Can of A&W Root Beer as sold in the UK |
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| Type | Root Beer |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Dr Pepper Snapple Group (outside Canada) A&W Food Services of Canada (Canada) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Introduced | 1919 |
| Related products | Barq's, Mug Root Beer, Dad's Root Beer, Hires Root Beer |
| Serving size 8.1 fl oz (1 cup / 240 ml) | |||
| Servings per container 1 | |||
| Amount per serving | |||
| Calories 120 | Calories from fat 0 | ||
| % Daily value* | |||
| Total fat 0 g | 0% | ||
| Saturated fat 0 g | 0% | ||
| Trans fat 0 g | |||
| Cholesterol 0 mg | 0% | ||
| Sodium 30 mg | 1% | ||
| Potassium 0 mg | 0% | ||
| Total carbohydrate 31 g | 10% | ||
| Dietary fiber 0 g | 0% | ||
| Sugars 31 g | |||
| Protein 0 g | |||
| Vitamin A | 0% | Vitamin C | 0% |
| Calcium | 0% | Iron | 0% |
| *Percent daily values are based on a 2,000‑calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs. | |||
A&W Root Beer is a brand of root beer, primarily available in the United States and Canada, that was started in 1919 by Roy Allen.[1] In 1922, Allen partnered with Frank Wright. They combined their initials to create the brand "A&W" and inspired a restaurant chain which was founded 1922. The first A&W root beer drinks were sold for five cents.[2] A&W Root Beer is often referred to as the root beer standard amongst root beer reviewers.[3][4]
Outside Canada, the rights to the A&W brand are owned by Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, which in turn licenses the brand to the similarly named U.S.-based restaurant chain; A&W products are distributed via various U.S. bottlers. A&W Food Services of Canada, which is independent of both DPSG and the U.S. chain, is responsible for both the restaurants and root beer products in that country,[5] with retail products being bottled by Coca-Cola.
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On June 20, 1919, Roy Allen opened a roadside root beer stand in Lodi, California, using a formula he had purchased from a pharmacist.[6] He soon opened additional stands in Stockton, California and five stands in nearby Sacramento, home of the country’s first drive-in featuring "tray-boys" for curbside service. In 1920, Allen became partners with Frank Wright and the two combined their initials and called their product A&W Root Beer. It has been mistakenly spread in some circles that A&W stands for Alice and Willard Marriot, which has arisen because Mr. Marriot's first business was an A&W franchise[7]
In 1924, Allen bought Wright's share of the business and pursued a restaurant franchise sales program. With the A&W Root Beer name trademarked with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Allen began selling franchises to others. Buying a restaurant franchise enabled individuals to open A&W drive-ins and vending booths, establishing one of the first franchised restaurant chains in the United States. Franchisees would use the A&W name and logo and buy concentrated root beer syrup from Allen. By 1933, there were more than 170 A&W franchised outlets. There was no common menu, architecture, or procedures shared by the franchisees and some chose to start selling food with the root beer.[6]
Franchises struggled with labor shortages and sugar rationing during World War II, but following the war, the number of A&W outlets tripled as GI loans paved the way for private enterprise. Driven by the popularity of the automobile and the new mobile society, more than 450 A&W Root Beer stands were operating by 1950. In the same year, Allen retired and sold the business to Nebraskan Gene Hurtz, who formed the A&W Root Beer Company. The first A&W Root Beer outlet in Canada opened in 1956.
By 1960 the number of A&W restaurants had swelled to more than 2,000. In 1963, the A&W Root Beer Company was sold to the J. Hungerford Smith Company, the firm which had manufactured Allen’s concentrate since 1921. In the same year, the first overseas A&W restaurant opened its doors in Guam.
In 1963, the company was sold to the United Fruit Company, which was renamed the United Brands Company. In 1971, United Brands formed a wholly owned subsidiary, A&W Distributing Co., for the purpose of making A&W Root Beer available in bottles on the grocery shelf. After a test run in Arizona and California, the products were distributed nationally in the United States, along with sugar-free, low-sodium, and caffeine-free versions. In 1974, A&W introduced "The Great Root Bear," a mascot that served as a goodwill ambassador for the brand.
In the late 1970s, A&W Restaurants was formed to manage restaurant franchising. It was bought in 1982 by A. Alfred Taubman.
In 1986, A&W Cream Soda and A&W Diet Cream Soda were introduced and distributed nationally, followed in 1987 by the reformulation of sugar-free A&W as Diet A&W.
In October 1993, A&W Beverages became part of Cadbury Beverages. That company would spin off its US beverages business as Dr Pepper Snapple Group in 2008.
In March 2005, A&W began to appear in the Vintage Bottle, a 20-ounce bottle with graphics reminiscent of an old fashioned root beer barrel. The brand’s current tagline is, “Classic American Refreshment Since 1919.”
The Great Root Bear is the popular mascot for A&W Root Beer. It was first used in 1974 by Canada's A&W, and was later adopted by the American chain. In the late 1990s, the Great Root Bear's role as mascot was reduced for the restaurant chain, ultimately being replaced by "The Burger Family", although it still appears in various capacities for the restaurants and on A&W Root Beer cases in Canada. In a long-running television advertising campaign for the Canadian A&W chain, his theme was a tuba-driven jingle entitled "Ba-Dum, Ba-Dum" which was released as a single by Attic Records in Canada, credited to "Major Ursus", a play on the constellation name Ursa Major, which means "great bear".
Shortly after Allen had bought out Wright's portion of the business, he began franchising the product. His profits came from a small franchise fee and sales of concentrate. There was no standard food menu for franchises until 1978. By 1960, they had 2000 stores.
In 1989, A&W made an agreement with Minnesota-based chain Carousel Snack Bars to convert that chain's 200 locations (mostly kiosks in shopping malls) to "A&W Hot Dogs & More".[9][10] Some A&W Hot Dogs & More locations are still in operation today.
In the United States and Southeast Asia, A&W is currently a Yum! Brands, Inc. company. Most A&W locations that have opened in the U.S. in recent years have been co-branded with one of Yum!'s other chains—Long John Silver's, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut or Kentucky Fried Chicken.
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