America's Oldest Soft Drink Was Born In This Michigan City

There are plenty of American soft drink brands old enough to be iconic, from Dr. Pepper, introduced in 1885, to Coca-Cola, born in 1886. But it's the regional brands with the most treasured legacies — older, storied sodas are points of pride for generations who grow up enjoying them. Such is the case with Vernors ginger ale, the country's oldest soda that's still around, established in Motor City, USA. Detroiters have long celebrated this beloved soda — or "pop" as the locals would say.

Sodas were once thought of as health tonics, dating back to the 18th century when a carbonation method was invented. From the mid-1700s to the mid-1800s, soda evolved with the introduction of glass bottled soft drinks and different flavors derived from the wellness-driven ingredients various doctors and producers saw as helpful remedies to assorted maladies. Ginger was one of these, as it was seen as an aid for malaria and gastrointestinal ailments. 

Ginger ales were invented in Ireland around the early 1860s, and a Detroit drug store clerk named James Vernor was inspired to create his own. It's debated whether Vernor created a syrup of vanilla and ginger in a wooden barrel, left to serve in the Civil War, and returned home to a deliciously aged concoction with wood notes not unlike bourbon — truth or legend, vanilla is what sets Vernors ginger ale apart to this day with its resulting blend of cream soda sweetness and spicy ginger.

For a while, the pharmacy Vernor went on to open was the only spot where you could snag this tasty soda. But soft drinks were growing in popularity in America, so the inventor began selling it. Vernors ginger ale originally came as two separate ingredients: the carbonated water and the ginger and vanilla syrup. Vernor vetted every soda fountain to make sure they could properly serve his creation. This helped preserve the soft drink's unrivaled flavor. It went on to become a favorite in Detroit, then the rest of Michigan, then the Midwest. Eventually, the Vernors opened a factory to keep up with demand. 

Vernor died in 1927 and investors bought the company in 1959 — it was actually known as "Vernor's," with the apostrophe, before that sale. Distribution for the ginger ale hit 33 states in 1997, and today, the brand is owned by Keurig Dr. Pepper. There are a couple of looming questions around Vernors, chiefly whether it can actually claim being older than Dr. Pepper because it wasn't an officially trademarked soft drink until 1911 and also whether that barrel-aging tale is the true source of the vanilla flavor — older labels claimed the ginger ale was barrel-aged for decades. Whatever the origin, this vanilla-tinged ginger ale came in first when we ranked 14 different ginger ales. It's still delicious today for calming your stomach, enjoying over ice, or mixing with vanilla ice cream to make a dreamy Boston Cooler.