Growing up in the Detroit area of Michigan, we always had Vernors Ginger Ale in the house. In fact, I still check my mom’s basement when I visit just to confirm that the stash is still intact. If you’re from Michigan, you know what I’m talking about.
Vernors is a cult classic in Michigan like Better Made Chips and Faygo cola. The gingery drink is so nostalgic that when I worked at Disney World for a summer, I met a fellow Michigander who had moved to Florida many years ago – he said Vernors was one thing he missed the most about living there.
Fast forward many years later, I moved to Chicago where most people never heard of Vernors and certainly didn’t drink ginger ale of any kind on a regular basis.
However, where I did finally see ginger ale in the spotlight was when flying. Traveling often to and from O’Hare, I noticed many people on my flights – young and old – selected ginger ale to drink. And most were not using it for mixed drinks, but rather drinking it plain.
Even my husband, who grew up in Chicago, confirmed that he didn’t really drink ginger ale growing up, but, as an adult, he will often order it when flying.
So why do so many people, who never drink ginger ale on the ground, suddenly get the urge to drink it while in the sky? Let’s take a look:
3 Reasons to Order Ginger Ale on a Flight
It Tastes Better – According to a 2010 German study, the combination of dryness and low pressure we experience in air travel reduces the sensitivity of our taste buds to sweet and salty foods by around 30%, making foods and drinks taste different. In the case of ginger ale, on the ground, the drink may taste very sweet, even too sweet to drink. But in the air, the ale tastes dryer, sharper and more refreshing. So in essence, this is one of the few things that actually tastes better on planes.
Ginger Helps the Stomach – It is widely known that ginger is used to help reduce nausea, upset stomach and indigestion. So if you’re a nervous flyer or have motion sickness, ginger ale may be a great option for you in the sky. Take note, not all ginger ales or ginger drinks actually contain real ginger (check the label), but if it calms your nerves regardless via a placebo effect, then so be it.
Less Fizz, Less Time – I love diet coke but fully recognize that it’s a pain for flight attendants to serve on flights. When poured in the sky, the fizz takes extra long to settle making it take even longer to fill the plastic cup and serve. No wonder flight attendants opt to just give me the full can and let me poor it myself. Ginger ale on the other hand, has much less fizz, and will take a flight attendant less time to pour and less time to get it to you to drink. A win-win for all aboard.
And there you have it. When it comes to flying, it’s ginger ale for the win.
Ciao!
Jennifer
