Crater Lake root beer review

This Crater Lake Soda made root beer has a strong flavour yet not harsh like others with a soft carbonation. Caffeine free which is a bonus for school night drinking. Gluten free too for those on a wheat free diet or celiacs. This is definitely a top 10 root beer but I like mine with a little depth.

Checking out their company website and worryingly all its content is about 3-4 years out of date. This is a worrying trend on a lot of US-made root beer websites and perhaps indicating a flat market?

Other reviewers across the pond also rated it above average:

• Eric's Gourmet Root Beer said it was 'pretty weak but still not smooth going down'
• Cosmos root beer reviews said it 'definitely didn't offend me so bad that i wouldn't try it again.'

Another Cyber Candy purchase from their Brighton shop. I rate this Oregon root beer:

8/10

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Jack Black's Dead Red Root Beer review

How could I not buy this bottle of Jack Black's Dead Red root beer!? Anything with pirates will always win and they've gone 'overboard' with the packaging. Like all imported US root beers this was quite a few pieces of eight to buy. This brew also boasts added caffeine and Brazilian guarana so will revive the deadest of scurvy seafolk. Love the inside bottle cap warning which states: Stay away from crack; drink Jack Black. Shame this has nothing to do with School of Rock front man, Jack Black.

Is she sailing or failing?
I'm not too sure about the taste to be honest. (Adopt a pirate accent for maximum understanding) There be root beer in sight when you take a dip but once on board its given the heave-ho. If you landlubbers like liquorice then swing into port and pick up this bottle of rum. However, its after-taste for us old seadogs may be too much after one grog.

The slogan suggests that "Once you've had jack black you'll never go back!" - well, I'd rephrase this to "Once you've had jack black you'll probably not go back and drink something cheaper and tastier instead" - but that wouldn't really fit on the bottle. Saying that though there's always benefit to the ability of keeping that unpatched eye awake.

If you want a decent caffeinated root beer then check out Bawls which I reviewed earlier in the month.

Bought from the Covent Garden London store of Cyber Candy at £1.79. I rate this:

6/10

Bawls Guarana Root Beer review

Love the kinky, sex toy bottle design which also doubles as a Dalek eunuch. The pimpled bottle would also assist with grip, though I have never had the problem of root beer slippage.

I took this root beer to a party where I was the designated driver. On the night I had one normal alcoholic drink, a Red Bull and this Bawls Root Beer. The result was a very good night and still buzzing until 3am so the combination for stimulation worked.

The taste was not a disappointment. It was a good, well-defined and natural root beer taste and no hint of any other flavours. It went down smooth too leaving you want more. The only disappointment was that it came in under-sized bottles i.e. about 50ml less than non-caffeinated root beers.

296ml bottle bought from Cyber Candy's website. I rate this super-charged root beer:

8/10