Does real brewed root beer contain alcohol?
Yes, as a byproduct of the fermentation. The important questions are “how much” and “why not more”. How much – I’ve read from 0.5-1.0% weight by volume. As to why isn’t there more alcohol, I don’t know. Two possibilities I’ve heard: 1) there isn’t enough stuff to ferment in root beer, and 2) because root beer is fermented in a closed container the yeast dies from lack of oxygen (the yeast consumes oxygen and produces carbon dioxide).
