Eventually Rackensperger moved to a better location and launched a new root beer.  Acceleration: the business soared as their new concoction flew off shelves and soon it became available nationally.  With the windfall Rackensperger bought up competitors and restaurants.

40 years after its inception Frostie was sold and it bounced around until the current owner, Detroit’s Intrastate Distributors, bought it in 2009.  Though it no longer enjoys the success of its heyday, Frostie root beer can be found easily across the nation.  Their ginger beer though is a little bit harder to find.

Their winter-themed label highlights this clear, 12oz, heritage-style bottle.  Interlocking triangles of alternating shades of green make up the background while the snow-capped, 50’s-style logo features up front.  Longtime mascot, the earmuffed elf, leans in just behind while a barrel — clear to let the liquid show through — sits just below.  It is retro through-and-through and nods to the origin of their famous root beer.

To carbonated water and cane sugar is added the ambiguous “natural flavor” and citric acid.  Sodium benzoate keeps it shelf-stable while quillaia extract piles on a little extra foam.  Tally them together and the sum is a whopping 200 calories for the bottle.

As can be seen through the glass, the liquid is light-colored and opaque with no trace of sediment.  Generous fizz generates when poured and in the glass it gives off the scent of ginger and substantial sweetness.  Those hints on the nose are dead-on as sweet hits right off the bat.  Ginger rushes in quickly, heat tagging along.  The abundant sweetness builds and builds as a touch of tart joins in for the climax.  There’s a burst of sugary sweetness before fading into the finish, accompanied by a subtle ginger.  Prickles jig upon the tongue, the residuals of a hefty heat.

While there’s nothing outlandish about it, Frostie does take a chance with its sweetness.  This is a sweet-forward ginger beer, likely too sweet for some, but the considerable heat attempts to balance it.  Both are above-average which imparts an intensity to the flavor.  This take on the formula can be called bold and interesting but the sweetness is ultimately a bit much.

Final Decision: Third Tier – Enjoyable

Purchased at: Beverages Direct | Also available online at: Antiqology, Soda4u, Specialty Sodas.

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Orca itself is the brainchild of Mike Bourgeois and began its life with a water-and-juice drink that proved challenging to bottle because of the particles and pulp.  Kicked off three separate bottling lines, Orca determined the best route forward was to find one of their own.  They procured a beat-up Pepsi line that had been totaled in a flood and put in some hard work rebuilding it.  Now, Orca bottles its own specialty sodas along with many others like Moxie and Dad’s, over 100 in total.

Misty Wither’s gets shipped in clear 12-ounce long-neck bottles with transparent labels which show off the crystalline liquid beautifully.  Elegant line work swirls and curls around the elaborate navy-blue type of the logo.  It’s very pretty packaging.  While Misty Wither’s is supposed to be inspired by women of the 1920’s the design is squarely Victorian with its fancy ornamentation and swooping type.  Art Deco dominated the design of the 20’s and it’s a shame not to see it here.  That said, the overall effect is attractive and without reading the bit about the inspiration off the website, there would be no complaints.

Surprisingly, a serving of Misty Wither’s counts only 80 calories.  For the reason why look to the nutritional information.  While cane sugar accompanies the carbonated water, ginger extract and citric acid, stevia extract sits at the end of the list.  Stevia is sweeter than sugar and doesn’t metabolize so it’s worth zero calories.  Mixing it in means a calorie bargain without sacrificing the taste of the cane sugar.  One preservative, sodium benzoate, is present but shouldn’t be the least bit alarming.

As mentioned above, the liquid appears almost entirely clear with just the slightest haze.  The nose brings sweetness with a pop of ginger.  The sweetness comes on first but initially tastes drier than it smells.  The ginger arrives briskly, rich and earthy, while the sweetness continues to crescendo, at this point soft as a Smarties candy.  The ginger protracts for a substantial portion of the progression, hanging on through the finish and accompanied by a final, sharp sparkle of sweetness.  The heat is significant with prickles crackling throughout the mouth and upon the lips. 

The advance of the sweetness sets this ginger beer apart.  Development comes along gradually, gently ramping up instead of hitting at once and fading.  While it strikes as dry at the outset, it ultimately ends up being quite sweet.  It’s unusual without being odd.  The tone of the ginger tastes wonderful too and the above-average heat is more than welcome.  It’s a striking combination that makes for an excellent experience.

Final Decision: Second Tier – Alluring

Purchased at: Cooper Farms Country Store, a small market in Fairfield, Texas I stumbled into while driving from Dallas to Houston. They offer a very large selection of craft and specialty sodas, deftly arranged by color with a few on tap. | Available online at: Orca Beverage, Antiqology, and Soda Emporium

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The small green bottle contains seven ounces and is wrapped in a label looking like textured paper torn across the bottom to reveal a bright orange region.  The logo gives the impression of a stencil and features a cluster of tightly-packed buildings and a squared-off typeface.  A fair amount of negative space surrounds it, drawing and steadying the eye.  It all looks hand-crafted, a positive impression.

In addition to the typical carbonated water: cane sugar, ginger, ginger extract and citric acid.  Not many ingredients and no fluff.  70 calories lurk within, translating to 120 for 12 ounces.

The instructions sent by Shaker and Spoon guided the creation of a cocktail called a Bajan Kiss, an elevated version of a beloved Barbados drink, the Corn ‘n Oil.  Dreamed up by Paul Yellin, it calls for:

2oz aged rum
1oz falernum syrup
1/2oz scotch bonnet-sea salt syrup
1/2oz lime juice
1/2oz ginger beer
1 dash Angostura bitters
coconut water

After the drinks stood prepared on the bar, plenty of ginger beer remained for sampling.  The cloudy liquid smells of sweet, earthy ginger as a healthy dose of sediment drifts beneath the surface.  The flavor development happens quickly.  A swift note of sweetness arrives followed closely by an ascending earthy ginger.  Then at the end of the progression, the heat hits hard right in the back of the throat and underscores, nearly but not quite shouting down, a finish of sweet ginger.  The heat is formidable, and lasting, and could scare off some unsuspecting drinkers but it never reaches a scalding level and plays well with the ginger and sweetness.

Brooklyn Crafted has brewed a well-tuned ginger beer for those seeking a fiery twist on the drink.  The heat is regulated, set to thrill without overwhelming, to accentuate the primary duo of ginger and sweetness without hogging the spotlight for itself.  Indeed, that’s not an easy task but it’s been well sorted here.

Final Decision: Second Tier – Alluring

Purchased at: It came in a Shaker & Spoon box. | Available online at: Brooklyn Food & Beverage in 7oz and 12oz bottles.

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Powell & Mahoney feel an affinity towards Moscow Mules so this blood orange variety marks an attempt to expand horizons and offer variety on that front.  The can draws eyes to this bold step with its wrought iron logo, rough-hewn type and hand drawn illustrations of ginger root and sliced blood oranges.  There’s a personality to it, classy but fun, and it communicates an expected level of quality.

The can declares an absence of preservatives, artificial ingredients and high fructose corn syrup but citric acid is present.  While it primarily imparts a bit of citrus tang, it also possesses a preservative effect so there’s a bit of a gray area on this one.  Either way there’s a best-by date on the bottom of the can so it can’t be doing much.  It’s worth overlooking.

In addition to citric acid, there’s filtered water and cane sugar for sweetness.  Blood orange juice from concentrate and natural orange extract give the signature flavor while ascorbic acid adds tang.  Vegetable juice imparts color.  The ginger flavor comes from ginger extract and capsaicin adds a degree (or a few degrees) of heat.  There’s 130 calories in the 12 ounces of liquid, ten less than their Original Ginger Beer.

In a glass it appears a soft salmony pink color not unlike a rosé or a pink lemonade.  On the nose is a strong scent of sweet orange with a bit of ginger.  A moment of sweetness precedes the arrival of the blood orange flavor and a bright burst of tart acid.  A ginger weaves its way through, prickling the tongue and back of the throat.  The capsaicin brings a moderate burn throughout the mouth, building with further sips.  The tart carries on through to the finish, gradually fading away until only the heat is left.

Like the original, the heat is strong if not sincere, carrying a different character because of the capsaicin.  The blood orange comes through brilliantly but the ginger is not quite so flamboyant, needing a bit of a boost.  However the result is another solid entry for Powell & Mahoney, a nice change of pace from the standard ginger beer.  There’s an elegance to it with its rich flavors and bright tartness, great for an afternoon in the sun or as a mixer in the evening.

Final Decision: Second Tier – Alluring

Purchased locally at: Total Wine. | Available online at: Powell & Mahoney

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But it wasn’t always about bottles.  Chicago Draft Style first appeared in kegs back in 2006 but generated so many requests for individual servings that a plan for bottling materialized.  Delivering them to their destination became the next obstacle.  Founder Bill Daker approached several beer distributors with zero luck so he did what had to be done.  He added some sales people to the team, bought a truck and drove the bottles anywhere they needed to go, which nowadays means all over Chicago and the surrounding area.

Those bottles are brown-glass, 12oz, softly curved long necks adorned with an unusually low-slung label.  The ginger beer label gets a golden background with a slightly metallic sheen.  Search lights scan the skies, framing the Willis Tower.  A retro look offers some personality.  The goal was to shout that this is a Chicago product and that can be counted as mission accomplished. 

The 190-calorie liquid flows from the bottle a rich amber color, with no cloudiness, and wafts a scent that’s softly sweet but also with a nose-prickling spiciness.  An easy sweetness greets the tongue first.  Then the ginger comes on accompanied by a crescendo of heat that adheres to the tongue and roof of the mouth.  The earthiness of the ginger presents itself before a sweet and spicy finish.  The heat sticks around, spreading to the lips and top of the throat.

The centerpiece of this ginger beer is the heat.  The amount of ginger flavor present doesn’t seem enough to produce this level of heat which then feels almost like a solo act because there’s not a similar intensity of sweetness either.  But it works.  The cumulative effect tastes pleasant and feels nice to drink, even though it can’t be called perfectly balanced.

Bearing the name Chicago makes this ginger beer a de facto representative of the Windy City.  It carries that mantle well.  It’s a solid take on a traditional formula and Chicagoans should be glad to have it.

Final Decision: Third Tier – Enjoyable

Purchased at: Beverages Direct (in 6-packs and 12-packs) | Also available online at: Specialty Sodas

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Introduced in 2016, the newest addition to the Boots line is this, the Lucky Ginger Brew.  It begins with carbonated water.  Added to that are “natural flavors” and a little phosphoric acid for tang.  Pure cane sugar does the work of sweetening and 170 calories are counted in the final product.

The container is a green-glass, 12-ounce, long-neck bottle with a quite busy label encircling it.  The logo sits high and defines the center; “Lucky Ginger Brew” is of course significant, appearing over ginger root, over ginger leaves, over a diamond pattern, over a sparkling golden liquid background.  As with all Boots bottles, there’s a bit of family history included.  Aunt Emma’s vintage visage runs down the right side of the label with just a little blurb describing her, the youngest of Boots Kristen’s sisters.

A honeyed sweetness nudges the tongue, followed by the emergence of basil notes.  Then a fire ignites in the mouth.  The ginger’s bite is significant, swarming the tongue and back of the mouth, sometimes rising up into the nose.  When it eases, the basil returns, having been temporarily shouted down by the insistence of the ginger. Soy joins in for a savory finish with the two flavors curiously reaching their peak intensity a second or two after the swallow.  The heat lingers on, even building with subsequent sips and easing its way down the throat.  Finishing the bottle, the mouth is left mildly stunned, like the feeling after overindulging on the salsa at a beloved cantina.

This admirable commitment to spiciness ultimately sits imbalanced, overpowering other flavors on the palette.  Ingredients can work together to produce a unified taste but here the fire competes (and wins) versus other, more understated contributions.  Those who seek and enjoy hefty helpings of heat should certainly take notice as this could fast become a favorite, but others who long to explore the nuances and progression of a ginger beer’s flavor could here find their desires thwarted.

Boots Beverages comes with a rich history it proudly celebrates with every bottle sold.  Becoming a part of that history means being memorable and Lucky Ginger Brew is definitely that.  While other ginger beers may be tasted and forgotten, Boots bounces around in the head long after that final sip.

Final Decision: Third Tier – Enjoyable

Purchased locally at: HEB | Online availability at Antiqology

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