Barq's Root Beer

I can't believe I found Barq's Root Beer in a glass bottle. What a find. I think until now I've only ever seen it in cans and plastic bottles and have had it most of my life. Brothers, Edward and Gaston Barq founded Barq's Brothers Bottling Company in New Orleans in 1890. They were mostly known for their orange soda, Orangine, but also sold soda water. When Edward moved to Mississippi in 1897 he started a new company, the Biloxi Artesian Bottling Works. Recall from prior posts that this period in history saw a boom in bottling the waters from natural artesian sources. The exact date appears to be disputed, but sometime between 1898 and 1900 he introduced his root beer soft drink, simply called Barq's at the time. The Barq's company in Biloxi was sold by Edward's descendants in 1976 and began to be marketed more widely around the U.S. Many years of legal battles ensued among various Barq's family business entities. Coca-Cola has owned the Barq's brand since 2000.

Note that this bottle also has an older style of labeling, likely hand in hand with the fact that they have a throwback glass bottle. Labeling as far back as I can recall from my childhood is silver and black. As much as I enjoyed Barq's growing up I always disliked the silver and black because it resembled the Raiders team colors. It also has the embossed diamond pattern around the neck that was used many decades earlier. I love the vanilla scent. You can always tell from a sip of Barq's root beer what they mean by the slogan, "Barq's has bite" because there is a signature crispness in the finish that I always look for from any root beer I taste. This "bite" is often what I think my friends from the U.K. and Ireland are describing when they complain that root beer tastes "minty" and reminds them of the dentist. I never felt that way but I can understand what they are trying to get across. Just as expected, this bottle has the high level of carbonation you expect from them. Barq's is a solid root beer choice and I would always be willing to recommend it to someone that wants to try root beer for the first time.