How to Make Root Beer - an Easy Homemade Root Beer Recipe (2024)

Have you ever wondered how to make root beer? Or why it’s called root beer? Well, those little mysteries are unravelled for us: root beer is made of a complex combination of different roots. Learn how to make root beer from scratch with this simple recipe.

Supposedly, root beer was originally invented by Charles Hires, a pharmacist from Philidelphia who made many tonics from various roots and teas for health reasons. He made a version that was sold with the promise of purifying the blood and making cheeks rosy.

Nowadays, you can find root beer at just about any grocery store or restaurant. The more I’ve travelled, the more I see that root beer is a distinctively North American treat. We just can’t get enough of the unique, earthy drink. Since root beer has natural and garden-grown roots (ha!), it’s one of the best sweet drinks to make yourself.

If you love the drink, why not learn how to make root beer yourself? It’s not as hard as you may think.

This post will cover…

• What is Root Beer?
• Root Beer Ingredients
• How to Make Root Beer
• Ingredients:
• Make it!
• Frequently Asked Questions About Homemade Root Beer
• More Recipes to Try!

What is Root Beer?

The primary flavour you will recognize is sassafras, but many other roots come into play to make the famous beverage, like sarsaparilla, birch, wintergreen, licorice, and burdock. Together, they create a unique earthy taste.

In terms of soda, root beer reminds me of fall days. It’s sweet, full of rooty and distinct flavours, with notes of vanilla and brown sugar.

The more commercial root beers taste more syrupy than the classic flavours. Homemade root beers will have much more kick to them, especially when incorporating all the different roots.

In learning that root beer is just a combination of different roots, I was inspired to try my own version with ingredients found in the recipes that I thought would taste good together. I’ve made it many times now, and I think it is perfect!

Root Beer Ingredients

Root beer is a complex drink! To get such a unique flavour, you’re going to need a combination of the following ingredients:

• Ginger root: root beer tends to have a little spice to it thanks to ginger.
• Sarsaparilla: it has a slightly bitter flavour and is one of the root beer’s main profile notes.
• Sassafras: the other main component of root beer, it has a strong earthy taste with mild lemon notes. Modern commercial root beer no longer contains sassafras.
• Licorice root: unlike the candy, licorice root isn’t as pungent of a flavour. Instead, it’s mild and slightly bitter but hints at that distinct licorice flavour.
• Burdock root: one of the sweetest roots, burdock also has a mild nutty undertone and earthy taste.
• Mint leaves: some people note that root beer has a mild minty taste. While not the main flavour note, mint still makes its way through.
• Anise pod: anise has a similar taste to licorice and a natural sweetness.
• Dark brown sugar: brown sugar has molasses added to it, giving it an ultra-sweet and deep flavour that works well for root beer compared to white refined sugar.
• Vanilla extract: a hint of vanilla helps to offset all the bold root flavours and compliment the sweet aspects of the drink.

How to Make Root Beer

Learning how to make root beer is quite simple once you have sourced all your ingredients. Then, you make make it over and over again when you get that sweet root beer craving!

Ingredients

• 4 ½ cups water
• 1 large thumb of thinly sliced freshginger root
• 2 ½ tbsp sarsaparilla
• 2 ½ tbsp sassafras
• 2 ½ tbsp licorice root
• 1 ½ tbsp burdock root
• 1 tbsp dried mint leaves
• 1 star anise pod
• 4 cups dark brown sugar
• 1 tbsp real vanilla extract

Make it!

Combine all ingredients except sugar and vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a simmer for 30 minutes.

Stir in the sugar and vanilla until dissolved. Simmer on the lowest heat setting for another 30 minutes until the mixture is thicker and syrupy. Strain out all the bits, then cool.

Mix 1/2 cup chilled syrup with 1 ½ cups soda water (seltzer). Ensure that both the seltzer and the syrup are chilled, as the difference in temperature causes the eruption of fizz up and over your glass. Also, add syrup to soda, not the other way around.

I found the final drink incredibly flavourful, with all the complexity you would expect from having such diverse flavours mixed together and a creamy mouth feel.

I like adding as much or as little syrup as I want and controlling the sweetness, particularly when making a root beer float (which I have now done more times than I should)!

Frequently Asked Questions About Homemade Root Beer

More Recipes to Try

• Artisinal Herb-Infused Vinegar
• 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Dog Treats
• Mojito Mint Popsicles with Lemon and Honey
• Homemade Ginger Ale Syrup + Ginger Mint Lemonade Recipe