A Milwaukee staple for nearly 30 years, Sprecher Brewing Co. has been well known for its beers and gourmet sodas. However, they’ve recently blurred the line between the two and released their own hard root beer. Never had hard root beer before? That’s because it’s pretty tough to get it right.
“When you’re making beer, you’re using ingredients that make the process very easy, but when you try to replicate that process using the different ingredients in root beer, the science isn’t nearly so friendly,” said Jeff Hamilton, Sprecher President.
It took the company years to get the recipe right, but if it’s current “Sold Out” status is any indication of their success, we’re pretty sure they nailed it. Don’t worry, though – they’re working hard to get the new brew out on shelves ASAP.
Hamilton says their recipe has more complexity than most sugary malt beverages, with bold, bourbon-like flavor notes aimed at the adult palette. This almost means that it’s in its own category, separate from beer, and malt beverages – sounds delicious.
They also wanted to make sure kids couldn’t mistake the 5% alcohol drink for their own root beer, so the hard root beer bottles look different and come in different sizes. It’s only sold in bottles, so no kids will accidentally get it on draft, either.
Any home brewers out there ever made hard root beer? We’d love to hear more about the process and whether or not you found it difficult.