Mug Root Beer
{{Short description|American carbonated beverage}}
{{More citations needed|date=February 2013}}
{{Infobox brand
| name = Mug Root Beer
| logo = Mug root beer logo.png
| logo_size = 200
| image =
| image_size = 200
| caption =
| producttype = Root beer
| currentowner = PepsiCo (1986–present)
| producedby = New Century Beverage Co.
| country = U.S.
| introduced = {{start date and age|1940}}
| discontinued =
| related =
| markets =
| previousowners = Belfast Beverage Co.
| trademarkregistrations =
| ambassadors =
| tagline =
| website = {{url|https://mugrootbeer.com|mugrootbeer.com}}, {{url|https://www.pepsicopartners.com/PEPSICO-BRANDS/MUG%C2%AE-ROOT-BEER/c/brand_mugRootBeer?|pepsico.com/mugrootbeer}}
| module =
| module1 =
| footnotes =
}}
{{Infobox nutritional value
| name = Mug Root Beer, 20 fluid ounces
| kcal = 260
| carbs = 72 g
| fat = 0 g
| sodium_mg = 105
| sugars = 71 g
| protein = 0 g
| caffeine = 0 mg
| phosphorus_mg = 0
}}
Mug Root Beer (sometimes stylized as MUG Root Beer) is an American brand of root beer that was originally produced in 1940 under the name Belfast Root Beer. It is now produced by New Century Beverage Company of San Francisco, California, which was acquired by PepsiCo in 1986.{{Cite web|title=Mug Root Beer {{!}} PepsiCo Partners|url=https://www.pepsicopartners.com/PEPSICO-BRANDS/MUG%C2%AE-ROOT-BEER/c/brand_mugRootBeer|access-date=2021-12-28|website=www.pepsicopartners.com|archive-date=2021-10-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211030225208/https://www.pepsicopartners.com/PEPSICO-BRANDS/MUG%C2%AE-ROOT-BEER/c/brand_mugRootBeer|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |date=2015-05-25 |title=THE MEDIA BUSINESS - ADVERTISING - Lois Pitts Gershon Pon Wins Mug Root Beer - NYTimes.com |url=http://www.nytimes.com/1988/05/27/business/the-media-business-advertising-lois-pitts-gershon-pon-wins-mug-root-beer.html |access-date=2022-04-06 |website= The New York Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150525093610/http://www.nytimes.com/1988/05/27/business/the-media-business-advertising-lois-pitts-gershon-pon-wins-mug-root-beer.html |archive-date=25 May 2015 |url-status=dead}}
History
Mug Root Beer was originally sold under the name Belfast Root Beer in 1940 by the Belfast Beverage Company in San Francisco, California. The company had been known for making sparkling water and ginger ale since 1877. Belfast Beverage Company was purchased around 1925{{When|date=February 2025|reason="around 1925" isn't specific but I can't find anything else online that gives a more specific date}} by New Century Beverage Company, which had successfully launched Crush Soda in 1918.
In 1936, New Century Beverage Company was granted permission to franchise Pepsi-Cola products, and about four years later, it launched Belfast Root Beer. An advertisement for Belfast Root Beer appears as early as 1947.September 24, 1947, Bakersfield Californian, p. 7 (available at newspaperarchive.com) According to the San Francisco Examiner, the catchphrase, 'You haven't tasted Root Beer like this in years!' filled 1950s newspaper advertisements. An advertisement for Belfast Old Fashioned Mug Root Beer appears as early as 1952.March 4, 1952, Mountain Democrat, p. 5 (available at newspaperarchive.com) In the 1950s, the soda took on the title Belfast Old Fashioned Mug Root Beer before its name was eventually shortened to Mug Root Beer.
In the late 1960s, Sugar Free Mug (later known as Diet Mug Root Beer) was introduced.[http://www.mugrootbeer.com Mug Root Beer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131127000114/http://www.mugrootbeer.com/ |date=2013-11-27 }} Retrieved August 22, 2012. Mug Cream Soda and Diet Mug Cream Soda were later introduced, but they are not as widely available. Mug was purchased by Pepsi in 1986, and replaced On-Tap Draft Style Root Beer as Pepsi's root beer brand. Mug Root Beer is currently manufactured by independent bottlers under the authority of New Century Beverage Company.
Since Mug Root Beer's acquisition by PepsiCo in 1986, the company's logo has displayed a bulldog named "Dog" holding a glass of what appears to be frothy Mug Root Beer.{{Cite news |last=Guerrero |first=Susana |date=October 2, 2021 |title=The brief story of how one of America's favorite root beer brands started in San Francisco |work=SFGate |url=https://www.sfgate.com/food/history/article/The-brief-history-of-Mug-Root-Beer-and-it-s-San-16499876.php |access-date=March 13, 2022 |quote=At that point, Mug Root Beer became part of the Pepsi family, which later got rid of the root beer vessel completely and opted for a bulldog — quirkily named "Dog" — as its new soda mascot. |archive-date=March 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313041139/https://www.sfgate.com/food/history/article/The-brief-history-of-Mug-Root-Beer-and-it-s-San-16499876.php |url-status=live }} PepsiCo stopped producing its sodas in San Francisco in the early 1990s, including Mug Root Beer.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{commons cat}}
- {{official website}}
- [https://archive.today/20131217000505/http://www.company-records.com/trademark/MUG-Update-72039315/862704 MUG Trademark Update 72039315]
- [http://www.trademarkia.com/map/belfast-72284549.html BELFAST - Brand - NEW CENTURY BEVERAGE COMPANY SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Serial Number: 72284549]
- [http://www.trademarkia.com/logo-71602543.html OLD FASHIONED MUG - Brand - BELFAST BEVERAGES, INC. SAN FRANCISCO , - Serial Number: 71602543]
{{PepsiCo}}
{{Root beer brands}}
Category:Food and drink in the San Francisco Bay Area
Category:1940 establishments in California
{{Soft-drink-stub}}