9/22/11 - Don't get Duped Like George Constanza

If you order Ginger Ale in restaurants, odds are that a server has tried to pull a fast one on you. Unfortunately, experiences like George Costanza's are all too familiar.

For those who were unaware, placing a tiny drop of Coke into a full glass of Sprite can make a slight "Ginger-Ale-Esque" looking and tasting beverage. Many servers will do this as a shortcut to save time.

Most restaurants have Ginger Ale on fountain at their bar. But it normally takes longer to walk to the bar than to perform the Coke/Sprite trick. No doubt, thousands of people today will be served Sprite/Coke "Ginger Ale's" and have no idea they're being bamboozled.

Why do people not notice? Because most Ginger Ale from a fountain is low quality anyways. It's hard to look for the ginger bite and spice if there is no ginger bite and spice to look for. But that doesn't make it any less wrong.

Next time you order Ginger Ale in "fountain drink form", be on high alert. You don't want to get duped like George; no one deserves a fake watered down Ginger Ale. For full tasting Ginger Ale's, check out our World Top 10 Rankings.

(Note: Most servers will laugh it off and bring you a real Ginger Ale from the bar if they are caught. Don't be afraid to ask.)

9/12/11 - Gourmet Showcase Results

Our First Public Gourmet Taste-Test is complete, and we couldn't have been happier with the event. We had a great turn-out, as well as plenty of great beverages for everyone.

Winner of the Ginger Ale category was Boylan Bottleworks. Boylan also swept the Cream Soda and Root Beer Categories. Best Specialty beverage went to Reed's Spiced Apple Brew. Best Mixer went to the newcomer, Q Ginger.

Side note on Reed's 'Spiced Apple Brew' and Q Tonic's 'G Ginger' -- These were two of the better drinks I have tasted in my life. Take my advice and do what you can to sample these sodas. Reed's can be found in most grocery stores nationwide. Q Ginger is rather new, but can be found on Amazon.com.

Reed's Spiced Apple Brew tastes like apple pie. It is almost 50% fruit juice, but still has great mainstream soda crispness (unlike spritzers that try to minimic that flavor). Q Ginger was one of the more interesting experiences I've had with a soft drink. Normally when you call a drink unique, it's not necessarily a compliment. But that's not the case here. This was some of the most fun I've had sampling a soda. Any drink mixer or bar connoisseur needs to add it to their repertoire. --

Something very evident during the Showcase was how shocked people were when they compared gourmet drinks to generic soda's like Coke, Pepsi or grocery store brands. They were blown away at the comparative poor quality of most generic sodas. Most participants said that they had simply never thought of purchasing a specialty soda. Hopefully we can do more events in the future and keep spreading the word...

More pictures and info from the showcase to come this week!

 

9/8/11 - Gourmet Showcase & Taste Test Today!

What better way to kick off the new GAA Blog than to announce our First Gourmet Soda Showcase and Taste Test. The event will be held today at the upscale Southern Roots Restaurant in Downtown Jamestown, North Carolina (just outside Greensboro). The entire even is totally free thanks to the donations of several Gourmet Bottlers. Ale-8-one, Q Ginger (Q Tonic), Reed's, Virgil's, Boylan Bottleworks and Zevia will all be represented.

We'll be testing for the following categories: Ginger Ale, Root Beer, Cream Soda, Best Mixer and Best Specialty Beverage.

Although this seems to be just a local event, we intend to begin launching more taste-tests on a larger scale. Hopefully the press generated from the events will allow more to take place. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions. We'll be updating with pictures and information via this site and twitter.