Not Your Father's Vanilla Cream Ale

Over the course of the 2 years I've been writing this blog, there is one review I wish I could get back. I'm not saying I was necessarily wrong with that particular review, I just think I was blinded by the excitement of what the product was. The review I am speaking of is my glowing assessment of Not Your Father's Root Beer. To be clear I do like Not Your Father's Root Beer, I just no longer think it is the 4.5/5 beer I rated it at the time. Since then I have found it to be a ridiculously inconsistent beverage that seems more like a mixed drink than an ale. At the time, I think I gave it that rating because I had never had anything quite like it before. It was authentic-tasting alcoholic root beer that hit the exact flavor profile I wanted it to. Before I tried that beverage I, like many others have tried to add liquor to root beer with mixed results. I can safely say that no matter how many times I've tried, I've never quite been able to attain the successful flavor that Not Your Father's Root Beer achieved. To sum it all up, at the time I reviewed NYFRB I was too caught up in the exciting concept that my favorite childhood beverage could now get me drunk to properly see it for what it was. Still, I have no intention of changing that review. What's done is done and it's time to move on. I feel this way because I am currently staring at a glass of Not Your Father's Vanilla Cream Ale, about to find my redemption.

Arriving with a lot less fanfare, along with the very low ABV of 4.1%, Not Your Father's Vanilla Cream Ale pours exactly like cream soda. It's copper with a fizzy white head that fades quickly. The aroma is interesting. It almost smells like cream soda. Lots of vanilla stands out but there is a rather unpleasant sourness to it as well, that reminds of old whipped cream. The taste is very similar to the aroma. While Not Your Father's Root Beer tastes like authentic root beer with a slightly boozy finish, this tastes like sour cream soda. Each sip gets more and more unpleasant. There also seems to be a repulsive aftertaste that continues to get worse with each sip. The best way to describe it is being reminiscent of overripe fruit. The alcohol stands out in the aftertaste as well, which is strange since it has less alcohol than a Bud Light. To put it simply, this is poorly crafted and nothing works here.

I was hoping this review would look more like what I wanted the Not Your Father's Root Beer review to look like if I wrote it today. I was hoping to say this was a nice beverage that is definitely worth your time and money. Instead I find it to be one of the worst beverages(don't want to call it beer) I have had since starting these reviews. This is a failure on every level, but what should I have really expected? This seems more like a cash grab, capitalizing on the success of NYFRB, than an attempt at making a successful adult beverage. Oh well, down the drain it goes.

Overall I would rate Not Your Father's Vanilla Cream Ale a 0.5/5. It tastes more like a mixed drink made with cheap vanilla vodka and spoiled whipped cream than a beer. It's gross.


Rating Scale:
1 - Repugnant and undrinkable
2 - Acceptable but forgettable
3 - Good, worth a purchase
4 - Excellent, a step above the norm
5 - Truly exceptional　

To discuss this blog or all things beer follow me on Twitter & Untappd at@ACraftyLook

For more beer reviews go to: http://acraftylook.blogspot.com/

Thanks for reading. Sláinte!

Not Your Father's Root Beer

From the moment I heard that Not Your Father's Root Beer was getting distribution in New York, I became very excited. The idea of an alcoholic root beer, while not uncommon, was something I had never seen, much less had the chance to try. So one day as I was reading the morning newspaper(Facebook news feed), I saw it was on sale locally. At that point I jumped out of bed and headed to the store. While driving there I started to have doubts about Not Your Father's Root Beer. What if this wasn't as good as its reputation? What if it tasted more like the awful Jack Daniel's Hard Cola I thought was such a good idea so long ago? What if this is just another “beer” that arrived with a lot of hype and ended up being a gigantic let down? My concerns seemed to vanish immediately as soon as I drove into the parking lot and went into the store. Two minutes later I walked out with a huge smile on my face, 8 bottles and a desire for it to be 5 o'clock somewhere. Several hours later, the time to try my first alcoholic root beer arrived and I was not disappointed.

Not Your Father's Root Beer pours very similar to root beer. It is very dark brown with a light fizzy head that dissipates quickly. The aroma in fact is reminiscent of an old fashion style root beer. It is candy sweet with heavy vanilla, along with anise and clove. The flavor matches the aroma and it is fantastic. The flavor of Not Your Father's Root Beer tastes pretty much exactly like an old fashioned root beer. The only noticeable difference is there is a slight spice and alcohol burn in the finish. While this is truly nitpicking(that's what I do here) the flavor of the alcohol seems to vary per sip. It can go from barely noticeable to an almost mixed drink-like finish. At only 5.9% I feel this should not be case and would have preferred it was masked slightly better. Other than that, this is a fantastic root beer that exceeded every expectation I had for it. I see this being a fixture in my refrigerator for the foreseeable future.

Overall I would rate Not Your Father's Root Beer a 4.5/5. If you are a fan of root beer, this is for you. If you are not a fan of root beer then ignore this review completely.



Rating Scale:
1 - Repugnant and undrinkable
2 - Acceptable but forgettable
3 - Good, worth a purchase
4 - Excellent, a step above the norm
5 - Truly exceptional　

To discuss this blog or all things beer follow me on Twitter & Untappd at @ACraftyLook

For more beer reviews go to: http://acraftylook.blogspot.com/

Thanks for reading. Sláinte!