How to Make Root Beer

A seasonal treat to keep you perky during all your autumnal activities, homemade root beer is easy to make with the right supplies. On a stove, you can make the drink base yourself with ingredients, and ferment it with yeast and molasses for flavor. Alternatively, you can use a store-bought root beer extract to mix with water and sugar, and allow it to cool down with dry ice.

Ingredients

Brewed Root Beer

4 US qt (3.8 L) of water
1/4 oz. (7.08 g) dried sassafras root bark
1/4 oz. (7.08 g) dried birch bark
1/4 oz. (7.08 g) dried sarsaparilla root
1/8 oz. (3.54 g) of dried licorice root
A 1 in (2.5 cm) piece of unpeeled ginger, sliced thin
1 vanilla bean, split
2 cups (470 mL) of molasses
1/8 tsp. (0.6 g) of active dry yeast

Makes 4 litres (140 fl oz)

Root Beer with Extract

4 US qt (3,800 mL) of cold water
2 to 3 cups (470 to 710 mL) of granulated sugar, depending on how sweet you want it
3 US tbsp (44 mL) of root beer extract
1 to 2 lb (0.45 to 0.91 kg) of dry ice, broken into pieces

Makes 4 litres (140 fl oz)

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Making Brewed Root Beer

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1
Boil and infuse the aromatic ingredients to create your flavor base. In a medium sized pot, add 1/4 ounce (7.08 g) of sassafras root bark, 1/4 ounce (7.08 g) of birch bark, 1/4 ounce (7.08 g) of sarsaparilla root, 1/8 ounce (3.54 g) of dried licorice root, a 1 inch (2.5 cm) piece of ginger, and 1 split vanilla bean. Pour 2 US quarts (1.9 L) of water into the pot, and then bring it to a boil.^{[1]XResearch source}
- Wait for the bubbles to just begin rising to the surface, but don’t keep it boiling after that.
2
Remove the mixture from the heat and allow it to infuse for 2 hours. After it’s reached a boiling point, remove the pot from the heat and place the lid onto it. Leave it to cool down and infuse for a 2 full hours.^{[2]XResearch source}
- Steep the ingredients in the mixture without stirring them.
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3
Filter the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve. Place the sieve over a container you can put the mixture into, and pour it through the filters. Once in the container, add an additional 2 US quarts (1.9 L) of filtered water, and stir thoroughly until it’s mixed together.^{[3]XResearch source}
- After adding the extra water, allow it to cool to 75 °F (24 °C).
- Be sure to clean the container you’re filtering the mixture into beforehand with soap and hot water.
Stir in 2 cups (470 mL) of molasses and 1/8 teaspoons (0.6 g) of active dry yeast into the root-infused liquid and place a cover on it. Set it aside, and allow it to ferment for 15 minutes.^{[4]XResearch source}
5
Pour the root beer into clean, dry 1 litre (34 fl oz) soda bottles. Use a funnel when adding the root beer to the bottles to avoid spilling. Fill the bottles to 2 inches (5.1 cm) below the cap to allow for a pocket for the carbonation.^{[5]XResearch source}
- Clean out the bottles with warm soapy water, and allow them to air dry before pouring the root beer in them.
6
Leave the bottles out at room temperature to ferment for 12 hours. Screw on the lids of the bottles tightly, and set them out on your kitchen counter or table overnight to allow them enough time to ferment.^{[6]XResearch source}
- Set the bottles upright instead of laying them on their sides.
7
Chill the homemade root beer for 2-5 days to increase its flavor. After letting them sit at room temperature, place the soda bottles in your fridge to cool for several days. After 5 days, the yeast will have broken down the molasses for a milder flavor with a slight alcohol content.^{[7]XResearch source}
- For a stronger molasses taste, remove the root beer from the fridge after 2 days.
8
Open the root beer bottles carefully before serving. Gas will have built up inside the bottles that may cause the root beer to erupt out if you shake it too much while opening it, or open it too quickly. Wait for the gas to stop hissing before continuing to turn it. Once you have it open, serve your root beer over ice.
- To store, simply place the lid back on the bottle and secure it tightly again. Drink the remaining root beer within a couple of days of you opening the bottle to enjoy it before it goes flat, or loses its flavor.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Making Root Beer with Extract

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1
Mix cold water, sugar, and root beer extract in a large pitcher. Use 4 US quarts (3,800 mL) of cold water, 2 to 3 cups (470 to 710 mL) of sugar depending on how sweet you’d like your root beer, and 3 tablespoons (44 mL) of root beer extract in a large pitcher. Stir the ingredients together until the water and extract have mixed well, and the sugar is fully dissolved.^{[8]XResearch source}
- Taste the mixture to see if more sugar or extract needs to be added.
2
Cool the drink down with dry ice. Drop 1 to 2 pounds (0.45 to 0.91 kg) of dry ice chunks into the pitcher and mix it together with a spoon to cool it down and keep it from sticking to the bottom. Upon contact, the root beer mix should bubble, and the dry ice fog will spill over the side of the pitcher.^{[9]XResearch source}
- Wear insulated gloves or use tongs when handling the dry ice.
- Add the dry ice to the pitcher in a well-ventilated room to avoid inhaling its fog.
Use the spoon to continually keep turning the ice around in the pitcher, cooling down the root beer. Keep this up until the dry ice is nearly dissolved, which should take around 10-15 minutes.^{[10]XResearch source}
4
Serve the root beer with a ladle. Be careful to avoid placing any remaining large pieces of dry ice in the cups so others won’t burn themselves with it.^{[11]XResearch source}
- Feel free to enjoy in front of a leaf-strewn yard, an open fire pit, or while greeting trick-or-treaters on Halloween.

Community Q&A

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Question
Will there be a yeasty taste to the root beer?
Community Answer
Probably not, root beer extract is very intense. That's why people who brew beer and wine don't use equipment from root beer because it will make other stuff taste like root beer.
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Question
Can this be done in one day?
Community Answer
In much smaller quantities. Divide everything by 10 and you get a small glass of root beer in a day. The yeast needs time to eat, that's why it takes so long.
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Question
Is it possible to make root beer with zero calories? Can I substitute something else for the sugar, or is it required for the yeast to carbonate it?
Community Answer
Yeast requires real sugar to carbonate the root beer, so the yeast method probably won't work. If you have a soda stream or similar device, you can make a sugar-free, close to zero calorie drink.
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Tips

When brewing root beer, artificial sweetener cannot be used to replace the sugar. Actual sugar (in this case in the molasses) is required for yeast to generate carbon dioxide which carbonates the beverage. Without sugar, there is no carbonation. You might experiment with less sugar and add a substitute to make up for the lower sweetness. You can add 1/4 oz. (7.08 g) of corn sugar (dextrose) or cane sugar to carbonate the soda and sweeten with a substitute.
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Use bottled water instead of tap water to guarantee better freshness.
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There will be a sediment of yeast at the bottom of the bottle, so the last bit of root beer will be turbid. Decant carefully if you wish to avoid this sediment.
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Warnings

Do not leave the finished root beer in a warm place for long. After a couple weeks or so at room temperature, especially in the summer when temperatures are high, enough pressure may build up to cause the bottle to explode!!
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There might be alcohol in this homemade soft drink. The alcoholic content which results from the fermentation of this root beer has been found, through testing, to be between 0.35 and 0.5 %. Comparing this to the 6% in many beers, it would require a person to drink about 1.5 gallons (5.7 L) of this root beer to be equivalent to one 12 fl oz (350 mL) beer. For people who cannot metabolize alcohol properly or have religious prohibition against any alcohol, consumption should be limited or avoided.
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