National Black Cow Day: In the 'mooood' for classic ice cream floats

Moooove over National Iced Tea Day, June 10 is also National Black Cow Day! While celebrating the 4-legged, bovine-variety is fine-and-dandy, today really celebrates the refreshing beverage made with ice cream and soda. While visions of poodle skirts, soda jerks, roller skates, drive-in diners and soda fountains may come to mind, Black Cows – a popular drink of days gone by, are still enjoyed today.

Black Cows have been served up since the late 1890s. While some credit Robert M. Green as the actual “inventor” of the delicious drink, Cripple Creek Brewing owner, Frank J. Wisner, is often credited as the father of the Black Cow. Legend has it while peering out the window at the snow-capped peak of Cow Mountain, Wisner combined a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream with Myers Avenue Red root beer. And later, instead of using root beer, he used cola and the Black Cow Mountain drink was born. Children shortened the name to Black Cow and the rest, as they say, is history.

Black Cows are simple to make. Some people choose to use vanilla ice cream and root beer while others prefer the rich combination of chocolate ice cream and root beer. You can also combine other soda flavors with ice cream or add an extra splash of something stronger to the ice-cold drink. Just serve in a tall glass and enjoy. And don’t forget the straw!