Ginger, Ginger, Ginger!

Do you ever get annoyed by people in the grocery store who linger in a particular spot, oblivious to passers-by? That’s me. The annoyer, not the annoyee. I am the one blocking the shelf with my cart while I peruse ingredient lists and compare prices. Well, to be honest, the price comparisons are just a pretense; what I really care about is quality. I feign comparing prices because I know that’s what a good Mennonite should do. However, as long as a price is not unreasonable, I am generally willing to pay more for a better product. The only thing that causes me to tarry is not knowing which product is best.

I have performed this very ritual in the soda aisle revolving around ginger ale. It is strange that I should not know which ginger ale is best considering it is the only soda I keep around the house. It is useful to have on hand for mixed drinks, upset stomachs, or just a cool, refreshing beverage that is not water, juice, or milk. Most of the time I end up buying whichever of the “Big Three” ginger ales—Canada Dry, Schweppes, or Seagram’s—is on sale.

So when my brother, Danny, mentioned the idea of a ginger ale tasting, I was immediately on board. That was a few months ago, but the idea finally came to fruition on Sunday when I hosted a Ginger Ale Tasting and Football Party.

We may have gone a little overboard with the ginger theme; my sister-in-law, Meg, led us in a ginger trivia game with gingery prizes, I made Indonesian Ginger Chicken for supper, and we even had a bonus ginger snap tasting. However, the main event of the night was the blind ginger ale tasting, led by Danny. (The NFL playoff game, Ravens v. Patriots, pretty much faded into the background.)

Our tasting was divided into five categories: the “Big Three” Dry Ginger Ales, Other Dry Ginger Ales, Golden Ginger Ales, Ginger Beers, and Homemade. Danny made a tasting worksheet for us, complete with some notes on ginger ale history. You can check out Wikipedia’s ginger ale article if you want learn about its history and the different categories.

Before I get to the results, let me just say that I only have my notes, Cris’s notes, and my memory to go on. I will do my best to represent the consensus of all eight tasters, but my memory is fallible, and Cris used the word “grabby” in his notes more than once. Any dissent can be expressed via comments.

The “Big Three” Dry Ginger Ales

Until I tasted these ginger ales side-by-side, I never knew what a difference there was between the three major brands.

Our Favorite: Schweppes

Light, crisp, and just a little tart. A good all-around ginger ale. This was the clear winner in the category.

2^nd: Seagram’s

Mild and not too sweet. Nothing to complain about here.

3^rd: Canada Dry

Mild and sweet. Maybe a little too mild, and maybe a little too sweet. Still, overall a very passable ginger ale.

Other Dry Ginger Ales

Our Favorite: Northern Neck

Could it be that the Virginia palates of the tasters favor the local brew? Northern Neck Ginger Ale has been produced in Montross, Virginia since 1926. It might be hard to find outside Virginia’s Northern Neck, but do yourself a favor and take a trip there, not just for the ginger ale, but for the other attractions as well. This was my favorite of all the ginger ales we tasted. It was nice and crisp, not too sweet, and it had a stronger ginger kick than most of the other drys. Fantastic!

2^nd: Chill

Chill is a cheap store brand available at Red Front Supermarket. Cris’s notes simply said “good.” I liked the ginger flavor, but there were some other flavor notes that were so-so. I was slightly more reserved and rated it “pretty good.”

3^rd: Dominion

This Virginia brew did not fare as well as its compatriot. It was sweet and gingery, but unremarkable.

Polar

“More Ginger, Less Sugar” is the tagline for this Worcester, Massachusetts ginger ale. Alas, we found it lacking in flavor other than an undesirable aftertaste.

Golden Ginger Ales

Our Favorite: Reed’s Original Ginger Brew

Reed’s Inc. touts the natural ingredients in their ginger brews. The honey and pineapple sweeteners seem to work because Reed’s took the top two honors in the golden category. Our favorite was the Original. The unusual ingredients lend it a unique flavor. Gingery. Peppery. Tasty.

2^nd: Reed’s Premium Ginger Brew

Similar to the Original brew. Premium is mildly sweet with a good ginger flavor. Refreshing.

3^rd: Ale-8-One

The only caffeinated ginger ale of the whole tasting, Ale-8-One is a regional drink from Winchester, Kentucky. While I enjoyed the mild ginger flavor, I found this one overly sweet.

A-Treat

A-Treat is a ginger ale from Allentown, Pennsylvania. Cris’s notes indicate that it is “plain old good.” I found it lacking in flavor and just kinda blah.

Vernors

According to Wikipedia, Vernors is “America’s oldest surviving soft drink.” It was created in Detroit, Michigan in 1866. The first thing we noticed about Vernors was the aroma. Some said it smelled like vomit, perhaps due to the barrel aging. Despite the odor, the flavor was OK. However, many of us thought it tasted more like cream soda than ginger ale. It was sweet and lacking in ginger flavor.

Ginger Beers

Our Favorite: Reed’s Extra Ginger Brew

It was difficult to choose a favorite ginger beer, but I think we all liked Reed’s Extra. It was more gingery (gingerier?) than the ginger ales we sampled, though not terribly pungent. Like the other Reed’s varieties, it had a good flavor.

Goya Jamaican Style

By far, Goya ginger beer had the most kick. Memorable quotations include “hot sauce ginger ale” and “it burns us!” (in a bad Gollum impression). Cris’s notes suggest using it in short bursts or possibly as an industrial solvent. My review was slightly more favorable. If you can handle the burn, it has a nice sweet, gingery flavor, not unlike the ginger beer I had when in Jamaica.

Gosling’s

Gosling’s was visibly discernible from the other varieties due to its cloudy appearance. The flavor was sweet and moderately gingery. The only problem was that it was rather flat.

Homemade

Meg made two varieties of homemade ginger ale. They were so different that there was nothing blind about this portion of the tasting. Because they were both so good, I declare a tie in this category!

Fermented/Brewed

Meg used Alton Brown’s Ginger Ale recipe, and it was wonderful. The ginger ale was slightly cloudy with a mild ginger flavor and a hint of yeast. Not too sweet. Very enjoyable.

Syrup plus Club Soda

Meg used a recipe from Epicurious for this one. It had a fresh, clean flavor that could easily be adjusted, in both amount of ginger and sweetness, to suit your taste. So refreshing!

Ginger Snaps

I am a big fan of ginger snaps, so this category (with two sub-categories) is entirely my doing. And much to my surprise, I discovered I have been buying the wrong brand of ginger snaps for years. Sorry, Murray, you have been replaced!

Regular

Our Favorite: Stauffer’s

Sweet sassy molassy ... and ginger ... and spices! Just what you want in a ginger snap. Well, all that plus snap ... which Stauffer’s ginger snaps have. Oh ... and there’s red pepper in there too. What!? Perfection!

2^nd: Murray

While I must concede that Stauffer’s is the best, my long-time favorite, Murray, is a close second. Good flavor. Good snap. Just not as good as Stauffer’s.

3^rd: Nabisco

Not too shabby. Good flavor. Good snap. Just not as good as Murray. Furthermore, all the cookies are stamped with the same fake crinkly texture. What’s the point? I would prefer a more natural look.

Kroger (store brand)

Good snap, but lacking in flavor. The leftovers of these cookies are destined to be a crumb crust.

Gluten-Free

Our Favorite: Pamela’s Products Simplebites Ginger Mini Snapz

These cookies are right up there with Stauffer’s and Murray. Excellent flavor and snap. You don’t even miss the gluten (until you eat them side by side with a regular ginger snap). The best snap in its category by far!

MI-DEL Gluten-Free Ginger Snaps

Of all the ginger snaps we sampled, this is the only one that lacked snap, an essential quality. Danny, however, really seemed to like the soft texture. (He was the only one.) The flavor was OK, but not nearly good enough to overcome its lack of snappiness.

Conclusion

What a blast! A big thank you to Danny and Meg for doing most of the work, and to all the other tasters for providing their opinions and making the evening so much fun. My shopping habits are forever changed. From now on, Schweppes will be my everyday ginger ale, though I will always opt for Northern Neck when I can get it. And Stauffer’s has replaced Murray as my must-have ginger snap, except when Andrea visits and I go gluten-free with Pamela’s Snapz. Happy Ginger Ale-ing and Snapping to you all!

Buckwheat

Week: 0
Ingredient: Wolff's Kasha (buckwheat groats)
From: Martin’s, Harrisonburg, VA
Recipe: Creamy Kasha (Buckwheat) Cereal¹

My best friend recently discovered she has a gluten allergy. I bought her The Gluten-free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods for Christmas, but she already had it. So, I kept it for myself, and I will have a reference for cooking gluten-free when she comes to visit in the future. I browsed through the cookbook, and that's where I found “Creamy Kasha Cereal.”

The recipe was perfect for a blog post because (1) I have never cooked buckwheat, and (2) I had all the ingredients on hand. So, why did I have buckwheat on hand if I never use it? I had actually had a box of buckwheat sitting in my pantry, untouched, for quite a long time. I bought it after a trip to Ukraine, where I first ate this form of buckwheat. The plan was to try to recreate some of the Ukrainian food I ate, but I never got around to it. Fortunately, buckwheat has a long shelf life!

The buckwheat I ate in Ukraine was served with vegetables and a little meat, quite unlike this sweet breakfast dish. I prepared the recipe as written with one substitution: dried cherries instead of dried cranberries. While it was cooking, I was a little skeptical. The chocolaty aroma was nice enough, but it just did not look appealing. It was brown, lumpy, and watery. Despite cooking it longer than the recipe indicated, the wateriness did not go away. (Maybe I measured wrong?) Adding the cream at the end improved the appearance, but it was still a rather homely dish.

But, all's well that ends well. It was actually very tasty, like oatmeal but with a slightly different taste (buckwheat-y!) and texture (groat-y!). In fact, the texture was quite pleasant—not at all pasty like oatmeal can sometimes be. It was quick and easy too.

Conclusion: Buckwheat is an ingredient worth using. I won't be serving “Creamy Kasha” for company any time soon, but it is certainly good enough for a family breakfast. The recipe leaves plenty of room for variation—change up the fruit, add some nuts, use honey instead of brown sugar, etc. Next time I cook buckwheat, I'll probably try it in something savory—a pilaf, perhaps. If nothing else, buckwheat is a nice alternative to oatmeal once in a while.

If you are wondering why this post is not about capon, it is because I decided I wanted a proper roasting pan before cooking my Capon. I ordered one, and it should arrive soon. The capon was frozen when I bought it, so it won't hurt to keep it in the freezer another week or two. :)

¹Bette Hagman, The Gluten-free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods (New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2004), 127.