"ginger beer" news and stories

Spicy ginger root has long been a part of the bar world. In early America it wasn't uncommon to find home-brewed ginger beer in local taverns and family homes. Ginger beer breweries existed in the US up until Prohibition. Today, however, when you ask for ginger ale or ginger beer you typically get a fizzy soda pop with no alcohol content.

But a few commercial brands can still be found on store shelves. Jamaica's Finest packs a spicy punch. Bermuda boasts Barritt's, the traditional ingredient in the classic Dark and Stormy cocktail, a mix of Gosling's Rum and ginger beer typically served with a lime wedge. (The Dark and Stormy made it as the first entry into The Institute for Cocktail Excellence's Mixology Hall of Fame in the Modern Classic Category.) With the popularity of the Dark and Stormy, now even Gosling's rum has its own version of ginger beer. On the gourmet soda front, many prefer Reed's, Fever Tree, or Fentiman's.

Many bartenders make ingredients from scratch in order to give their guests a special experience that goes beyond opening a bottle and a can. Jeffrey Morgenthaler, bar manager at Portland, Oregon's Clyde Common, started experimenting with homemade ginger beer and blogged the details of his ginger adventures. Two years later, people are still posting comments, offering advice and asking more questions.

Recipes and more after the jump...

For a couple of years in the 1990s, I drank ginger beer all the time. I can't even remember what brands I used to drink, but I was always experimenting with the stuff to see what cocktails I could come up with. I have to admit I never tried mixing it with apple.

This is the Apple Bomb, and besides ginger beer it features applejack, apple juice, and a lot of apple pieces on a skewer.