Hi Guys,

Im a newbe to this website and to brewing. I recently brewed some ginger ale which came out pretty good, now Id like to make some good old fashion root beer but I cannot find Sassafras root! Im located in Ontario.

I found a place that will order me dried sassafras root bark, can this be used as an equal replacement?

Throw me your suggestions!

Cheers,

Anything carried in the stores, either online or in a brick-n-mortar, will probably be dried root (at least, that is all I've ever seen). And that is what you'll want, anyway (every recipe I've seen with sassafras root in it called for dried root bark).

You may be able to find Sassafras trees in the woods of southern Ontario. If it's worth it to you take a trip to the southern most area of Ontario. Sassafras should grow from the Toronto area and south. Just drive on wooded back roads and look for the distinctive trilobate leaves. I'm not sure what the laws are in Ontario about digging up stuff on a provincial right-of-way, but bring a shovel and a small saw. If you're afraid it's illegal to dig it on public land look for trees on people's property and ask permission to dig it up. They may be more cooperative if you give them some of the homemade root beer you make.