I like the stars. It’s the illusion of permanence, I think. I mean, they’re always flaring up and caving in and going out. But from here, I can pretend…I can pretend that things last.
Neil Gaiman – The Sandman: Brief Lives
Early 1970’s: I was in elementary school at the time. Monday – Friday I looked forward to the end of the day. Nearby Ray Huffman was tearing down old houses and turning them into cheap apartments. I watched as the construction workers went home. They left behind treasures. Discarded soda bottles could be turned in at the grocery stores for a dime a piece. On a good day I’d find 3 bottles and had enough for an ice cold Hires Root Beer in a glass bottle.. It was sweet with a little bit of a bite and bubble. I loved the feeling of the cold glass bottle in my hand as the sun set on the day.
Early 1990’s: Hires Root Beer no longer sold in California. I made a few road trips to Yuma Arizona and brought home cases of root beer till I stopped seeing it in Arizona. By this time glass bottles were disappearing from grocery stores and aluminum cans had taken over. Flavor not as vibrant as in the glass bottles.
July 28 2018: I was looking forward to trying root beer flavor ice cream as the Fosselman’s website indicated root beer was the special flavor of the month. Sadly the employees didn’t know anything about root beer ice cream. My root beer quest failed but I did find 8 other half gallons of ice cream to try.
Cherry Bergundy was a mix of cherry ice cream and sweet cherries. Loved the double burst of cherry flavor. A bit like Thifty’s Black Cherry.
Lime Sherbet was icy and a bit like having a 7UP. Was I had some lemon sherbet to mix it with. A really good flavor to eat in small amounts.
Orange Juice Sherbet had a bold orange flavor. Tasted awesome mixed with vanilla.
Honey lavender had a sweet lavender flavor. Not too strong and very calming. Another of my favorites.
Mango was rich and creamy with sweet mango flavor. This flavor would be even better in icy sorbet form.
Cherry Vanilla rich creamy vanilla flavor with sweet Maraschino cherries. Like Thrifty’s but I prefer this version.
Vanilla rich creamy with delicious vanilla flavor. One of my favorite flavors.
Peach had little pieces of peach mixed with a cream base. I was hoping for that sweet flavor you get from ripe yellow cling peaches but instead it was more that flavor of peaches picked before they are ripe. My least favorite flavor.
July 29 2018: I emailed the contact email on the website about when root beer ice cream would be available. No reply as of August 15. In case anyone else is in search of root beer ice cream Hammond’s Ice Cream in San Diego rotates the flavor in their shops and it’s excellent. Sweet cream base with a strong root beer flavor. Taste like a root beer float in ice cream form.
I should go to Hammond’s and get a pint of root beer ice cream and look at the stars. One should do what they enjoy. Things don’t last.
I also reviewed Fosselman’s early this year.
1824 W Main St
Alhambra, CA 91801 (626) 282-6533
Alhambra, CA 91801 (626) 282-6533
So many flavors, makes it hard to decide. Glad you found a place to get your root beer ice cream!
It brings a smile to my face when I see the look of surprise on each employee’s face when you order your eight half gallons of ice cream. 🙂
Root beer ice cream is incredibly hard to find. You should get a photo of them getting my 8 gallons of ice cream ready!
At Rita’s Italian Ice, I’ll get the root beer Italian ice with vanilla custard to simulate a root beer float. I hope you had a big ice chest for the 8 half-gallons!
Thanks for the tip Sandy! I’ll give Rita’s a try next time I’m in the area. I have a Igloo 50 quart cooler. I’m working on a San Francisco trip to bring back some Bi-Rite and Mitchell’s ice cream. 🙂
https://smile.amazon.com/Igloo-45656-Roller-Coolers-50-Quart/dp/B00EW0QF94/ref=smi_www_rco2_go_smi_g7644928998?_encoding=UTF8&%2AVersion%2A=1&%2Aentries%2A=0&ie=UTF8
Do you put anything else besides ice in the ice chest to keep ice cream frozen?
Yes. I put 3 large cooler shock packs + 4 mediums:
https://www.amazon.com/Pack-Large-18%C2%B0F-Cooler-Packs/dp/B00V9ITMYC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1534807631&sr=8-2&keywords=freezer%2Bshock&th=1
The packs bring down the temp in the cooler to around 30F. Then I put in the 8 half gallons of ice cream. I try to line the cooler with the cooler packs and ice cream goes in the middle.
So far the longest I’ve gone is Santa Maria with stops on the way making for 8 hours with ice cream in the trunk.
Sandy,
If you are in the market for a cooler RTIC is having a sale:
RTIC Coolers 25% off over $100 + FS
RTIC has a sale going on with 25% of any purchase over $100 using the code FB25.
Last special they had was 20% off over $200 so this a pretty good deal if your in the market.
Includes hard coolers, soft coolers, tumblers, mugs, etc.
http://www.rticcoolers.com