Many of us are very familiar with the folks at Abita Brewing Company. Their Purple Haze and Turbodog brands are some Louisiana favorites. For those connoisseurs who are fans of Abita's brand of Root Beer here's good news for you that comes with a kick. The company plans to introduce to the marketplace Abita Hard Root Beer. It's just what you think it is.

Abita Brewing Company  Brewmaster Mark Wilson says the hard root beer will be the first in a series of products that will fall under the company's Bayou Bootlegger brand of hard sodas. Wilson told the Louisiana Radio Network that the decisions to take some of their soft drink brands and create an adult version of them just seemed like a natural step.

We noticed that people all over the country were using this in cocktails. So this was just a natural extension of that process.

The Bayou Bootlegger Hard Root Beer is brewed to have a 5.9% alcohol by volume and the  product is all natural and gluten free. The product is brewed to mimic the distinctive flavors of the company's very popular root beer.

Wilson said that customers have been asking the company for years to create an adult version of some of their more famous flavors and all indications are the marketplace is ready for root beer with a kick and a Louisiana flair. You can expect this new hard root beer from Abita to be in your local stores sometime this week. Wilson says if you don't see it, he'd appreciate you asking your favorite store to get it for you.

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