Bedford's

The Pooj takes matters into his own hands.

(Rocket Fizz Pasadena, October 2011)

Bedford's of Port Angeles, WA was founded by Seattle native Ed Bedford in 1984. Per a 2004 interview in Seattle PI, Bedford was just a soda and beer delivery guy when he decided to have a flavor chemist recreate the vanilla cream soda flavor he remembered from his youth, a flavor unmatched by any cream sodas marketed to him. At time of interview publishing, Bedford's was still based out of Port Angeles and Ed was the only full-time employee, though I'm not certain the latter is still the case now. While the label still proudly boasts the Port Angeles base, bottling now appears to be handled across Puget Sound in Mukilteo, WA by Orca Beverage.

I don't detect much more than a faint root beer-y scent straight from the bottle, though there's a slightly cherry-ish smell from a glass (or maybe my olfactory senses are still lingering on the dandelion and burdock experiences). The taste is distinctly on the molasses and vanilla side, but is also oddly reminiscent of Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper, for lack of better terms. Given that the Bedford's flagship beverage is Vanilla Creme Soda (which also accounts for somewhere around 75% of the company's total annual sales according to the PI article), I would guess that the vanilla is their hallmark flavor. For the record though, there's actually little root/herb flavor.

Otherwise it tastes pretty sweet, with a sweet aftertaste that's quite pleasant, like what in my estimation an old soda fountain should taste like were I to ever decide to lick one (...hey, that's what came to mind...).  As far as texture goes, there's a slight bit of head that doesn't last long, though the carbonation leaves a tingle on my tongue. The overall experience is still smooth over all.

Although I definitely enjoyed Bedford's Root Beer for the vanilla flavor, I don't really think there is enough herb flavor for me to consider it a good root beer, per se. Taken as cream soda, it's really quite good; the additional molasses flavor actually gives it some extra body.  All this is probably good indication that the Vanilla Creme would be very good, but alas we are not here to speak of vanilla cream sodas.  We are here to speak of root beer, and as a root beer Bedford's Root Beer gets a 2.5.