The Story of Earp's Original Sarsaparilla

Some soda brands are revived from forgotten trademarks. Others are inspired by century-old recipes.Earp's Original Sarsaparilla began with a friendship.

The man whose likeness appears on every bottle wasn't an actor hired for a photo shoot or an artist's illustration. He was Michael Earp—an entrepreneur, photographer, student of western history, and a proud member of the Earp family whose enthusiasm for America's frontier heritage helped inspire one of Orca Beverage's most distinctive craft sodas.

Raised in the Seattle area, Mike graduated from Ingraham High School in 1964 before studying electronic engineering at Shoreline Community College. He later worked for Pacific Northwest Bell, where his technical background reflected the same attention to detail that would become evident throughout his many interests.

Long before his name appeared on a soda bottle, Mike had built Earp's Western Foods, introducing products such as Earp's Western Steak Sauce while proudly celebrating his family's western heritage. His love of history wasn't simply a marketing theme—it was a lifelong passion. He also pursued photography through The Sharper Lens, combining technical skill with an appreciation for craftsmanship and classic equipment.

Sometime before 2011, Mike struck up a friendship with Mike Bourgeois, founder of Orca Beverage. The two met through a gathering of entrepreneurs and quickly discovered a shared appreciation for authentic American brands and old-fashioned craftsmanship. As Orca was developing a premium craft sarsaparilla, Bourgeois saw something special in Mike's western identity and asked if the Earp name could become part of the project.

According to those who were there, Mike smiled and replied, "Well, jeez, why didn't I think of that?"

With that simple conversation, a new craft soda was born.

Introduced in 2011, Earp's Original Sarsaparilla combined Orca Beverage's commitment to glass-bottled, pure cane sugar sodas with Mike Earp's unmistakable western character. The portrait on the label was Mike himself, dressed in the style he had long embraced while sharing his family's western legacy. Unlike many brand mascots, the face on the bottle belonged to a real person whose friendship, humor, and enthusiasm helped shape the brand from the very beginning.

Today, Earp's Original Sarsaparilla remains one of Orca Beverage's most recognizable creations. For collectors, it is a beautifully designed bottle. For craft soda enthusiasts, it is a rich, old-fashioned sarsaparilla. But for those who know the story behind the label, it represents something more personal—a friendship between two entrepreneurs and the legacy of a man who genuinely loved sharing the history that inspired his name.