root beer producers include PepsiCo, Coca-Cola Company, Dad’s, Keurig Dr. Pepper, and A&W,
Did Coca Cola make root beer?
Barq’s Root beer manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company Barq’s Root Beer TypeManufacturer Country of origin Introduced1898 ; 125 years ago ( 1898 ) Variants
- Diet Root Beer
- Red Crème Soda
- Cherry Bite (Spicy Cherry cola)
- Diet Red Crème Soda
- French Vanilla Crème Soda
- Birch Beer
- Diet French Vanilla Crème Soda
- Floatz (Discontinued)
- Peach (Discontinued)
Related products,,, Website Barq’s is an American brand of created by Edward Barq and bottled since the beginning of the 20th century. It is owned by, It was known as “Barq’s Famous Olde Tyme Root Beer” until 2012. Some of its formulations contain,
Who drank soda for 16 years?
Woman Suffers Heart Problems After Drinking Only Soda for 16 Years- After Drinking Only Soda Woman Has Irregular Heartbeat qintheuk.com After drinking only soda for 16 years, a French woman was rushed to the hospital and found out she has severe heart problems. According to the, the 31-year old Monaco woman drank only soda since just after puberty. The woman had no prior family history of heart conditions, but she also admitted that in addition to exclusively drinking soda she had not consumed water since the age of 15.
How old is 7up?
| North American and International logos for 7 Up used since 2015 | |
| Type | Lemon-lime drink |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Keurig Dr Pepper PepsiCo (international distribution only) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Introduced | June 19, 1929 ; 93 years ago (as Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda) June 23, 1936 ; 86 years ago (as 7 Up) |
| Color | Colorless Pink (Cherry/Diet Cherry, United States only) |
| Variants | List |
| Related products | Mitsuya Cider, Sprite, Sierra Mist, Bubble Up, Starry |
| Website | www,7up,com |
7 Up (stylized as 7up outside North America) or Seven Up is an American brand of lemon-lime-flavored non-caffeinated soft drink, The brand and formula are owned by Keurig Dr Pepper although the beverage is internationally distributed by PepsiCo,
Who invented root beer and why?
Interesting Fact – In 1875, Charles Elmer Hires introduced the first commercial brand of root beer, named Hires Root Beer. Hires initially wanted to name the product to be “Root Tea,” but chose “Root Beer,” to make the beverage attractive to Pennsylvanian coal miners. Hires, who did not drink alcohol, marketed root beer as an alternative to alcohol.
Why was root beer made 1919?
1919 Rootbeer – About The name 1919 Classic American Draft Root Beer signifies the year when hundreds of breweries were faced with the prospect of closing because of Prohibition (1919-1933). In order to keep their breweries open, several resourceful Brewmasters chose to make near beer, elixirs, and sodas! This practice was continued only until Prohibition was repealed, and breweries went back to making beer.1919 is brewed in small batches with only the finest ingredientsreal sugar ~ the sweetener of choice during the prohibition era ~ and real vanilla.
Did Coca-Cola make root beer?
Barq’s Root beer manufactured by The Coca-Cola Company Barq’s Root Beer TypeManufacturer Country of origin Introduced1898 ; 125 years ago ( 1898 ) Variants
- Diet Root Beer
- Red Crème Soda
- Cherry Bite (Spicy Cherry cola)
- Diet Red Crème Soda
- French Vanilla Crème Soda
- Birch Beer
- Diet French Vanilla Crème Soda
- Floatz (Discontinued)
- Peach (Discontinued)
Related products,,, Website Barq’s is an American brand of created by Edward Barq and bottled since the beginning of the 20th century. It is owned by, It was known as “Barq’s Famous Olde Tyme Root Beer” until 2012. Some of its formulations contain,
Did A&W create root beer?
A&W’s famous root beer stands, which helped create the drive-in restaurant culture across America and introduced the first bacon cheeseburger, celebrates a century in business this month. (Courtesy A&W Restaurants) Courtesy A&W Restaurants 
A&W Root Beer founders Roy Allen and Frank Wright. The famous root beer stands, which helped create the drive-in restaurant culture across America and introduced the first bacon cheeseburger, celebrates a century in business this month. (Courtesy A&W Restaurants) Courtesy A&W Restaurants A&W Restaurants marks a century in business June 20, the first franchise restaurant chain to make the 100-year mark, and had it not been for A&W, there might not be a Marriott. There might not be a bacon cheeseburger either. A&W Root Beer was started by California entrepreneur Roy Allen in 1919, serving frosty mugs of root beer from a roadside stand a during a parade honoring World War I veterans in Lodi, California.
Back then, a 10-ounce mug sold for a nickel. Allen soon partnered with Frank Wright (that’s the A&W) to begin opening restaurants throughout California. It began franchising roadside restaurants in 1925. Shortly thereafter, in 1927, and on the opposite side of the country, newlyweds J. Willard and Alice S.
Marriott opened the first A&W Root Beer franchise in Washington, D.C. They became the first A&W franchise operators to add hot food to the menu, and dubbed their new business Hot Shoppes. The Marriotts continued expanding the Hot Shoppes business, and by 1957 the company entered the lodging business with a motor hotel in Arlington.
- Bethesda, Maryland-based Marriott International is now the world’s largest lodging company.
- Meanwhile, A&W began growing rapidly following World War II, with many returning soldiers using GI Bill loans to open franchises.
- In the 1950s and 60s, the franchise helped create the drive-in restaurant culture across America.
Its Modesto, California, restaurant was the inspiration for the movie American Graffiti. In 1963, A&W became the first restaurant chain to serve a bacon cheeseburger, and its introduction to the menu is credited to Dale Mulder, then a young franchise operator who now serves as company chairman. Jeff Clabaugh Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region’s economy and financial markets for WTOP as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the WTOP newsroom staff in January 2016. Like WTOP on Facebook and follow @WTOP on Twitter to engage in conversation about this article and others.
