After enjoying a mule of Moscow, or a stormy dark Moscow, you would have heard about ginger beer, a fermented and bubbly cocktail mixer for those who love these items. Even after being this popular, some people still are left unaware of even its existence. Unlike the drink, also called the cousin of ginger beer, ginger ale, ginger beer is much more “Gingery” in taste because it is fermented naturally instead of being carbonated. We can say that it is also made with the roots of ginger.
History
Ginger Beer got originated in the mid-1700s in Yorkshire, England. The beer was first known as an alcoholic beer which is made up of sugar, ginger, water, and a ginger beer plant (its starter).
The drinks that are made with hops or grains are usually alcoholic, and ginger beer is never made with hops and grains. Ginger beer (alcoholic) has a close resemblance or similarity with hard cider or wine due to its alcoholic nature due to fermentation and different levels of sugar.
Does Ginger Beer Contain Alcohol?
The classic and original form of Ginger Beer is made from ginger, spice, sugar, and yeast and originally had an alcohol content of up to 11%. Some of the new forms of ginger beer only contain 2% of alcohol in order to comply with excise tax laws. This is a very small amount of alcohol as compared to the amount of alcohol added in various other beers and types of alcohol like champagne, vodka, whiskey, etc.
What is Ginger Beer?
A ginger beer, being formed today, is more like a soda. The real cause of it is that it is being manufactured instead of being brewed or fermented. In the 1920s, people fell addicted to ginger beer and then made out ways to form a non-alcoholic version of the beer.
So today, beers are formed in a variety of different ways; some of the beers are specifically fermented with champagne yeast, while others are made under forced carbonation (a process used to form soft and fizzy drinks). Some ginger beers taste more like ginger ale with a spice of extra ginger. These processes can only lead to a confused situation.
How is Ginger Beer Made?
The most classic form of Ginger Beer is formed by adding a colony of yeast and Lactobacillus (it is a friendly gut of bacteria), which can also be known as the ginger plant. Like Daenerys Targaryen, various other names also implicate to show the Ginger Plant.
These names include Bees Wine, Californian Bees, Palestinian Bees, and the balm of Gilead. You should know that ginger beer’s formation always starts with a symbiotic culture of yeast and bacteria named SCOBY, just like the Kombucha.
The hardest part in forming the Ginger Beer is the Ginger Beer Plant. It specifically includes the brewing of the combination of GBP (Ginger Beer Plant), ginger, water, sugar, juice of lemon, and various spices and then letting the mixture ferment for a few days.
Is Ginger Beer Healthy?
The question related to the health of a person after drinking a ginger beer totally depends upon the brand of ginger beer along with the amount of sugar added in. As we all know that ginger is very helpful for the health of a person as it has some notable effects and benefits on health. When we have had stomach problems like aches etc., it was mostly treated with ginger ale, as prescribed by our mothers.
Some researchers say that this has an anti-inflammatory property. But despite all these factors, it is not termed to be a good source for health if you are going to take in ginger beer. Doctors don’t prescribe it. The experts recommend ginger beer as a massive substitute for alcohol and a mixer of mocktails.
Like if you are a drinker of beer or cider, then ginger beer is a great option to opt for as it is non-alcoholic and fizzy and spicy, ginger’s goodness.
Alcoholic Level and Beer
Talking about Ginger Beer, we should know that it only contains 0.5% of alcohol in it. It makes it non-alcoholic. Most people classify it as a non-alcoholic drink. Let’s move on to the beer. Many people think that it contains beer, but the beer present in ginger beer is defined as unreal.
The beer inside isn’t made or formed by using the same method of beer formation and is not formed with any sort of alcohol. The process isn’t related to the process of forming any alcoholic beer. Instead, we can say that the process is closely related to or similar to the process that is used to form any hard cider.
Caffeinated or Alcoholic
Most people would say that this drink contains alcohol or caffeine as the name beer is added to it, but experts say that ginger beer is non-alcoholic and not caffeinated. Most probably, it is a form of non-alcoholic drink, which is more sweetened and gingery flavored. We can simply distinguish it from a ginger ale by its color, flavor and taste. So, even if the word beer is added, it is still non-caffeinated and non-alcoholic.
Are There Only Non-Alcoholic Ginger Beers?
As it contains only 0.5% of alcohol, so many people classify it as non-alcoholic, but primarily it is not. The original form of this drink included the fermentation of water, sugar, and ginger altogether. But these new commercial brands of alcohol cite them as a non-alcoholic beverages as they contain very little to no amount of alcohol added in. If you want to drink a non-alcoholic ginger beer, it would be better to read the labels of ingredients before buying or opening the bottle.
Conclusion
These factors show that ginger beer can be both alcoholic and non-alcoholic based on its process of manufacturing. If it is fermented, then it would contain alcohol, but when it is formed in factories under manufacturing processes, then it becomes a non-alcoholic drink. So, if you ever want to take a gulp of the non-alcoholic beer of ginger, you are advised to read the labels well before opening the bottle.
I am a passionate beer connoisseur with a deep appreciation for the art and science of brewing. With years of experience tasting and evaluating various beers, I love to share my opinions and insights with others and I am always eager to engage in lively discussions about my favorite beverage.
