American Ginger Ale...
I've never really drank a lot of "soft" drinks but I do sometimes(perhaps because of having an interest in cocktails)now drink cola, lemonade or a variety of similar drinks. So the other night I did not feel like opening a large bottle of pop as once opened you tend to have to use it quickly to avoid it going flat.
And I have taken to buying some very small bottles or cans(which though more expensive)you drink less and being smaller in reality you save money because you are not left with a bottle of flat liquid and/or you have some left to use another day.
So I found amongst my store of fruit juice, pop and booze some small cans of American Ginger Ale.
So I thought, I'll give them a go...
I don't know how genuinely close it is to the same Ginger Ale as available in America and I am unsure if the particular brand I have tastes the same as another but...I love it!
I cannot think why I have never had it before or if I have why I don't remember doing so and again why do we discover or try something late in life.
Well, I must remember to put it on my shopping list for tomorrow.
And I have taken to buying some very small bottles or cans(which though more expensive)you drink less and being smaller in reality you save money because you are not left with a bottle of flat liquid and/or you have some left to use another day.
So I found amongst my store of fruit juice, pop and booze some small cans of American Ginger Ale.
So I thought, I'll give them a go...
I don't know how genuinely close it is to the same Ginger Ale as available in America and I am unsure if the particular brand I have tastes the same as another but...I love it!
I cannot think why I have never had it before or if I have why I don't remember doing so and again why do we discover or try something late in life.
Well, I must remember to put it on my shopping list for tomorrow.
posted by The Great Gildersleeve | 3:48 pm
21 Comments:
The two most common ginger ale varieties here in the US are Canada Dry and Schweppes, although smaller regional manufacturers have their own varieties, including some of ginger beer. Which is soda, not beer.
If you like the taste of ginger, and some people do not, it's good stuff, particularly on hot days. I'm glad you tried and like it, Gildy.
Hello North Star :-)
Good to have you aboard. Canada Dry and Schweppes are here too.
The one I tried was manufactured for the supermarket so I guess that means I should give the two brands you mention a try and compare between them and the one that I liked.
I could be wrong but I think they also sell Ginger Beer here. So perhaps there is still some confusion but I do believe mine says that it can be used as a mixer.
I would guess that most ginger ale consumed here in the US is in mixed drinks. Canada Dry and Schweppes both taste ok, but as they are mass-produced and designed to appeal to as many people as possible, smaller manufacturers offer more distinctive-tasting products.
Compare and contrast, Gildy!
I have found out that Schweppes manufacture Canada Dry and yes there is Ginger Beer which is different to Ginger Ale. So that's a start...
Yes, now that you mention it, I remember that Schweppes bought Canada Dry several (or more) years ago. In the US, the drinks are still marketed separately. If one taste-tested them side by side, I wonder how different they are? A lot, some, not at all?
I think ginger beer has a stronger taste than ginger ale. If you like the taste of ginger, ginger beer may be the drink for you.
Have you ever had cream soda? It has a vanilla-like taste. Many people don't like it, but those who do tend to greatly enjoy it. I'm one who does like it.
Amazing what you can end up discussing...Cream Soda, funny you should mention that, I do rather like it and I have some cans and a bottle of it in my store of drinks...
In fact recently I have been buying from the pop man that delivers on Saturday afternoon but as I do not drink pop daily and try to vary what I drink as you hear too many fizzy drinks can be a cause of diabetes, I keep buying more but as it is not all being drunk my supply is building up and I have no empty bottles to give him when he calls...if you give bottles backyou receive a little refund which if you order another bottle of popo makes that a little cheaper.
However, today I ordered a bottle of cola and...a bottle of traditional ginger beer. So we'll just have to see how that compares...so I could return to this subject at a later time.
Some flavours are not as readily available if at all in the UK even though popular in the States such as Sasperella(sp?)and Root Beer.
Root beer isn't widely available in the UK? I didn't know that. I enjoy root beer. There's one brand, A&W, that is quite popular over here. In fact, there are A&W root beer restaurants. Originally, they were the kind I'm sure you've seen in American films: cars pull into a parking lot, order food and drinks over a microphone, and waitresses bring the food out to the car. I remember doing that with my family as a child. Most (all?) of those restaurants no longer have car-side service these days.
I should also mention that the only soda I drink is diet. As in, diet cream soda, diet root beer, etc.
You have a pop delivery service! There's nothing like around here. Is the pop locally made? It sounds like it is, and if so, I'm guessing the quality is good. I'll look forward to your ginger beer review!
don't know how the delivery service survives...it is not as popular as it was and in my street until recently I haven't purchased anything from it.
It arrives Saturday afternoon and delivers only to three houses in my street(if I buy)and I only purchase at the most two bottles of pop!)
Well after all there is a supermarket around the corner...originally all the pop had the same name on the bottles as the vehicle delivering...now they have all different names on them and the van has no name on the side.
The manufacturers do seem to be from local bottle plants that I assume supply local outlets.
Some brands are never heard of outside of their own area...Barr is very popular in Scotland and do just about any soft drink you can think of but I see very little of their products in the North of England or maybe it's just my area.
I like it too, mainly because it is "extra" fizzy and burns the back of my throat...hmmmm
The local bottling plants likely produce tastier products than the big national chains. Enjoy the delivery van service while it lasts, Gildy.
As you'd probably guess, Barr is unavailable where I live.
Hmm...now you've gotten me interested in sampling some of the local varieties of soda/pop around here. Sprecher is a beer and soda firm in Milwaukee. They make fine products. I must make a note to purchase some next time I'm at the supermarket.
Yes it does have that effect Span...I must start to look at how I can work it into my cocktails again...
North Star, I mentioned Barr thinking about Barr's most famous drink that does seem to have a market across the UK and is called Irn Brew...and the other reason I mentioned Barr is because it sponsors some tv programmes in Scotland and of course who lives in Scotland that we know...Angelic.
I remember Angelic talking about Irn Brew. I'd never heard of it, although I'd like to try it, just to learn what it tastes like.
Root beer isn't "that" available in the UK although Gildy would know a darn sight more than me if it is. It's my favourite fizzy drink and has a strange aftertaste/reminder of Germoline! (that should be a bad thing!)
I wondered if I was wrong about the availability of Root Beer in the UK, so I did a search on the web(and by doing so)hopefully get an idea how easy it is to buy other American soft drinks.
Already I have seen others mention that it is not on sale in the UK.
I have seen others say that you can buy it but at silly prices and it has to be ordered from special sites that I assume are importing it into the country.
And now it would appear that some shops are selling it but only in certain locations and that would be mainly in large cities or to a consumer base that fits a certain criteria(whatever that may be)
It has been mentioned that Root Beer has been and perhaps still is on sale in McDonalds.
If you google "Root Beer In The UK" you can see some of the sites that I found.
Maybe I'll buy a can of Irn Brew just to see what I think of it...where is Angelic when you need her :-)
Hi Gildy
Ginger ale... very nice with a little dash of brandy and an ice cube or 2 :)
ahem ..it's Irn Bru..
Welcome Bonnie,
Lovely to see you...thanks for the cocktail idea :-)
So...Irn Brew is close to being what we would know as Ginger Ale...what you learn.
You called?
Now am busy at the moment but I will put some input on here but our Irn Bru is made from girders.........
Yes of course it is (LOL)Whatever happened to that campaign?
I remember two Christmases ago a wonderful(and I suspect expensaive advertising campaign)based on The Snowman Children's Tale that was very good, I was hoping it might be shown again last Christmas but if it was I didn't see it...perhaps it could not be shown because anything considered as "Junk" or fast food must not be advertised in a way that attracts children.
Having tuned into STV the other night...I did notice that Barr's do seem to make a large variety of soft drinks...yet again not available in general in England from what I can see.
It's a bit pricey, but you can buy American sodas here:
http://www.americansoda.co.uk
Not that you'd want to pay the prices. And I'm sure your local varieties are just as good.
I'm not sure what germolene tastes like, but if it has a root beer taste, it must be good!
Yes, it's not something I'd suggest trying NS...I'm kind of wondering how I think I know what Germoline tastes like as it's an ointment you put on wounds!
I assume that Geromine is available in the States(if not brandwise)I bet that the formula is and it is sold under a different name.
My germolene comment was in reference to Span's comment about root beer reminding him of it. (I presume he didn't mean he'd actually tasten the stuff!)I've never seen germolene sold over here, and a quick web search didn't reveal what the comparable American product might be.
Root beer though: A&W is my favorite, Barq's is pretty good. But both are mass-produced. More flavorful varieties can be found at regional manufacturers, such as Sprecher.
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