"national root beer float day" news and stories

Happy National Root Beer Float Day!

A combination of root beer, vanilla ice cream and the fluffy froth they create, root beer floats have been an American tradition since they first started appearing in the late 1800s, shortly after the root-heavy soda was first produced in 1880. According to lore, the float was created by Frank Wisner of Cripple Creek, Colorado, who claims to have been inspired by the snow-capped top of nearby Cow Mountain to plop a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the top of his root beer. The concoction was later dubbed "black cow" or "brown cow" by the town's children.

There's really nothing to making your own root beer float, but you can purchase it at numerous fast-food places like Sonic or A&W. But if you crave something beyond the traditional beverage, you can make root beer float granitas with the aid of your freezer. For solid desserts, try Smitten Kitchen's chocolaty root beer float cupcakes or adding root beer to white cake mix for a fluffy root beer cake.

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I haven't had a root beer flavored popsicle in a long time. That would really hit the spot right now.

I know, I know, it has nothing to do exactly with National Root Beer Float Day, but it got me thinking about root beer. How did root beer, something I drank all the time when I was a kid get pushed out of the picture in favor of Diet Pepsi and other sodas?

Here's a recipe for a root beer float (it's very basic, just root beer and vanilla ice cream). How about a root beer float cake?

And just to make you feel bad, A&W Restauants gave away free root beer floats on National Float Day, which was June 21, the first day of summer. Sorry!