Root Beer

Root beer is a carbonated, non-alcoholic beverage with a distinctly sweet flavor, dark color, and a thick white foam. Originally it was made with sassafras root by the indigenous peoples of America for medicinal purposes before the arrival of Europeans.

European culture and culinary techniques changed the traditional way of preparation and created a beverage similar to the one we today know as root beer. Charles Elmer Hires, a pharmacist, was the first person to market a commercial brand of root beer in 1876, known as root tea at the time. Sassafras root was still in use until 1960  when it was banned by the FDA for being carcinogenic.

Companies today have found ways to preserve the flavor of sassafras without using the root itself. This development led to the root beer flavor we know and enjoy today.