The Hansen Beverage Company is a maker of juices, natural sodas, and energy drinks. Hubert Hansen and his sons started juices to Hollywood back in the 1930s. By the 1970s, they were making natural sodas, too, including ginger ale, grapefruit, cherry vanilla, and root beer among others.
A few years ago, they made a "super premium" line of sodas they dubbed the Signature Series. The Vanilla Creme, reviewed here, was joined by Ginger Beer, Orange Creme, and Sarsparilla. The Potable World will get to those if we can.
Most Hansen's sodas are canned. The Signature Series is presented in 12 oz (355 ml) bottles with a twist-off cap. I know this one will be sweet, so let's get going.
Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 Serving in the beer bottle is a nice touch for a soft drink. The soda itself is crystal clear with a pale sand tint.
Nose/Aroma - 7/10 Sugar and honey dominate the smell. The carbonation adds a cleanliness, while the vanilla adds a cake frosting scent that makes the mouth water.
Taste - 8/10 So, one could complain that this isn't especially creamy, like say, Virgil's Root Beer. But that only means that this is first and foremost a soda. It is carbonated water with an excellently balanced flavor of vanilla. So, I am not complaining. The honey does add some fullness, but the point here is the presentation of the vanilla blend on a bed of bubbly carbonation. It gives this sweet (ah, blessed cane sugar) drink a dryness that helps it actually quench a thirst.
Finish/Satisfaction - 7/10 This goes down very easy, but it has strong enough flavors to leave a taste of sugary vanilla in your mouth. My only complaint is that when it warms up a bit, the honey becomes more prominent. I know the honey is added to fill out the beverage, but I wish it were a bit more subdued.
Overall - 7.5/10 Hansen's has a winner with this bottled soda. I need to find the others in this series, if they are still available. Anyone had the Sarsparilla?
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