I like root beer. Perhaps a reason for that is the nostalgia. For me, it brings back memories of childhood birthday parties at Chuck E. Cheese and late night sleepovers. Root beer is smooth and distinct to my palate—milder than the heavily-carbonated burn that a cola packs.

It is National Root Beer Day and we are celebrating at my house!

I just like the root beer flavor in general. Give me root beer-flavored Jelly Bellies, hard candy, or even cotton candy and I will gladly enjoy it. Just don’t give me a root beer milkshake—which happens to be my dad’s favorite shake flavor—because if I am drinking something that tastes like root beer, I want it to be the real thing.

There is another reason why I don’t like root beer milkshakes: root beer and ice cream don’t go together well. Yes, I realize what I am conveying…root beer floats are worthless! But if you have read this blog for any length of time, my opinion isn’t a revelation to you. I have written about it too many times to link all the instances I have expressed my dislike for root beer floats. Sorry, but root beer doesn’t bring out the best in ice cream and the ice cream negatively alters the taste of root beer.

Sloan really enjoyed her first ever root beer float in 2021. However, I strongly dislike them.

But wait, this is supposed to be a celebration of root beer, so let me get back on track. I am down for most any type of root beer. I enjoy the gold standard of A&W, the bougieness of Henry Weinhard’s, the bite that comes with Barq’s, and even the faint flatness of generic root beers. However, I have yet to pull off what my good friend has done on a couple occasions by conducting the ultimate root beer taste test. I hope to eventually follow his lead and do something like I did for lemon-lime sodas. If I do, you better believe that I will blog about it.

My wife hates root beer but she still let me buy some to store in the refrigerator for tonight. If you also happen to have a can or bottle at home, make sure to make a toast on this National Root Beer Day. Don’t Blink.