Here’s another hard root beer folks! They seem to be all the rage these days, that rage seemingly starting with Not Your Father’s Root Beer and continuing with the beer under consideration today, Coney Island Hard Root Beer. Of course, Coney Island Hard Root Beer is a product of the Boston Beer Company, makers of the Samuel Adams line of beers. It’s not surprising they would want to jump on the hard root beer bandwagon, and look for more brewers to do the same (Anheuser Busch already has one in the works).
That said, is Boston Beer really bandwagon jumping? Probably not. They actually brewed a hard root beer all the way back in 2006: Samuel Adams 1790 Root Beer Brew. That was a one-off brew included in their “Brewer Patriot” collection and I’ve never seen it again. It remains the best hard root beer I’ve ever tasted.
From the label:
Coney Island Hard Root Beer is a new twist on an old favorite. With hints of vanilla, licorice and birch, this root beer will bring you back to the boardwalk. The gypsy should have predicted this. The most dignified beverage of days past, reimagined for your future self. The wooden planks under your feet and a hot dog in your hand; the only difference is that now you’re tall enough to ride the ride.
Coney Island Hard Root Beer has an alcohol content of 5.8% by volume. It does seem to run on the high side pricewise; I’ve seen it going for $9.99 and even $10.99 a six-pack at liquor stores and supermarkets. I paid $8.54 for a six-pack at Target.
Coney Island Hard Root Beer pours to a dark cola color with a large, short lived fizzy head formation and a very spicy vanilla and wintergreen nose. Taking a sip, I get more of those familiar root beer notes of licorice, vanilla, wintergreen and birch. The brew is sweet, more soda-like and less boozy than Not Your Father’s Root Beer, perhaps more boozy in the nose than in the palate. Overall, I prefer the Coney Island-it just seems to taste more like root beer to me.
To my taste, hard root beers are something I enjoy on occasion. I do enjoy root beer, but these are overly sweet to me. Judging them fairly, it’s always a question of how much do they taste like root beer, really, and how does one compare to others? By that criteria, Coney Island Root Beer is one of the best so far that I’ve tasted; I’d drink it again for sure that being the case.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft