Dark and Stormy. Moscow Mule. Two favorite warm weather cocktails that rely on ginger beer as one of the main ingredients. But wait: ginger beer doesn't actually have any beer in it. So then how does it differ from the beloved ginger ale?
First thing's first: ginger beer was the very beginning. It originated in the 1800's in England and, at that time, did contain a small percentage of alcohol. Around 100 years later, the ginger ale we've come to know and love was developed and came to be known as Canada Dry. The difference? Ginger beer is actually brewed and fermented while ginger ale is essentially a carbonated beverage made from water and ginger. Ginger beer often has much more of a "gingery" flavor and because it's fermented, is less carbonated. My favorite brands are the unfiltered ginger beers like Seattle's fantastic Rachel's Ginger Beer - it is slightly cloudy and has an unprecedented ginger flavor. I've started to buy ginger beer at the store now instead of ginger ale because the latter often has so much more sugar and often isn't even made with real ginger.
Related: Try This! Easy Homemade Ginger Ale
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I've always loved ginger ale, but I discovered recently that I LOVE love ginger beer. I even went so far to get a case of Goslings cans so I can have some on hand whenever I'm in the mood for a particularly tasty cocktail.
I was first introduced to ginger beer in Kenya (Stoney's... a coca cola product actually, but definitely not available in the us) and I've never looked back. It's not as sweet as ginger ale and has a much bigger kick. Delicious!
I brew my own ginger beer. I get anywhere from 2-6% alcohol by volume depending on which fermentation method/process I use.
I love the ginger kick I get from the fermented stuff. The heat can be augmented by adding peppers into the mix. I sometimes add habanero to my sugar solution for a nice fiery kick.
BF was drinking bourbon decays for a while, mixed with the usual ginger ale. But then he had one mixed with ginger beer and found it so flavourful and lively he renamed them 'bourbon revivals'
Ginger Beer is also a great thing to have on hand for minor tummy upsets. It's yummy and helps with heartburn and other mild gut ailments. We are able to get Reeds Extra Ginger Brew here at local Trader Joes and "regular" grocery stores.
I LOVE ginger beer, but it's frustrating that I have to go to a Caribbean market to find some -- since there is no Caribbean market nearby.
Mmm... ginger beer and roti...
I have a little more information on this here, including how Ginger Beer is made, on one of my Kitchen Mysteries at Fine Cooking's site.
I adore both ginger ale and ginger beer, but the latter actually upsets my stomach quite a bit. I would have been a failure as an Enid Blyton character.
I've been a ginger beer fan for a few years. While I enjoy a Moscow Mule, I'm more into whiskey than vodka. Hence, what I call a Gov't. Mule (bourbon + Gosling's). Not sure what the real name is, but I don't care - they taste great!
I've made my own ginger beer using the recipe in Sandor Katz's _Wild Fermentation_. it came out just slightly alcoholic, but if the book is to believed most of the bubbles came from lactofermentation, not yeast. (ginger inhibits yeast growth) The stuff was delicious.
Thank you, RIVERCAT0338; that was a great comment. I had only ever heard of ginger beer in Enid Blyton's books when I was a kid, and (as I'm an American) I remember wondering what on earth it was.
When I was pregnant, ginger ale was all I could drink that didn't turn my stomach. After a while, I had to start inventing new drinks with it since it was getting a bit monotonous. Cranberry juice and ginger ale is still a favorite, my Cos-faux-politan.
Ginger doesn't upset the stomach -- ginger's active ingredient relaxes smooth muscles, which reduces nausea... but unfortunately also relaxes the pyloric sphincter (which connects the stomach to the esophagus), which means you can get heartburn from stomach acid bubbling up.
But please keep the darn chiles out of the ginger beer! I love the refreshing crisp qualities of ginger beer, but the chile-enhanced versions certainly can't quench a thirst.
After discovering ginger beer, i can't go back to ginger ale, it's just too boring. My all time favorite ginger beer is Bundaberg which is kinda hard to find but its stocked at World Market. My sister has been buying me different varieties of ginger beer but some are so strong they're like acid. We're getting our first Trade Joes in Utah soon, I'm super excited to raid the soda aisle!
There's also an alcoholic ginger beer by Crabbie's - it's fabulous! It has the bite of ginger beer, plus alcohol.
Given, we all know Canada Dry, but does anyone actually love it? It doesn't taste like ginger at all. I guess if you just like sugar flavored soda and not ginger flavored soda, that's one thing, but I still find it so weird that that is what most people think of when they think of ginger ale. Yuck.
Anyway, Crabbies ginger beer rules, hopefully they widen their US distribution soon. I also like Thomas Kemper ginger ale for my non-alcoholic ginger experience. Mmmm.
I grew up with Ginger Ale, but when I moved to Milwaukee, WI and visited a local brewery, Sprecher, I tasted their brewed ginger beer and it is absolutely amazing. I am a fan of ginger beer for life!
@sugarmagnolias, between your user name and your cocktail name, I'm suspecting we have been on the same tours. Like Gov't Cheese.
As for ginger, th estronger the better!
Ginger Beer for life!!!
I grew up in Australia where nothing was more satisfying on unbearably hot summer days than the stubby little bottles of Bundaberg Ginger Beer. Seriously. Sometimes at the markets you could find freshly brewed stuff and it was even better. When I moved to Canada I was very sad to find that a lot of people didn't even know what Ginger Beer was, it's damn near impossible to find. I am always reminded of reading Enid Blyton's Famous Five, their adventures and beach picnics with "boiled eggs, pickles and lashings of ginger beer".
I second the love for Bundaberg ginger beer. Discovered it when I visited Australia and found out that it was not only delicious but a sure-fire guardian against motion sickness. You can get in the US at Cost Plus World Markets -- not sure about Canada.
Ooh, I might have to try ginger beer. I hate Canada Dry--it's so weak! Now Vernor's... oh how I miss my Vernor's ginger ale! My parents bring some when they come to visit (but only if they drive, of course). Next time they've promised to bring cases and cases. :)
The U. Akron Press conducted a taste test of a variety of ginger ales on their blog a year or two ago; I think they sampled half a dozen locally available ginger ales.
This stuff flat out rocks....
http://www.regattagingerbeer.com/
In San Francisco there is a small maker, Sodacraft, who makes a really ginger packed ginger beer. I also had an excellent one when I was abroad in Dublin, Ireland at Green 19 (I don't recall who the maker was).
All about ginger beer. Nothing like an icy cold one with a splash of rye and twist of lime to cool things down during the summer.
Rachel's! Even better: head to Montana (the bar, in Seattle) for Moscow Mules on tap. Made with Rachel's Ginger Beer.
@truepeacenik - I think you're right about the tour thing! In fact, I've enjoyed quite a few Govt. Mule cocktails at music fests this summer, and they're quite refreshing!
I taught English in China for a year, and in the winter, where I was at in Hubei Province, they added "matchsticks" of ginger to Coca Cola in a tea kettle and heated it up. Almost like making a ginger tea using the Coke in place of water. It's pretty much flat after having been heated, but it was so good. I am making some yeast fermented ginger ale/beer that was linked to here on Kitchn. I am from Michigan, so definitely a fan of Vernor's, which is usually not listed as ginger ale, but as "an effervescent ginger soda