I was born and raised in northwest Ohio – not too far from where I am currently “parked” in the Winnebago. In this area, the “local” ginger ale is Vernors.

A little history, courtesy of Wikipedia:

In 1862, James Vernor was called off to the American Civil War. According to legend, he left a mixture of ginger, vanilla and spices sitting in an oak cask in a pharmacy he had been working in. After returning from battle four years later, he opened the keg and found the drink inside had been changed by the aging process in the wood. It was like nothing else he had ever tasted, and he purportedly declared it “Deliciously different,” which remains the drink’s motto to this day. Its current slogan is “Barrel Aged, Bold Taste!™”.

Vernors is a golden ginger ale with a pungent flavor, more like a ginger beer. This style was common before Prohibition when the less flavorful pale ginger ale became popular as an alcoholic mixer. While Michiganders who grew up with it tend to like it, many other Americans are suspicious of it, as it doesn’t taste like a “typical” ginger ale.

As I’ve moved around the U.S., there are some areas that carry Vernors and some that don’t. After the advent of the internet and the availability of nearly everything online – for a price, of course, I even had the stuff shipped to me at what worked out to $1 per 12 ounce can. Thankfully, my favorite grocery in Montana now carries Vernors, although only in 6 packs…still better than the shipping scenario!

In Florida, sometimes the grocery had it and sometimes they didn’t. Towards the end, I bought – GASP! – Canada Dry Ginger Ale. Canada Dry is nothing like Vernors but it was as close as I could come. Nearly the first thing I did when I arrived in Ohio was acquire a bit of Vernors…

This is only one trip – I made 3 trips…I have as much Vernors as I can find room for in the motorhome.

This storage area under the dinette seat is now full to the brim with Vernors…oh, and a bit of wine…

Now, when I brought back the first load of Vernors, I still had about 18 cans of Canada Dry left. Bleah! – still – I MADE myself drink the Canada Dry before I could have my first Vernors.

The last Canada Dry…

First Vernors!!! – in celebratory style…

Although the Vernors is stowed and I had planned to roll west yesterday afternoon, the weather did not cooperate. A storm the Weather Channel called “The Big Storm” was just west of Ohio and although I don’t think it will be as bad here as it was in TX, OK and the middle U.S., it is enough to keep me parked. The current plan is to sit here and work through the weekend and roll on Monday morning.

The downside to this plan is that Jeannine and Rick are stripping wallpaper this weekend. I offered to do the cooking (vs helping with the wallpaper). This offer was met with some skepticism as they know I love to cook. I’m not sure how it will all work out…