Root Beer Taste Test

The root beer I made turned out...okay.  I took it and a bucket of ice cream to Torts class last week when we were supposed to get our practice exams back.  I figured we would all feel better about the fact that the highest grade was a 36 (out of 100...yup the person with highest grade got a 36% and let me tell you that is sure wasn't me...thank the lord for the curve) if there was sugar involved.

The Tort Beer Floats were a hit with the class, but I wasn't super thrilled with the way the soda itself turned out.  First, it exploded all over me when I tried to open it...I think that means I let it ferment too long.  Also, it was overly yeasty.  Add some eau du hops and it would be reminiscence of our childhood trips to the Coors plant in Colorado (yea, some kids went to Disney Land, but that isn't how my family rolls).  Finally, it was EXTREMELY root beery.  Like, bathe-in-a-vat-of-melted-root-beer-barrel-candies strong.  Cough-syrup-disguising-itself-as-a-non-alcoholic-beverage strong.  Gonna have to figure out if it is how much extract I used or just the brand of extract.

I'm going to look around for a different recipe and then try again.  Will report back.  In the mean time, I have a sad 1/4 of a bottle of root beer left in my fridge if you want it...

One Bottle of Pop, Two Bottle of Pop

I could be doing my homework or looking for a summer job or something.*  Instead I'm picking up a new hobby.

Making Root Beer!!!

I found this recipe on-line and got it in my head that I wanted homemade root beer to add to my homemade ice cream to make home made root beer floats.  A law student friend went to great lengths to find the necessary Zataran's root beer extract (how do they not sell that at the grocery store?).

You just add sugar, yeast and the root beer extract together.

Shake to mix

Add some water.

Shake some more to mix it up.

Then you fill it full of water and let it sit for several days for the yeast to ferment the sugar.  Will do the taste-test next week and let you know how it goes.  In the mean time...

Look at my jugs!...heh, my jugs are on the internet...

------------
*November 1st was the first day that law schools can talk to their first year students about finding summer jobs.  It feels early to be thinking about plans for next summer already, but apparently it isn't if you want a good (read: paid) job.