American Root Beer & Gatorade: Imported Drinks UK Guide
Why America's Drinks Aisle Looks Nothing Like Ours
Pop into a petrol station in Texas or Ohio and the fridge looks completely different to a Tesco Express. Alongside the usual Coke and Sprite, you'll find root beer — a sweet, herby, almost medicinal soda that confuses every Brit on first sip — and whole shelves dedicated to sports drinks in flavours that make Lucozade Sport look positively boring.
We've got a proper stash of both in right now, so we thought it was time for an honest, no-nonsense guide to two of America's most "why don't we have this" drinks: root beer and Gatorade. Grab a cold one and have a browse of our full American Drinks collection while you're at it.
Root Beer: The Flavour the UK Just Doesn't Get
Root beer is the great American soda mystery. It's not actually beer (no alcohol here), it's a carbonated soft drink flavoured with sassafras, wintergreen and vanilla — think a cross between cola, bubblegum and cough medicine, and somehow it works. Americans grow up on it. Brits either fall instantly in love or spit it straight back out. There's no in-between, and honestly that's half the fun of trying it.
Fun fact: root beer dates back to the 1800s, when "small beers" flavoured with roots and herbs were sold as tonics long before anyone thought about fizzy drinks in cans. These days it's a proper nostalgia drink in the States — the kind of thing that turns up at every diner, drive-in and 4th of July cookout. Serve it ice cold, straight from the fridge, for the full effect.
A&W Root Beer
A&W is the root beer most Americans grew up drinking — smooth, creamy and noticeably sweeter than its rival below. It's a proper diner classic, the kind of thing you'd order with a burger and a basket of fries.
⏳ Currently restocking — check availability before you order.
Barq's Root Beer
Barq's is the sharper, punchier option — and the one with an actual twist: unlike most root beers, Barq's contains caffeine, which is why their old tagline was "Barq's has bite." It's fizzier and less sweet than A&W, so if you find root beer a bit much, start here.
Gatorade: America's Sports Drink Obsession
If root beer is the weird one, Gatorade is the drink that actually makes sense the second you try it. Invented in the 1960s for the University of Florida Gators (hence the name), it's built around replacing electrolytes lost through sweat — basically the American answer to Lucozade Sport, but with way bolder flavours and that unmistakable neon colour.
With the weather turning and gym sessions, five-a-side and Sunday league football back on the calendar, now's a cracking time to try it. Here's what we've got on the shelf right now, straight from the American Drinks shelf:
Orange Gatorade
The flavour most Americans would call "the original." Orange Gatorade is sharp, citrussy and genuinely refreshing — less syrupy than a lot of UK sports drinks, with a cleaner finish.
Lemon-Lime Gatorade
Lemon-Lime is the flavour you'll see on the sidelines of every American football and baseball game — it's the one they dump over winning coaches' heads, fittingly enough. Zesty, a bit tart, and properly thirst-quenching.
👉 Shop Lemon-Lime Gatorade now →
Fruit Punch Gatorade
Fruit Punch is the sweeter, fruitier side of Gatorade — a mix of berry and citrus notes with that deep red colour that stains everything it touches (you've been warned). A firm favourite with American kids for a reason.
⏳ Currently restocking — check availability before you order.
Gatorade Cool Blue
Cool Blue is pure blue raspberry fun — the most "American candy aisle" flavour of the bunch, and the one that turns your tongue an alarming shade of blue. No electrolyte drink should taste this much like a sweet, but that's exactly the appeal.
⏳ Currently restocking — check availability before you order.
Root Beer vs Gatorade: Which Should You Try First?
Honestly, they're not really in competition — they're solving two completely different cravings. Root beer is a novelty soda experience, the sort of thing you crack open just to see what the fuss is about (and maybe film the reaction for your mates). Gatorade is more of a genuine everyday swap — grab a bottle after a run, a match or a night out and you'll see why it's a US staple rather than a gimmick.
If you only try one thing from this list, make it Barq's for the novelty factor, or Lemon-Lime Gatorade if you want something you'll actually reach for again. Can't decide? Our full shop has plenty of other American drinks to work through while you make up your mind, and we restock new bottles on our Whatnot lives regularly too.
A good rule of thumb for first-timers: pair your root beer with something sweet and salty — a bag of crisps or a chocolate bar — and save the Gatorade for after you've actually earned it at the gym or on the pitch. And if you genuinely can't choose which American drink to try next, our mystery boxes are a brilliant way to let fate decide; every box is a different surprise mix of snacks and sweets, so you might just land on your new favourite without even looking for it.
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Shop the Snacks in This Post
- ✅ A&W Root Beer — ⏳ restocking
- ✅ Barq's Root Beer 355ml
- ✅ Orange Gatorade
- ✅ Lemon-Lime Gatorade
- ✅ Fruit Punch Gatorade — ⏳ restocking
- ✅ Gatorade Cool Blue — ⏳ restocking
Fancy working your way through the whole American drinks aisle, not just the two we've covered here? Have a browse of the full PIC N SNACK shop for everything from sodas to sweets to crisps, and keep an eye on our Whatnot lives where new drinks drops and restocks tend to land first.
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