Rootbeer Recipe

Make spice infusion

In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of water (not included in final carbonated water measure), granulated sugar and dark brown sugar. Add sassafras bark (or 2 tsp sassafras extract), star anise, allspice berries, juniper berries (if using), and grated ginger. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugars dissolve.

Reduce heat to low and simmer the mixture for 8–10 minutes to extract flavors from the spices and bark. Do not boil vigorously. Taste carefully (cool a drop on a spoon) and adjust: add up to 1/4 tsp more wintergreen extract only if wintergreen flavor is too weak — wintergreen is potent so add sparingly.

Remove from heat and let the infusion cool for 10 minutes. Stir in vanilla extract and lemon juice. If using sassafras extract instead of bark, add it now and stir to combine.

Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth into a bowl or pitcher to remove solids. Press gently on solids to extract concentrated syrup. You should have roughly 1 to 1 1/4 cups of flavored syrup (concentrate). If you have less, top to 1 cup with simple syrup (equal parts sugar-water) to keep sweetness balanced.

Chill serving glasses in the refrigerator for 10 minutes or fill them with ice just before pouring.

For non-alcoholic root beer: In a large pitcher, combine 8 cups chilled carbonated water with 3/4 to 1 cup of the prepared root beer concentrate, depending on how strong/sweet you prefer. Stir gently to combine, avoiding heavy agitation that will flatten the carbonation.

For adult version: Add 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons bourbon or rum per quart (adjust to taste) to the pitcher before adding carbonated water, then stir in 3/4 cup concentrate. Taste and adjust concentrate or spirit level.

Taste and adjust: if too sweet, add a splash more carbonated water; if too weak, add up to another 2 tablespoons concentrate per cup served. If the flavor is too sharp, a small pinch (1/8 tsp) of baking soda can be dissolved to mellow acidity — add very sparingly.

Serve immediately over ice, or for a classic root beer float, add 1–2 scoops of vanilla ice cream to each glass and ladle root beer over it. Garnish with a citrus wheel or mint sprig if desired.

Refrigerate unused concentrate in a sealed container for up to 1 week. Keep mixed root beer refrigerated and consume within 24 hours to preserve carbonation (best to mix per serving).