Homemade Root Beer

If you're a root beer lover, you may be wondering if this tasty treat can be made at home. Answer is, of course! The easiest way would be to use a seltzer maker and purchase from sodastream or other provider a root beer syrup that can be mixed into your seltzer. A couple squirts of CO2, then the syrup, some light mixing and voila! Delicious root beer ready to pour.

But we understand that some may want to be even more elemental in how they go about this and make their favorite drink from even more basic ingredients. For those seeking this type of authenticity, we offer these instructions. It requires a 2 liter bottle, water, some yeast, some root beer concentrate (available at your local grocery) and sugar. This is what you do:

1. Add 1 cup of sugar to the 2 liter bottle.
2. Add 1/4 teaspoon of baking yeast.
3. Add 1 tablespoon of root beer extract.
4. Fill bottle halfway with filtered water, and swirl to dissolve the mixture.
5. Fill rest of the bottle, leaving some room at the top.
6. Screw cap tightly and shake well to fully dissolve and distribute mixture.
7. Let bottle sit at room temperature for three days until bottle is hard with accumulated gas.
8. Chill and serve.

That's it. Note that, unlike store-bought root beer, this version will have residiual alcohol content - a mere 0.5%. So nothing to be worried about from the standpoint of trying to avoid inebriation, but if you are not allowed to have any alcohol for medical reasons, something to consider.

Of course, when you make it at home, you're the boss. You can experiment with adding a touch more extract or an additional spoonful of sugar. You can try mixing in raw sugar, some brown or even molasses. If you want to be really adventurous, try sprinkling in some chai tea spices for a little kick. It's a great way to draw out the little bit of mad scientist in you while you create a great, refreshing American classic at minimal cost.

So get on with it already!