Wild Bill's Root Beer

Well here we are. The world on fire. Our empire crumbling. Embroiled in yet another endless foreign war. Our leadership shirking all accountability or even minor attempt to appear to be serving the common man. On the brink of a technological revolution that will completely up end our society with no safe guards or consideration for the majority of citizens.  Being sold literal poison to eat in every grocery store at an ever increasing cost. Our futures squandered for absolutely nothing in return. Everything of value we have struggled to obtain in our lives seemingly slipping through our fingers like sand, while those without are evermore reminded that they never did or will even have a chance. Are we forsaken? Are we cursed? Do we deserve this? And on top of everything, my best friend lies in the ground, cut down in the prime of his life by cancer. What even is this life? What can bring any solace? Maybe a small respite from the onslaught of tyranny and turmoil we all face in the form of a craft root beer in a tall can? Can this be the sweet relief we all need right now?
The answer is simple...

Nope. Not even close.

Wild Bills's Craft Beverage Co. was founded in 2002 in Millington, NJ. Or at least that is where they currently operate from. It began as a food truck of sorts, a mobile craft soda wagon traveling from event to event. State fairs and festivals, conventions, motorcycle rallies... you name it, they went there, slinging several classic and a few signature flavors of soda, including this root beer. The company was founded by and is currently run by veterans of the US armed services. The website touts nostalgia in every can. The classic soda flavors of a bygone era, recreated in our modern times. They promise hope, inspiration and lasting experiences for those who come to partake of their sodas. 

These sodas only come in 12 oz tall aluminum cans. They are wrapped with a plastic/vinyl type label that looks to be slipped over and then heat shrunk over the form of the can. It has a little cowboy on a buckin' bronco near the bottom of the can. Other than that, it's mostly just a bunch of text. Not terrible, but rather "homemade" looking. Regarding the taste, the soaring expectations set by the website descriptions are grossly exaggerated. In reality, the soda falls fairly flat, and that's not just a commentary on the stunning lack of carbonation. The root beer flavor is very thin. It's quite watered down. The label promises notes of vanilla, juniper and licorice, all sweetened with pure cane sugar. I gotta say, the actual taste doesn't deliver on those flavors. It's not that it tastes bad, it's that it barely tastes like anything. The sweetness of the cane sugar cuts through the most. I get a very slight hint of licorice and even less of a vanilla taste. Other than that, the base root beer flavor takes a back seat in what i hoped to be a more forward facing craft soda. 

My official review is that Will Bill's Root Beer gets 4 (four) IBCs. It's a worthy score for a rather scathing review. I truly wasn't hoping for much. Most craft sodas seem to fall short just due to the choke hold the big dogs have on the soda distribution game. But given how everything around us just seems to be getting worse while we have no recourse to demand something better, i was hoping this was going to be a bright light in a ocean of blackness. Turns out it was just a dim glimmer that fizzles out far too fast. 

Everything sucks right now.