Stobborn Root Beer (#52 tested rated 4.5 out of 12)

This brew is a craft beverage from Pepsi Co., which my first thought was over commercialized processing. It was introduced in late 2015, so there are very few reviews on this beverage. 

To spread its tagline, "IT'S GOOD TO BE STUBBORN™," the brand has partnered with Robert Kirk man, creator and executive producer of "The Walking Dead" and "Outcast," and Skybound Entertainment to bring a new campaign to life.

STUBBORN root beer is made with Fair Trade Certified Cane Sugar and Stevia. Therefore, this is a lower calorie beverage at 1000 calories.  It is made with natural flavors and without High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), artificial sweeteners, and Azo Dyes.

So it is time for the review. (Click here for information on the rating criteria and a table of all the root beer tested or to be tested.)

Ingredients: Carbonated Water, Sugar, Caramel Color, Natural Flavor, Sodium Benzoate (Preserves Freshness), Phosphoric Acid, Purified Stevia Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, Calcium Disodium Edta (To Protect Flavor)

Nutrition 12 oz serving (from the bottle)

100 Calories

85 mg Sodium.

27 g (9%) of Daily Carbohydrates

0 mg Caffeine

Aroma and Flavor – 1.5 out of 3 mugs

My first impression was HOLY COW, there is 85 mg of sodium.  This would not surprise me coming from Pepsi.  Anything to increase cravings to drink more. 

The opening was a pleasure.  It had a real rooty aroma, actually really pronounced.  At first drink, I understood why.  For some reason a birch beer has a stronger aroma.  This has more characteristics of a birch beer than root beer.  Typically Birch beer is made from oil distilled from the sap of birch trees, and that makes for the dry taste.

The first drink solidified my thoughts of this being mild carbonation, dry and low sweetener flavor.  It left my mouth quite dry. Not sure if that is from the higher amount of sodium or some other ingredient.  The more I consumed the beverage, my mouth grew increasingly dry.  This scored a little higher than I really believe it would deserve, but it is a blend that is middle of the road.

Head –0.5 out of 3 mugs  

What, there is foam here?  Sorry I blinked so I tried a second time.  There it is but like magic, it was gone.      

Zip – 1.25 out of 3 mugs  

This was rather dry and uneventful.  I could taste the stevia, which I am familiar with as I occasionally use stevia in mineral water.  This is not far from that taste, if the carbonation was lower.  This beverage is on the lower side of carbonation.

Post Consumption Impression – 1.25 out of 3 mugs  

This is worth a try if you like a dry, lower calorie beverage with stevia.  This is not overall to my liking.  I would not turn it down for a free bottle, but would spend money for so many other brews.

 

Would I recommend this at 4.5 out of 12 mugs?

May, at best.  If you like a dry beverage that is more like a birch beer, give it a try.