Talk:Ginger ale

UBC FNH 200 Project - Intention to Edit

We plan to address the following questions for our research project:

What enzymes are involved in the fermentation of ginger ale?

What are the starting reactants and final product in the fermentation of ginger ale?

What are the microorganisms that contributes to the carbonation of ginger ale?

What is the compositional difference between ginger ale and ginger beer?

Reliable Sources of Information:

https://www.canadadry.ca/#home

http://www.silbrands.com/

https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/03/business/all-about-ginger-ale-a-dowdy-soft-drink-in-search-of-a-new-age-remake.html

Cleaned up

Hopefully more useful article now. /BP 81.225.216.15 (talk) 00:02, 18 August 2012 (UTC)

ginger content

Does ginger ale, such as the Seagram's I'm drinking now, contain ginger or not? Ginger isn't listed among the ingredients. If ginger is not commonly in ginger ale, the article should indicate this. 66.173.169.51 (talk) 23:00, 28 June 2008 (UTC)jnewark How much Ginger is in Dry Ginger Ale?

A bushel.

Does Ginger ale have caffine?

Usually not. As a matter of fact I have yet to find a Ginger ale that has any ginger in it either. Schweppes', the only brand widely available in Germany, contains sugar, water and carbonic acid -- everything else is just a magical ingredient labelled "natural aroma", which doesn't taste anything like ginger. -- Ashmodai 17:18, 21 July 2005 (UTC)

Most ginger ales do not have caffeine, but some do. Ale-8-One, for example has 38 mg per 12-oz. serving (44 mg for Diet Ale-8)--more than Coca Cola. See their product information. (Ale-8 is advertised as a "soft drink" rather than a "ginger ale," but Bevnet and other sources classify it as a ginger ale.) And are you sure about commercial ginger ales not having ginger? Classic recipes are made from ginger, among other ingredients (lemon, for example). --Tom Allen 01:42, July 22, 2005 (UTC)

Classic recipes maybe, but not commercial soft drinks. Schweppes' American Ginger Ale is neither a ginger drink nor an ale (there's nothing fermented in it, ESPECIALLY not any ginger -- unless "natural aroma" qualifies, which would be rather sad) and the same seems to be true for most "ginger ales". I'd rather label Schweppes' AGA as a soft drink with "ginger ale" flavour (although it really just tastes carbonated and sweet, more than anything else) than as a real Ginger Ale.

Apparently one of the major differences is that a Ginger Ale needn't contain any actual (fermented) ginger, whereas a Ginger Beer usually does (and thus a "good", i.e. ginger-rich, ginger beer tends to have a sharp taste whereas a ginger ale is expected to be much milder), and thus also contains some alcohol (~0.5 % vol). -- Ashmodai 07:32, 22 July 2005 (UTC)

The ingredients in Schweppes' are, if I remember correctly of the top of my head, Carbonated Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Citric Acid, Natural Flavors, Sodium Benzoate, and Caramel Color. The other common brand around where I live, Canada Dry, has the same list except slightly different order, I think Natural Flavors and Sodium Benzoate are switched, though it might be Sodium Benzoate and Caramel Color. The article should reflect the lack of ginger. And there's no caffeine in any ginger ale I've ever seen. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.6.9.145 (talk) 22:28, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

Except that there is no lack of ginger. In fact Canada Dry boosts "made with real ginger" right on the label. It is a matter of amounts and secret recipes. Rmhermen (talk) 22:39, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

I made a small note in the usage section that most ginger ales do not contain ginger extract but rather ginger flavoring. Just FYI. Not sure if Canada dry does or not, but I'm hoping that it does, seeing as how I'm drinking it to help with my sore stomach. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jr637 (talk • contribs) 21:47, 28 May 2012 (UTC)

What is your source for this claim? Rmhermen (talk) 05:15, 29 May 2012 (UTC)

Afaik, in most jurisdictions, if an ingredient list or label claim says "Natural Flavor" (or "Flavour") it must contain a genuine extract from natural sources, so "ginger flavoring" is identical to "ginger extract"— I can't imagine that a manufacturer would go to the enormous trouble of synthesizing ginger flavour, with its many complex terpenes, when as Jr637 says there is no lack of ginger! This whole discussion seems excessively niggly to me, especially since commercial products may vary so much from brand to brand and time to time. The original question, "Does ginger ale...contain ginger?" is an appropriate one IMO and the article as a whole makes it clear that the answer is "Yes". So why am I bothering to reply? Well, the article does seem to have spawned an unusual amount of nugatory editing and talk, so I might as well continue the trend.... D Anthony Patriarche (talk) 21:24, 11 October 2022 (UTC)

September 29th

While consulting this article, I noticed a sentence beginning with "on September 29th" - however, the year is missing. Even if it refers to "2007", the year should be stated (1) to avoid confusion, and (2) because by next year it will be dated.

I know I should correct it myself; however, no reference was provided to the magazine(?) quoted, so I am completely in the dark. Mip | Talk 10:10, 30 October 2007 (UTC)

How can the country of origin be "Northern Ireland" if it was invented in the 19th century? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 143.239.7.3 (talk) 11:15, 8 February 2011 (UTC)

Switchel

I have to wonder if Ginger Ale orignated from Switchel.192.88.158.211 23:38, 5 November 2007 (UTC)

First line rewrite

Although ginger ale is also claimed to be an Irish invention, many recognize this tasty beverage as a Canadian creation by John McLaughlin, a chemist and pharmacist. Having established a soda water bottling plant in Toronto in 1890, McLaughlin began developing flavour extracts to add to the water in 1904. That year, he introduced "Pale Dry Ginger Ale," the bubbly libation that would be patented in 1907 as "Canada Dry Ginger Ale." An instant success, Canada Dry products were accepted by appointment to the Royal Household of the governor general, and although the company has changed hands a number of times, today the products are sold around the world. canadiangeographic.ca —Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.114.67.73 (talk) 02:37, 6 October 2010 (UTC)

First line rewrite

Ginger ale is a soft drink flavored with ginger.

change to -->

Ginger ale is an infusion made by steeping ginger into hot water. Most commercial preparations also add sugar, thus making the beverage into a soft drink.

This rewrite should be done to show the similarities between herbal tea, mate, tea, ...

Please look into and change this line. Thanks.

KVDP (talk) 13:43, 16 January 2008 (UTC)

What you are describing is a ginger tea, which is not ginger ale.--RLent (talk) 16:42, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

". . . vending machines and soda fountains rarely contain ginger ale"

That's not true in my experience.Kostaki mou (talk) 02:28, 19 April 2008 (UTC)

It varies on location. For example, soda machines at rest areas in Ohio have them but it is absent from those in Indiana. In fact, I have yet to find cold ginger ale anywhere in Indiana. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.227.1.90 (talk) 00:32, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

You're right. I was on a trip to various western states this summer and found it well-nigh impossible to find. In the east, it's quite common. Kostaki mou (talk) 00:42, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

They NEVER do in europe. 81.23.50.232 (talk) 05:37, 3 December 2009 (UTC)

Ginger Ale is a delicious soft drink flavored with ginger. Though it is a popular drink in the US, it is rarely ever in vending machines. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.135.103.46 (talk) 02:10, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

As has already been said, it varies with the location. See the comments immediately above. Kostaki mou (talk) 21:31, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

HFCS Blather

The following is made-up, fashionable nonsense: "...despite the reduction in sweetness and clarity of flavor which this brings, and despite the increased health and obesity risks of HFCS."Rt3368 (talk) 23:29, 5 November 2009 (UTC)rt3368

And the fact that HFCS is hardly used in the rest of the world (not in the UK and most of europe at least)81.23.50.232 (talk) 05:37, 3 December 2009 (UTC)

American?

Is it accurate that Cantrell was American? I don't see that stated anywhere in the reference listed. Belfast is in Ireland. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.62.168.162 (talk) 13:19, 8 January 2011 (UTC)

Add to that "Vernors [...]It was the first U.S. soft drink, originating in 1866, although it was modelled on imported Irish ginger beers" surely means there was an Irish version before there was an American version. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.50.104.238 (talk) 18:17, 15 May 2012 (UTC)

Healing properties & plan b alternative??

"Ginger ale, has recently been found to contain many wonderus healing properties, Dr. Brendan Forrest of Prime research has been experimenting with Ginger ale as a cure for herpes, A.I.D.S, syphilis, and male erectile dysfunction. Many also believe that Marvel Comics based their "super solder serum" from Captain America comics. Ginger ale has also been used as an alternative to the Plan B pill."

What the hell? Someone please tell me this article doesn't say what I think this article says. That's fucked up.--75.162.23.150 (talk) 04:51, 23 July 2011 (UTC)

"Carbonated type drink" vs. "soda in its own right"?

The first paragraph of the history section ends with this sentence:

Golden ginger ale, like ginger beer, is mainly consumed as a carbonated type drink and not a soda in its own right.

Apart from being unsupported by authority, the sentence seems to assert a distinction without a difference. Wikipedia's article on soft drinks uses "carbonated drink" and "soda" interchangeably, as far as I can discern. I'm adding a {{cn}} tag, for the time being, but unless somebody comes up with a legitimate difference between "carbonated drink" and "soda in its own right", the whole sentence should be deleted as meaningless.

Incidentally, the "type" in "carbonated type drink" is superfluous: it adds nothing to "carbonated drink", except perhaps the illusion of technical precision. I haven't bothered to delete it because I think the whole sentence should be deleted. Jdcrutch (talk) 15:57, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

Ginger ale vs. Ginger beer

What's the difference between them?

The latter is fermented and cloudy, having been brewed, thus naturally carbonated. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.49.255.159 (talk) 16:29, 17 June 2017 (UTC)

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History section mess

The history section has a comparison/contrast with ginger beer that makes no sense. Apparently there is no difference between the two drinks except for a major difference which is actually two major differences. Apparently the two drinks are essentially the same except for having difference names, different appearance and different taste. LowKey (talk) 06:03, 16 February 2015 (UTC)

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Variations — Other flavours

Subsection Other flavours is manifestly incomplete, e.g. cranberry flavour, not mentioned, is the commonest in my experience (maybe just this time of year), and a manufacturer might decide to add half a dozen new flavours tomorrow (they have! [1]https://www.canadadry.com/#/). The mint flavour is given undue prominence, IMO; that may be a regional or historical difference, in which case if we're going for completeness that s/b noted & cited. The "Canada Dry...hot ginger ale" news item failed verification and the ref links to Coca-Cola not Canada Dry. A list of "all" flavours would be almost certainly incomplete and very quickly out of date. I'm tempted to redact the subsection into a single sentence but for now I've just added cleanup tags. D Anthony Patriarche (talk) 20:38, 11 October 2022 (UTC)

History—invention?

The first sentence in the History section, "Ginger ale is known to be first produced by the watchmaker and silversmith Jacob Schweppe in 1783 in Geneva.", is unreferenced and afaik untrue. Schweppe in 1783 is said by some to have made the first carbonated water, but he in turn attributed the discovery to Jacob Priestley, who is indeed credited with the invention in his Wikipedia article. I can find no reference to Jacob Schweppe himself making a ginger ale. Possibly Schweppe made the first commercial carbonated water. The company Schweppe moved to England soon after, and presumably started making its now-famous ginger ale by the early twentieth century; perhaps another scholar may wish to find a reliable reference to Schweppe (the company?) inventing dry ginger ale—historical "firsts" are always interesting—but the attribution to Canadian John J. McLaughlin in the 3rd para seems much better attested. I am removing the uncited sentence for now. D Anthony Patriarche (talk) 22:27, 11 October 2022 (UTC)

Spelling consistency

A few months back an anonymous editor changed a couple of spellings of "flavour" and "colour" to the American "flavor" and "color", under the mistaken impression they were typos. Sbishop then made the change to USA spelling consistent throughout the article, except that they missed the Other flavours subsection or it later reverted. WP policy prefers consistent spelling style within an article, so in honour of Canadian John J. McLaughlin, the inventor, and following the Canadian Oxford Dictionary and the Canadian Press Style Guide, I am reverting the whole article to the original Canadian spelling in "-our". D Anthony Patriarche (talk) 22:55, 11 October 2022 (UTC)

Preservation

I doubt very much that salicylic acid is used in "most" or any commercial ginger ales, in view of its bitter taste and toxicity, The curious idea that it might be so used apparently comes from a very old home-brew recipe book from 1888. I will remove this misleading and possibly dangerous sentence altogether. I also doubt the common use of pasteurization by steam, which also comes from the 1888 book. Finally, the pH of Canada Dry being 2.82 (a suspiciously precise number) comes from a single 2016 Journal of the American Dental Association paper, which tested an arbitrary selection of beverages, all purchased in a single location, Birmingham Alabama. That is not sufficient validation for a generalized statement in Wikipedia. So the whole section vanishes. Since the whole area of preserving techniques and chemicals is proprietary, and ginger ale (as opposed to ginger beer) is very seldom prepared at home, I am deleting the section. If anyone has other relevant info on preservation to add with reliable cites it can go in the Processing section.

I am also deleting the accompanying picture of Japanese sterilized bottles, canada.dry.japan.jpg, from the article. If anyone knows how to remove it from the database (if not used elsewhere), please do. If glass bottles are still used for ginger ale anywhere in the modern world, I trust they are sterilized; we don't need a picture. D Anthony Patriarche (talk) 01:23, 12 October 2022 (UTC)