Ginger Soda ("Beer"/"Ale"/etc) and Other Foods

[feedmec00kies]

So after reading this post on GUS (grown up soda) by Pam R, and this post about making non-alcoholic ginger beer by hummingbirdkiss, I decided to make a branch-off topic from the GUS post about bottled ginger sodas (for lack of a better general word), since I didn't want to totally hijack the thread.

I like ginger a lot, and so for ginger sodas I've been drinking Reed's Extra Ginger Brew because that's the first one I really liked. It purportedly contains 25 grams of ginger, which is more than their regular one, obviously (hence the "extra"). I like things that aren't too sweet (I personally wouldn't mind if they took a little of the sugar out of the Reed's); basically, just barely enough sugar to give it a little sweetness to balance the spiciness. I like the Reed's a lot, but I'm curious about what's out there because it's easier to ask opinions than to spend the money to try every one of them (although that's not quite out of the question... problem is that not many places let you break 4- or 6-packs of every drink they sell, and I haven't seen any ginger sodas at the beer stores I've been in which will sell you singles).

And I know, I know, I could make it myself if I wanted... and eventually I probably will... but I'm lazy and there are so many other things I want to make first! Plus, being bottled is nice and convenient....erm, even if it looks sketchy when I drink it while driving.

Also, any other prepared ginger foods (like candies and such)? I like the Ginger People ginger chews (although spicy apple is a little too hot for me), though their "Gin-Gins" (hard candies) are too sweet and not gingery enough for me. I haven't had their ginger beer though, but I had their ginger soother and wasn't too impressed. I also have a bag of dried ginger from Trader Joe's that I like to much a piece or two from once in a while.

MMmmmmmmm... ginger! And to think I used to hate it all those years.. (What do you want, I was a kid! Those slices kept popping up in the steamed fish my mom would make and whatever other Chinese things she made with ginger in it.. it was too much for me to handle back then.)

[DCP]

We are also big fans of Reed's Ginger Brew. It's the only drink of its kind I ever see for sale on a regular basis - in my case, at the local Trader Joe's. There was another ginger drink we spied recently at a beverage outlet in West Philly (think it was Brewers' Outlet at 46th and Spruce), but don't recall the name - just astonishment at the time that a random hole-in-the-wall would have such an interesting/unusual drink.

Perhaps off-topic, but our favorite way to enjoy Reed's Ginger Brew is with a shot of yellow (or if you like things stronger, green) Chartreuse and a few dashes of Angostura bitters. Pour over a tall glass of ice and enjoy the herbal party in your mouth.

[baroness]

Ting Ting Jahe, an Indonesian brand of chewy ginger candy, is widely available in Asian markets. The candy wrappers show a drawing of ginger root and have checkerboard ends. If you like candied ginger, you'll like Ting Ting Jahe.

[TBoner]

Sprecher Ginger Ale is my favorite, with about the same sugar level as GUS (i.e. about half of what most commercial sodas have), but much more spice than GUS. The ginger character is potent, but not overpowering.

I'm also partial to Idris Ginger Beer. This is a much spicier concoction, but there's no caramel character, just a light sugar sweetness to balance the spice of the ginger. Idris also has the advantage that, at least around here, it's sold in individual servings rather than 4-packs or 6-packs, so you an try it and, if you don't like it, you're only out a little over a buck.

[tim]

Hi,

I like the Jamaican ginger beers like D&G.

Barret's Bermudian ginger beer is also good if made from sugar. The corn syrup sweetened Barret's is not very good.

Tim

[DCP]

We are also big fans of Reed's Ginger Brew.  It's the only drink of its kind I ever see for sale on a regular basis - in my case, at the local Trader Joe's.

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I checked my pantry this evening, and clearly my recollection is not what it used to be: alongside the Reed's are a few bottles of Saranac Ginger Beer. It's not quite as spicy if my memory serves me (which it doesn't of late).

[I8U8]

A personal favourite - a brewed Ginger Beer from Bundaberg in Australia - Bundaberg Ginger Beer. Plenty of residual ginger fiber floats about in this spicy, and not too sweet Ginger Beer. Also without the slightly medicinal or metallic aftertaste I've experienced with some other brewed Ginger Beers, but perhaps I've just been unlucky

[Megan Kathleen]

Mmmm.. ginger beer. Love it.

It reminds me of living in Austin, hanging out playing dominoes at the Spider House. Had I been of age to purchase "real" beer at the time, I may never have discovered the pleasures of ginger beer!

I drink it a lot, usually buying Reed's because it is relatively cheap and readily available around here. The range of flavors is nice, too. At times, a megadose of ginger is lost on me; the option of lighter body with less astringent tingle without compromising the ginger taste is nice. I've recently tried Natural Brew a few times; I find it to be pretty weak. It tastes stale and muted to me.

Sometimes I bring a few bottles of ginger beer to parties when I don't feel like drinking alcohol.

Sometimes I have one here in the restaurant's office around 3pm. (There's always at least one in the fridge.)

Ever made a ginger beer float? I do that when I'm feeling particularly decadent. I have yet to try it with the Reed's ginger ice cream.

[tim]

Hi,

A drier Ginger Beer is the perfect deglazing liquid for pork. It is also fun to flame with black rum, squirt some lime for acidity and finish with hot sherry peppers.

All of the leftovers belong in a highball glass with some ice.

Tim

[Toliver]

Reeds Ginger Candy is quite good.

A friend keeps my supply well-stocked so I can't tell you where to get them.

They're a soft fruit-gel sort of candy that have a tendency to get hotter (as in spicy) the longer you chew them. So if you like spicy foods, I recommend them.

[feedmec00kies]

Ting Ting Jahe, an Indonesian brand of chewy ginger candy, is widely available in Asian markets. The candy wrappers show a drawing of ginger root and have checkerboard ends. If you like candied ginger, you'll like Ting Ting Jahe.

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Yeah, I actually just had a piece of it recently; my boyfriend gave me a piece because he mentioned trying it and he said it was almost too spicy for him. It was very good, but I've had spicier.

Yeah, the heat itself isn't really what I desire, but sometimes if there isn't any noticeable heat, it's less likely that there's enough ginger flavor, which is the reason I tend towards the spicier stuff..

[Liz_W]

A personal favourite - a brewed Ginger Beer from Bundaberg in Australia - Bundaberg Ginger Beer. Plenty of residual ginger fiber floats about in this spicy, and not too sweet Ginger Beer. Also without the slightly medicinal or metallic aftertaste I've experienced with some other brewed Ginger Beers, but perhaps I've just been unlucky

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I'll second that. Bundaberg's ginger beer is awesome. It's sweeter than Reed's, I think, but is very well balanced, and has this incredible rich, spicy ginger flavor. It's tough to find in the states, unfortunately. I've found a few places you can order from, but can only afford it when the drinks go on drastic sale. Reed's isn't a bad substitute, though -- I love their extra ginger brew, and their ginger ice cream is worth seeking out.

On a somewhat tangential note, Bundaberg's lemon lime & bitters drink is also quite good.

[BrentKulman]

Speaking of ginger ice cream, Capogiro Gelato in Philadelphia often uses ginger in conjunction with other flavors to create very interesting taste sensations.

[Megan Kathleen]

Oh boy. I think I'll have to go pick some up for the weekend, since it's going to be hot.

[pennbrew]

I love ginger. I also like "hurt-me" levels of spiciness.

My problem with ginger beers is that if they're very spicy, the heat is added via capsicum (pepper) and ginger extract (rather than real ginger). Those that are made from real ginger are not gingery or spicy enough for my taste.

I'm in the process of starting up a new small brewery in Pennsylvania and am thinking about making a couple of sodas, including a ginger beer. My idea is to brew it using a huge amount of ginger--kind of the Imperial IPA of ginger beers. The ginger supplier I'm brainstorming with has said that using more and more ginger will throw the flavor balance out of whack. I think more and more ginger flavor and heat is what I want.

So what do y'all think? Does anyone else share my ginger obsession, or would I be making it for an audience of one?

Thanks!

---Guy

[nibor]

One of the best deserts I ever had was ginger ice cream paired with hunks of pink grapefruit. The sum was a million times the parts. I don't even like grapefruit.

This was at Eugene Kang's in Pasadena.

[feedmec00kies]

Mmmm, I for one would drink really gingery ginger soda, but.. well.. I'm just one. And I started this thread.

The grapefruit + ginger ice cream sounds delicious. Now I need to find some ginger ice cream next time I'm at the market.

[pax]

I've been making myself a carrot pineapple ginger root juice thing every morning for a while now. Extra ginger. Most mornings I cheat on juicing the ginger root, with the help of The Ginger People.

Homemade dark chocolate ice cream with chopped candied ginger is brilliant.

[faine]

Yum, I love Ting Ting Jahe. It's got a nice chew to it. It reminds me a bit of White Rabbit with less chemicals.

Ginger ice cream is also a wonderful thing. I had a great desert of fresh ginger ice cream with pear and berry crumble at John Andrews in Stockbridge, Massachusetts a month ago....the combination of cold melty spicy ice cream with warm crisp was to die for.

Anyone else a ginger snap freak? We like the three ginger variety from Trader Joe's, although I'd like to try making a tastier variant on those suckers at home someday.

[miladyinsanity]

Green & Blacks has a ginger bar that I plan to try.

[feedmec00kies]

Green & Blacks has a ginger bar that I plan to try.

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Let us know how it is! I've drooled over that one for a while (but there is waaaaay too much chocolate lying around at home and I don't eat much of it... damn trip to Belgium...)

[emilyr]

Anyone else a ginger snap freak? We like the three ginger variety from Trader Joe's, although I'd like to try making a tastier variant on those suckers at home someday.

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Ooh! I am!

I make the ginger snap recipe (except I think they call it a ginger thin - i'm not sure) from the '73 era Joy of Cooking and load it up with chili/pepper powders and some fresh grated ginger too - call them atomic ginger snaps. Last year I used ancho cili powder for smokiness and straight cayenne for spice. (PS - I can't tell you exactly how much I add because I just do it to taste, but I can tell you don't do it based on the taste of the dough - the flavors get much stronger when baked!! just trust me on this one!) I roll them in demarara sugar for a crackled, crunchy outside.

They're also great because you can get different textures depending on how you bake them. For chewy cookies I go with a heaping teaspoon ball and bake til they're not quite set in the middle. For crispy cookies (which I like the best), smaller balls - roughly half a teaspoon - baked until they're cooked all the way through. On cooling, they have a great snap.

Back OT, when I was out east this fall, I had the Ithaca Brewing/Soda Company's ginger beer. It's good, but a bit sweet. Also, a chain restaurant around here HuHot has ginger beer that I go back for. The foods ok (build your own stir fry), but the ginger beer is not only spicy and tasty, not too sweet, but has extra chunks of grated ginger added to it for service.

[Katie Meadow]

The more Ting Ting Jahe I eat the more I want. Very addictive. I haven't had any ginger beer for a while, but I used to like Stewarts. My memory is that it was pretty spicy. I don't remember thinking the heat was peppery (as opposed to gingery), but it never occured to me.

Need a quick fix and can't find ginger ice cream? One summer I became obsessed with ginger floats. Favorite vanilla ice cream in a tall glass of ginger beer. Nice with a little paper umbrella!

[mizducky]

How the hell did I miss this topic when it first started?

Perhaps off-topic, but our favorite way to enjoy Reed's Ginger Brew is with a shot of yellow (or if you like things stronger, green) Chartreuse and a few dashes of Angostura bitters.  Pour over a tall glass of ice and enjoy the herbal party in your mouth.

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As a fan of Chartreuse, I have to say that this sounds totally awesome. Goes on my list of Things to Try Real Soon.

Continuing in a boozy vein, Reed's also makes a damn fine Moscow Mule. (I'm sure any of the gourmet brews would, it's only Reed's I've had an opportunity to try this with.)

Leaving the booze behind, Knudsen's makes a lemon/ginger/echinacea juice/tea blend that is awesome--not too sweet, so both the lemon and ginger retain their bite (only sweeteners are white grape juice and honey). I can't speak for any of the health benefits of this concoction, but I sure feel a helluva lot more bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after a slug of this stuff.

(Edited to fix the errors I caught, at least)

Edited December 13, 2007 by mizducky (log)

[Natho]

A personal favourite - a brewed Ginger Beer from Bundaberg in Australia - Bundaberg Ginger Beer. Plenty of residual ginger fiber floats about in this spicy, and not too sweet Ginger Beer. Also without the slightly medicinal or metallic aftertaste I've experienced with some other brewed Ginger Beers, but perhaps I've just been unlucky

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Bundy GB represent

I also love the horehound but only one other of my friends does as well, i get crap from the rest for drinking old man drinks..

I love crystalised ginger, the hotter the better straight out of the pack. When i was on a week long road trip I ate it all the time to avoid motion sickness and it worked a treat!

Bundy GB is still the best. I always try others but none of them stack up. Well, not the non-alcoholic ones anyway..