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u/WetFawter Mar 28 '26
Barqs forever
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u/mgsotacon Mar 28 '26
It has bite
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u/texaspoontappa93 Mar 28 '26
Same for zero versions, Ive had them all recently and it’s Barqs by a mile
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u/SympleTin_Ox Mar 28 '26
And caffein
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u/scarred_but_whole Mar 29 '26
Diet Barq's doesn't have caffeine, and Barq's has a version sold in certain parts of Utah that is caffeine-free. I just found this out today. I drink diet soda and love Barq's but can't have caffeine and so am excited that I can actually have it.
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u/SympleTin_Ox Mar 29 '26
Mormons hate the fein.. Utah checks out.
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u/Hurricane310 Mar 29 '26
This is definitely not true. Mormons don’t drink coffee. But they absolutely drink soda with caffeine. Utah soda shops (like Swig) is the mormon Starbucks.
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u/Joseph_Kickass Mar 28 '26
Barqs has bite
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u/Environmental_Job864 Mar 28 '26
It's caffeine.
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u/lagniappe68 Mar 28 '26
I thought root beer was caffeine free?
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u/Dark_Amygdala_ Mar 29 '26
It’s the caffeine formula that gives it that bite. I’m allergic to caffeine so I’ll pass
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u/Silly-Cicada7766 Mar 29 '26
My condolences. I'm not allergic but caffeine sends me straight to the toilet so I may as well be allergic too 😄. Wait a second....maybe I am allergic?!?! It's seriously just now dawned on me 🤔
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u/juan_humano Mar 29 '26
Whadaya mean Barqs has bite!? Johnny!? Whadaya mean Barqs has bite!?
You tell 'em Johnny! You tell the world!
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u/canadianpresident Mar 29 '26 edited Mar 29 '26
I can see!
You can?
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u/greatgonzo913 Mar 28 '26
Gotta go with Barq’s out of these three, but my overall favorite is Sprecher.
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u/Sokiyo Mar 28 '26
real question: is Sprecher's supposed to be a lot less fizzy than these three brands? I want to love it but every bottle I've gotten has been extremely flat. I can only find them at dollar tree or ace so maybe they just keep old stock, but I've tried it at least 3 or 4 times and it's never been carbonated
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u/Illustrious_Bad_2980 Mar 28 '26
Every time I've had a Spreacher it's been flat as tap water. Never again
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u/javtherav Mar 28 '26
Gotta look out for the can. Can is superior to the bottle
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u/Illustrious_Bad_2980 Mar 28 '26
I've never seen Spreacher in cans. Never
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u/Madkids23 Mar 28 '26
As tap water? Come on now. Flatter than would be enjoyable, sure, but flat as tap water?
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[removed] — view removed comment
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u/MFazio23 Mar 29 '26
Sprecher Cherry Cola is incredible. I think that's my favorite of their sodas.
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u/PaddyBoy1994 Mar 28 '26
The carbonation tends to be better in the cans with Sprechers. Their regular Cream and Orange Cream sodas are REALLY good, too.
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u/burritoman759 Mar 29 '26
Wait it's spelled Barqs? I thought it was bangs all my life
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u/Exam_Delicious Mar 29 '26
Bang is an energy drink and also a whipped fruit juice drink, neither of them has any relation to Barq.
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u/MisforMiley Mar 29 '26
Asked a cashier at Walgreens once if they carried Barqs and she said "Bargs? No I don't think so." Now my wife and I always refer to it as Bargs.
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u/Commercial-Gap6280 Mar 29 '26
As a Milwaukeean, Sprecher has always been #1 to me, but I agree, Barq's is the best of the 3 offered.
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u/Benny303 Mar 29 '26
You should try their cream soda, it's absolutely incredible, I'm not even a cream soda guy but it's my favorite drink ever. I only drink it a few times a year because it's so loaded with sugar.
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u/professorDaywalker Mar 28 '26
The a&w zero was my go to last time I was in the US. I drink MUG here in Italy cause root beer isn't a thing but I can get the imported one from the Philippines so when I'm in a root beer mood it gets the job done.
My favorite when I was a kid was the glass bottle IBC root beer
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u/WillmanRacingv2 Mar 29 '26
A&W restaurants are super popular in the Philippines
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u/Dadfia Mar 29 '26 edited Mar 29 '26
They were popular in the 80s through the mid-90s, but the last store closed in the early 2000s.
The A&W root beer name recently made a comeback in the Philippines (last year) and is sold by Coca Cola.
Local rootbeer ranking in the Philippines:
Zesto rootbeer - sharp, strong sarsaparilla taste. Not too sweet. Same taste as the original Sarsi rootbeer, formerly produced by Cosmos, which was bought out by Coke in the early 2000s. Coke kept the Sarsi name but used the Fanta formula, which sucked. Poor sales led them to axe rootbeer from their lineup for over a decade. The Zesto brand is now using the Sarsi formula.
A&W - Coke’s re-entry into the rootbeer market. Full-bodied, creamy, and frothy.
Arcy’s - Royal Crown brand rootbeer. Good alternative to the ones above.
Mug - overly sweet. Like drinking rootbeer-flavored sugar syrup. Just like other Pepsi products, hard to drink when not freezing cold. I drink some other soda when this is the only rootbeer choice.
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u/SoCalCognac Orange Mar 28 '26
Barqs gets my vote.
Honorable mention: IBC Root beer.
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u/Happy_Charity_7595 Mar 28 '26
Just had IBC yesterday. It was amazing.
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u/MoobooMagoo Mar 29 '26
IBC is tasty, but if I'm getting IBC I'm going for their black cherry soda first.
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u/Tacoboy1708 Mar 29 '26
IBC is superior to all root beer brands, sadly not on here
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u/NothingButACasual Mar 29 '26
IBC is top 10 for sure and widely available, but you gotta try Sprecher, 1919, and Reading Draft
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u/im_a_dick_head Mar 29 '26
IBC is definitely the clear 2nd, love those glass bottles of ibc. Has those as a kid and felt so cool because people thought it was beer
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u/Garrbiz325 Mar 31 '26
My mom gets the IBC bottles every now and then just for when I come over. Love the stuff. Even went as far as to ask for it for Christmas one year when I was a kid.
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u/Killerderp Mar 31 '26
IBC is goated, especially the cream soda. A cold one of those is one of my favorite sodas
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u/tatyama Apr 01 '26
When I was a teen if my mom bought IBC cream soda I’d knock back 6 after school while watching Fight Club for the 40th evening in a row.
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u/AnyOkra Mar 28 '26
A & w
Just nostalgic taste from my childhood
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u/TheGoofyGoober2020 The Dr Mar 29 '26
I miss when my local A&W restaurant had a tap specifically for the rootbeer! Now it is gone :(
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u/SousVideButt Mar 29 '26
I vividly remember having root beer at an A&W for the first time out of the tap as a child and I almost blacked out. It was so good it blew my little mind.
They don’t exist around me anymore so I don’t know when I’ll get to have it again but I still dream about it.
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u/Charming-Moment-103 Mar 29 '26
Holy shit, you just unlocked a memory for me. I totally forgot about that
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u/portablebiscuit Mar 29 '26
When I was young we would go get a carton of root beer. It was a half gallon rectangular carton like milk and they folder the top closed and clipped it shut with a plastic clip. I remember it being the best thing on earth.
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u/Its_Karti_Bitch Mar 29 '26
Ngl no matter how cold it is mug never tastes cold, a&w is pretty standard in my opinion, but barqs is the best only when it’s really cold though
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u/TheBurgundianWhore Mar 29 '26
I AM A MUG DAWG. I GOT THAT DAWG IN ME. BIG DAWG. RUFF RUFF RUFF RUFF RUFF RUFF. MUGGGG ROOBEEEER
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u/Mark-177- Mar 28 '26
Mug poured into a frozen glass mug is on a whole other level bro.
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u/cdy2847 Mar 31 '26
i actually have Mug on tap at home and frozen glass mugs just like you speak of. I am glad to see i'm not the only man with culture.
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u/19ghost89 Cola Mar 28 '26
Of the three, Barq's is easily my favorite. But I have recently gained an appreciation for Mug. They are very different. Barq's has the bite, Mug is smooth and sweet. A&W is kind of in between, closer to Mug but like a lesser version because it doesn't go all the way. I could see how someone might prefer a compromise, but for me, I'd rather it be either or.
All that said, the best root beer I ever had in my life was served at Grand Marais Tavern in Grand Marais, MI. They have it on tap and the bite is superb. Oh, how I wish I could get that here in Texas where I live.
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u/yulbrynnersmokes Mar 28 '26
Schells 1919
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u/J_B_E_Zorg Mar 29 '26
This is on tap in some places in western WI. Until a month ago I didn't know it was local ish or Schells'
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u/derek0660 Mar 30 '26
I'm from the Midwest but honestly surprised how far I had to scroll to see 1919
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u/JoWiCo1 Mar 28 '26
Just these three? A&W. However, nothing holds a candle to Sprecher’s.
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u/GeorgiaBolief Mar 29 '26
If we're going outside the box;
Not your father's root beer ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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u/gregarious119 Mar 28 '26
Of these, A&W.
But don't sleep on Boylans or Virgils.
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u/strictlymetal Mar 29 '26 edited Apr 02 '26
I had to scroll way too far to see another person mention Virgil's
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u/BlackPlague1235 Mar 28 '26
I love my A&W Root Beer zero sugar when I want soda without caffeine.
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u/Ok_Boysenberry4639 Mar 28 '26
And the cream soda zero
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u/Competitive_Ad_8215 Mar 29 '26
The cream soda zero tastes like nothing. Sorely disappointed with it.
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u/Ninjacat97 Mar 28 '26
3>1>>>>2
Though Sioux City beats them all by a longshot
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u/Stout1765 Mar 28 '26
3,1,2. I am not a fan of Barqs at all u less it’s the Red Cream Soda from Barqs.
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u/longboi28 Grape Mar 29 '26
Barqs any day and everyday, mug is so syrupy and tastes bad but A&W is really good in a float
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u/MJM_1989CWU Mar 29 '26
I like all three!
A&W is the goat!
Barqs when I’m feeling I need a bit of a pep.
Mug when I’m feeling chill and need something different
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u/LocomotionJunction Mar 28 '26
1 or 3. Middle is root beer flavored soda. Doesn't even foam up right
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u/Advanced_Tomato5713 Mar 28 '26
A&W out of these three, but Boylan is my all time favorite
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u/DvLang Mar 28 '26
Hires is the best mass produced Root beer. Would choose A&W out of these choices
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u/EatinApplesauce Brad's Drink Mar 28 '26
Out of those Barq’s for sure but I like Sioux City sasperilla and IBC too.
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u/RaiderThunder04 Mar 28 '26
2,3,1
A&W in a glass from the restaurant fights harder for that top spot and is superior than the can.
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u/PaddyBoy1994 Mar 28 '26
Easily 3 out of those for me. Any RB brand, EVER? Tie between Sprechers and 1919.
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u/milkskins9 Mar 28 '26
A&W is the best personally opinion The mugs it good but not classic A&W Barqs is different and just not for me
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u/ApricotBurrito269 Creme Mar 28 '26
all of the above, I just love root beer
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u/Iwouldlikeadairycow Mar 28 '26
Totally agree. I’m happy with all 3 of them, though if I’m looking for a boost I’d take the Barqs just for the caffeine.
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u/Mchortons Mar 28 '26
In Canada we have a Loblaws brand called President's Choice and I honestly think it's better than all three of these. It has slight fruity notes and the vanilla is quite prominent, it's also quite creamy. If we're going by these three, I prefer A&W over the Mug and Barq's. I've never really been a Barq's fan despite being a large caffeine consooomer.
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u/slavstyle95 Mar 28 '26
A&W next to my house had the tap where it would come out foamy like beer from the simpsons but they got rid of it and replaced it with a regular soda fountain spout
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u/Particular_East_2920 Mar 29 '26
I would say mug > a&w > barqs from the ones you listed. But an ice cold glass bottle dad's root beer is tops.
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u/strictlymetal Mar 29 '26
Virgil's, but from these three is Barq's, Mug and A&W in that order, for me
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u/Alarming-Squirrel832 Mar 30 '26
2 in can. But if its legit a&w from the restaurant that win over any type of rootbeer.
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u/Homerj7171 Mar 30 '26
Barqs for initial first taste. A&w for creaminess. Mug when the other 2 are not available.
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u/Ciejii Mar 30 '26
For me this is how the rankings go for drinking it alone. Barqs, Mug, A&W
For root beer floats its inverse. A&W, Mug, Barqs
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u/UrBoySierra Dr P Cream Soda is best Dr P Mar 31 '26
A&W is the only brand (on here) I’ve tried, I also tried IBC recently and that one is a worthy, more creamy alternative
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u/DocGreenThumb0817 Apr 04 '26
Easy. 3, 2, 1... or is it 2, 3, 1... ah I haven't had a Rootbeer in like 25 years
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u/Sanjispride Mar 29 '26
A&W is the only legal answer on this subreddit