I grew up with BlackPine Sarsaparilla or "HeySong Sarsi" (黑松沙士) in Taiwan. It's a popular drink with a long history. We always have it with a bit of salt (almost like the way drinking margarita).

Didn't know there's such a variety of root beer until I came to the States. A&W gets my vote so far but I have to admit I haven't tried too many brands. I had such a bad experience with a store-brand coke that I decide not to blind test any soft drinks.

I was surprised A&W didn't even make it to the top ten list in the recent New York Times root beer review. But they did highlight the importance of the sweeteners (cane sugar vs. corn syrup), like the other thread about coke with real sugar in Mexico.

Here's the NYT list:

1. Sprecher (Glendale, Wis.)
2. IBC (Plano, Tex.)
3. Abita (Abita Springs, La.)
4. Sea Dog Old Style (Portland, Me.)
5. Thomas Kemper (Seattle)
6. Dr. Brown’s Draft Style (New York)
7. Fitz’s (St. Louis)
8. Gale’s (Riverwoods, Ill.)
9. Whole Foods’ 365 All Natural (Austin, Tex.)
10. Stewart’s (Rye Brook, N.Y.)