Row Hard Root Beer
Weston Brewing Company & O'Malley's Pub

Row Hard Root BeerRow Hard Root Beer
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From:
Weston Brewing Company & O'Malley's Pub
 
Missouri, United States
Style:
Herb and Spice Beer
ABV:
6.7%
Score:
78
Avg:
3.39 | pDev: 25.96%
Reviews:
24
Ratings:
78
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 03, 2019
Added:
Mar 21, 2015
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  27
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by AGoodStout:
Photo of AGoodStout
Rated by AGoodStout from Kansas

4.33/5  rDev +27.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

Aug 09, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of KermitTheeFrog
Reviewed by KermitTheeFrog from Kansas

1.34/5  rDev -60.5%
look: 5 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1
I'm not going to sugar coat it. This beer tastes like a fart.
I have had hard root beers from many other competitors, and they all range from 3-5 in my mind, but this is God Awful. I really hope this particular beer was just messed up (i did a mix-a-six) so no one else had to deal with what Im dealing with. I hate wasting beer, but I can't even pinpoint what's wrong. It doesn't smell, taste or feel like either a beer OR root beer. I made an account just to rate this beer so I can warn unknowing ppl. The smell is way off from anything I've ever smelled, but no idea what it is. The feel is a soda with a ridiculous taste combo, and the taste is horrific. The look is a 5/5, marketing did a damn good job on the can, and the beer itself LOOKS great.
Im not willing to waste the money to see if this was a one-off. But, if anyone from Weston Brewing wants to contact me or whatever, my opinion stays the same until then. I would rather eat a raw onion than keep the lingering taste in my mouth. It's been 15 minutes, and my mouth tastes like I've eaten raw beef.
Mar 03, 2019
 
Rated: 3.83 by AxlSkull from France

Sep 07, 2018
Photo of mvanaskie13
Reviewed by mvanaskie13 from Pennsylvania

3.23/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Poured into a narrow pint glass: dark brown, quick effervescent head that dissipates immediately - the quick dissipation reminds of soda, not beer; no head, no lacing.

Smell is spicy, with prominent root/sarsparilla like notes and birch beer like sharpness; vanilla, ginger, maybe touch of cinnamon.

Taste is similar with big spice component, flavors of vanilla, ginger, mint, roots, sarsparilla, then thin sticky sweetness with no malt character.

Mouthfeel is spicy, dry, then stickingly sweet in the lingering presence.

Overall - this beverage has potential as the spice profile is excellent, but the the lack of barley hurts its depth and presence. i poured some brown ale into to thin out the sweetness.
Jun 16, 2017
Photo of ImbibingInOmaha
Reviewed by ImbibingInOmaha from Nebraska

1.15/5  rDev -66.1%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1
This might be the worst thing I have ever tasted. This is not beer, its a soft drink. Reminds me of early college, mixing $6 vodka and whatever soda happened to be laying around at the time. Honestly this makes me long for Karkov mixed with koolaid powder.

Look - Root beer colored, molasses brown

Smell - sugar and root beer. A bit of alcohol, but no botanicals. Nothing medicinal like a good root beer.

Taste - Horrible. I forgot it was meant to be root beer. Like a marshmallow peep dipped in a cotton candy machine. After drinking this horrible soda it becomes exceedingly obvious you've had something alcoholic.

Feel - It is soda

Overall - A friend brought this over as a laugh and I wish it even achieved that. This is not a drink for adults.
Apr 12, 2017
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

3.78/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
I CAN hardly CANtain my surprise & excitement at finding this (admittedly hard) root beer listed on this site! I almost simply Crack!ed it open without giving it another thought. I really must be more diligent about these things, I suppose.

From the CAN: "Root Sellers (tm) Formidable Fermentables"; "Brewed with Botanicals, Molasses & Pure C[AN]e Sugar"; "Root Beer is a quintessentially Ameri[CAN] beverage first brewed by colonists using domestic roots, herbs, and spices. These historic small beers did not contain much alcohol. Root Sellers has created a BIG root beer with an alcohol [CAN]tent that pays homage to its roots ... Yes, it is great with ice cream. [undersigned] Greg & Pat"; "No Wheat, No Barley, No Gluten ... You're Welcome!"; "It's A Jolly Good Day For A Boat Flight!"

My first Crack! & Glug of a CAN in a while & I was anxious. My Glug, while not inverted, was pretty aggro & briefly raised two fingers of fizzy, foamy, light-tan head that quickly reduced to wisps. Color was Very Dark Brown to Black/Opaque(SRM = > 34, < 44) with garnet highlights. Mouthfeel was on the thin side, not precisely watery, but pretty close. Nose smelled like Pennsylvania Dutch Birch Beer, a local pop that I drank as a kid and had some again in the summer of 2015. Commercial Root Beer pop tends to be more sweet while Birch Beer pop is more spicy. This had a light spiciness, like cinnamon and ginger and the molasses (treacle) gave it a slight bitterness while I would guess that vanilla was also present. I could have easily identified it as a type of root beer if it had been blindly served to me, but I would probably identified it as one of the "off" brands, like Dad's or PA Dutch as opposed to the national brands like Hire's and A&W, which tend to be cloyingly sweet. This was nicely spicy, giving it a semi-dry finish. That said, it was still a bit sweet for my taste. I am not a big fan of ice cream, either, so no float in my future, but if anyone tries that experiment, I would like to hear/read their thoughts afterwards.
Dec 24, 2016
Photo of chilifirebrick
Reviewed by chilifirebrick from Missouri

5/5  rDev +47.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Just how a handcrafted rootbeer should be! If you took the brewery tour you will find out that this is hand crafted from genuine root-beer (sarsaparilla) and pure cane sugar liquor with additional molasses.
The flavor is just as perfect as an old fashioned root-beer barrel and just sweet as can possibly be yet with a great alcohol content. Perfectly balanced and refreshing. Clarity is similar to that of root-beer candy. I have tried several of the mass marketed so called hard root-beers from the store and they are all made with artificial flavorings so none can really compare to this! Perfect for a root-beer float treat in a large frosty mug!
Dec 04, 2016
Photo of Exonumia
Reviewed by Exonumia from Illinois

1.06/5  rDev -68.7%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1
First, this is NOT a SOFT Drink, as some have said. This is ALCOHOLIC Root Beer.

Smelled bad, tasted bad, I could not drink it, and poured out most of it. I love root beer, but this was just not for me.

Rich
Oct 11, 2016
Photo of everyhumanist
Reviewed by everyhumanist from Oregon

1.9/5  rDev -44%
look: 1.75 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5
Very sweet root beer taste at first, but overwhelmed by horrible aftertaste of cheap alcohol, reminiscent of Four Loko. Purchased a four pack of 16 ounce cans for $2 on clearance, and even at that price, I don't know if I would buy this again.
Apr 11, 2016
 
Rated: 3.27 by kkazemi from North Carolina

Apr 03, 2016
 
Rated: 3.25 by XmnwildX12 from Minnesota

Mar 21, 2016
Photo of RonaldTheriot
Reviewed by RonaldTheriot from Louisiana

1.71/5  rDev -49.6%
look: 1.75 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.75 | overall: 1.75
Row Hard has a thick, frothy, beige, quickly-dissipating head, a bubbly, dark-brown appearance, and no lacing left behind. The aroma is of an initial burst of root beer, and then, nothing, really. Taste is of sweet, sugary, flavorings, cane syrup, and cheap wine (Wild Irish Rose?). Mouthfeel is medium and semi-syrupy. The finish is thirst-inducing, making the drinker crave water.

RJT
Jan 26, 2016
 
Rated: 3.61 by Modernrickk from California

Jan 25, 2016
 
Rated: 3.88 by aratcliffe from Kansas

Jan 23, 2016
 
Rated: 3.39 by nicksamuelson from North Dakota

Jan 23, 2016
 
Rated: 3.6 by beardown

Jan 21, 2016
Photo of CMIKEHUNT
Reviewed by CMIKEHUNT from New York

5/5  rDev +47.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Flipping great .. Better than not your father's root beer.. Better than Coney island. Better than best damn root beer.
The best of all.
Duh no hops.. No malt. Really?.. Why would ppl rate that?
It's root beer A SOFT DRINK . What is wrong with ppl. Def the best near beer I've had.
Excellent hard root beer out there
Jan 12, 2016
 
Rated: 3.5 by deonreds from New York

Jan 01, 2016
Photo of jooler
Rated by jooler from California

4.15/5  rDev +22.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This is pretty damn good. Great look and smell. Taste is sweet but alcoholic. At 6.7% that is to be expected.
Dec 31, 2015
Photo of Steven_James
Rated by Steven_James from Indiana

4.06/5  rDev +19.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Those of us with Celiac Disease are grateful for the omission of barley. A great alternative to Not Your Father's if you have Celiac.
Dec 19, 2015
Row Hard Root Beer from Weston Brewing Company & O'Malley's Pub
Beer rating: 78 out of 100 with 78 ratings