Be sure to read the last installment if you want a peek into the diary of a man who is prone to compulsive collecting in very short bursts1 . Since then I’ve managed to acquire Bundaberg, D&G, Jamaica’s Finest, Blenheim’s, A&J Stephans, and The Ginger People brands of ginger beer that will extend this series by a couple of posts2 . And I’m still hunting down a few others, so, hold onto your butts.

In this episode I’ll be reviewing Fentiman’s, Cock ‘n Bull, and Reed’s Original. Before we proceed, a note on the Reed’s line of products. I did my best to keep this exercise strictly to Ginger Beers or “Brews”3 . However, while discussing this project in the Mixoloseum Bar I kept being asked, “Oh, have you tried any of the other Reed’s ginger beers/brews/products besides the Extra?” or some variation thereof. Then, assuming the good folks meant well by me and surely wanted my post to be exhaustive and survive the studious eyes of the cocktail intelligentsia, I bought them. Make no mistake, the Reed’s Original and Premium are definitely in the “Ale” category, folks. So, please take my ratings of the Reed’s Original and Premium products with a grain of salt and understanding that I’m rating them as Ginger Beers and testing how they play on their own and in a Moscow Mule. (See the original post to review my testing process)

We’ll start with Fentiman’s as it seems a good place to start and it’s fun to say.

Fentiman’s:

This is an intriguing beast. Fentiman’s puts out a line of very interesting sodas of which Ginger Beer is one of the more traditional flavors4 . Their unique approach to flavors and production come through soundly in this product as well. The ingredients are listed as fermented ginger root extract, carbonated water, sugar, glucose syrup, natural flavouring (ginger, capsicum, lemon, speedwell, juniper, yarrow), cream of tartar, citric acid. It’s that “natural flavoring” section there that gives one pause when first confronted with this. It hits you with a nice twang of ginger and then slowly has a general wave of herbal “otherness” that keeps you guessing without making you think you’ve accidentally grabbed gin for your mule and threw in a dash of elderflower liqueur to boot.

Fentiman’s has a nice clean finish and doesn’t overstay its welcome or overpower the other things the Moscow Mule tries to accomplish. Fentiman’s can be hard to find in the U.S. but is making in-roads. Personally, I had to raid the media suite at Tales of the Cocktail last year as I’d not heard of it and wanted to get a few bottles home for a try.

The carbonation in Fentiman’s is also worth noting as it’s less “frog eyed” than more cheaply-produced brands. It has a nice mouthfeel and the cream of tartar keeps things suspended nicely while giving it a rich texture. A departure from the most traditional of ginger beers, it is well worth trying and having around though I’m not entirely sure its charms aren’t wasted on a mule and it should be used in more delicate applications. Grab it, if you can get it.

Cock ‘n Bull Ginger Beer:


I’d heard good things about this. From people I respect, mind you. And I’m left with the distinct impression I’ve been giving them far too much credit. This stuff is awful. Allow me to put the flavor and impression of this brew in one phrase: used bookstore.

You know that smell of yellowed paper and mustiness that slams into you as soon as you enter one? Put that in your mouth. Mind you, I love the smell of a used bookstore and old books. It speaks of knowledge and time and curiosity but I sure as hell don’t want to taste it.

This, however, is a tale of two bottles. I found a 4-pk at a locally-owned grocery store here and had never seen it in Tulsa before, so, naturally, I grabbed it. As soon as I tasted it, and hearing my friends’ voices in my head singing its praises, I assumed it was bought on-remainder or something and I’d had a bad batch. So, I bought another online and, lo and behold, the bottles were different. Filled with hope, I cracked it open, smelled it, and….despair. Same story. It’s a little less awful when mixed in a Moscow Mule, but why suffer it? Skip it, unless you have always wanted to eat old books. Then, in that case, knock yourself out….freak.
Reed’s Original Ginger Brew (Ale):


Holy pineapple bits, bartender! After having used Reed’s Extra Ginger Beer as my stand-by ginger beer for a good long while I was expecting something more…actually tasting of ginger. As I mentioned earlier it’s almost unfair to include the Reed’s Original and Premium in this round-up as they are completely different beasts. But, still, this is like pineapple juice that had some ginger oil thrown in, got cut and carbonated, and bottled.

And, in reviewing the ingredients, sure enough, pineapple and honey feature prominently. I won’t say this tastes cheap (see: Capt’n Eli’s) or disgusting (see: above), just that it tastes unlike you’d expect a ginger beer to taste and behave in a drink.

Which is to say, as a ginger beer it fails miserably. As a ginger ale? Well, let’s see. I used this to top off a Pimm’s cup5 and it pretty much murders it. It’s a shame because it’s not horrible-tasting on its own, it’s just not gingery enough. Overly sweet for me and likely to overtake any drink in which you use it I can’t recommend this for mixing. If you like this sort of thing on its own then maybe you should pick it up. But, if you’re looking for ginger beer or ginger ale to use in mixed drinks, move along.
Fentiman’s Rating: ★★★★☆

Cock ‘n Bull Rating: ★½☆☆☆

Reed’s Original Ginger Brew Rating: ★★½☆☆6

Things you should also read:

cocktailnerd’s Ginger Beer Extravaganza Part I and Part III

From Eric Felten’s “How’s Your Drink?”

Wikipedia’s entry on Ginger Beer

Scottes’ Rum Rundown of Ginger Ales and Brews

A nice discussion at Ministry of Rum

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  1. I have over 5,000 Buffy the Vampire Slayer Collectible Card Game cards thanks to a 3-month fascination a couple of years ago – such is my burden [↩]
  2. of course, I’ll likely also be making my own and will need to resist the urge to test four or more recipes against each other [↩]
  3. a nomenclature that seems to belie a product closer to ginger beer in nature but whose PR firm decided “beer” was too off-putting a term for our delicate children to contemplate drinking lest they proceed to, EGADS!!!! BIRCH or ROOT BEEEEEEERRRSS! [↩]
  4. Burdock & Dandelion?! [↩]
  5. I frequently use ginger ale instead of lemon-lime soda, it depends on what’s available and how hedonistic I’m feeling [↩]
  6. not a poor-quality product, but tough to evaluate or consider and ginger beer [↩]