What Is Sarsaparilla? The Root, the Drink, and the Plant Behind the Name

By Suhail Rivera, JD, founder of Alkaline Herb Shop

Sarsaparilla is three things wearing one name: a thorny tropical vine of the genus Smilax, the earthy-sweet root that vine grows, and the old-fashioned soda that root once flavored. People spell it sasparilla, sarsparilla, even sasperilla, and every spelling points to the same plant. This guide covers all three, plus the questions people actually ask: what's in the drink, what it tastes like, how it differs from sassafras, and whether it was ever banned.

The plant: a thorny vine from the tropics

True sarsaparilla is a woody, climbing, prickly vine native to Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean. Ours is Smilax aristolochiifolia, sometimes called Mexican sarsaparilla; cousins get named for their homes too, like Honduran and Jamaican sarsaparilla. The part people use is the root, which grows long and thin and carries the plant's distinctive sweet, woody smell. In Spanish it's zarzaparrilla, and if that's your language, we wrote this guide in Spanish too.

The drink: what is in a sarsaparilla?

In the 1800s, sarsaparilla was a soda fountain and saloon staple across America, an unlikely fame for a root from the tropics. The traditional drink was made by boiling sarsaparilla root with other roots and barks, then sweetening and carbonating the result. It sat side by side with root beer, and the two recipes overlapped so much that sarsaparilla is often called root beer's older sibling. Here is the honest modern answer, though: most “sarsaparilla” sodas on shelves today contain no sarsaparilla root at all, just artificial flavors imitating it. If you want the real thing, you have to brew the actual root, and our guide to making sarsaparilla tea and homemade root beer shows exactly how.

What does sarsaparilla taste like?

Earthy and gently sweet, with a soft vanilla-like warmth and that unmistakable “old soda fountain” note. Less sharp than ginger, rounder than dandelion. As a hot tea it is mellow and woody; iced and sweetened, it drifts toward root beer territory.

Sarsaparilla vs sassafras: not the same plant

These two get tangled constantly because both flavored old root beers. Sassafras is a North American tree; sarsaparilla is a tropical vine. And this answers the “is sarsaparilla banned” question people search: no, sarsaparilla was never banned. The confusion comes from sassafras: in 1960 the FDA banned safrole, the main compound in sassafras oil, from commercial food and drink. Sarsaparilla contains no safrole and was never part of that ban.

Is sarsaparilla good for you? The honest answer

Sarsaparilla root has centuries of traditional use in Mexican, Central American and Caribbean herbal practice, and that history is real. But traditional use is not clinical proof, and you deserve the difference stated plainly: there are no solid human studies backing health claims for sarsaparilla, and we don't make any. We sell the root because it is a piece of living history with a flavor nothing else has. Health questions belong with your doctor, not with a shop.

Where to get real sarsaparilla root

We carry it two ways: sarsaparilla root powder, 4 oz finely milled for tea and homemade root beer, and black sarsaparilla capsules, 90 count, for people who want the root without the brewing. Both are organic or wildcrafted depending on the harvest, third party tested, one ingredient, nothing added.

Who should skip it

• Not recommended during pregnancy or while nursing.
• Not recommended for anyone under 18.
• If you have a medical condition or take prescription medication, talk to your doctor before starting any herb.

Suhail Rivera, JD, is the founder of Alkaline Herb Shop. She has spent years sourcing, handling, and selling the herbs she writes about, working directly with growers and third party testing labs. She holds a Juris Doctor. She is not a medical professional, and her articles are for general information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before starting any herb, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication or managing a health condition. Read more about her and the store on the About page.