5 Alcoholic Beverages That Perfectly Complement Ginger Ale

When making a multi-ingredient cocktail feels too complicated and a beer doesn’t feel special enough, a simple spirit and ginger ale concoction can hit the spot. This is the kind of cocktail that should be served in a highball glass, with ice and a minimalist garnish like a wedge of lime. Ginger ale’s fizzy, sweet, and spicy complexity makes it arguably the best highball mixer for anyone looking for something a little more interesting than plain carbonated water but not as dominating or saccharine as cola. 

Another feather in this mixer’s cap is how well it pairs with almost all major types of alcohol. In fact, there is an entire subgenre of “mule” cocktails that traditionally use ginger beer as a mixer, but have now expanded to include ginger ale. It’s worth noting that ginger ale and ginger beer are different, with the latter’s potent spicy flavor better suited to high-proof spirits and stronger flavored pairings. Ginger ale, on the other hand, is a versatile and complex soda that offers simple sophistication. You can mix it with high-end spirits without losing their subtleties. However, not all ginger ale brands are equal, so pick a well-balanced one to complement your cocktail. 

While ginger ale is a good mixer to experiment with in complex cocktails, here we will look at which alcohol types it pairs best with, so that you can churn out a satisfying drink with just a spirit, some ginger ale, and a simple garnish.

Ginger ale and whiskey are a classic combination, making this one of the best two-ingredient cocktails around. With just the right amount of complexity and spice to match the spirit, ginger ale’s flavor is also light enough to let subtle notes through so you can enjoy different types of whiskey (and whisky). Rye whiskey has bold notes that match the ginger ale’s spice, resulting in a highball with a bit of bite. On the other end of the spectrum is a bourbon and ginger, with mellow, rounded notes from the spirit that contrast deliciously with the soda. You can also consider adding a dash of honey or using a honey-flavored bourbon, since ginger and honey are another classic flavor pairing. And then there’s the Irish mule — Irish whiskey, ginger ale, and lime.

What’s great about a whiskey and ginger ale cocktail is that, apart from being a tasty drink, it’s also a great base to build a cocktail on. From simple syrup to chunks of fruit and dashes of juice, there are lots of add-ins you can experiment with, and the drink won’t disappoint. Just remember that when mixing with whiskey, use ginger ale and not ginger beer as the latter’s punchier notes can overpower some whiskeys.

Vodka’s clean flavor plays nicely with a wide variety of mixers, so it’s no surprise that it goes well with ginger ale too. If you’ve ever enjoyed a refreshing vodka tonic, think of a vodka and ginger ale to be an elevated version of that because of the additional ginger notes. Unlike whiskey, which should be paired with a well-balanced ginger ale, vodka isn’t as fussy about its subtle notes, so you can mix it with any store-bought can. Of course, the spirit also pairs well with a spicy ginger beer and some lime for the popular Moscow mule. In fact, one theory is that the “mule” in the cocktail’s name comes from the sharp kick that the ginger beer’s spice provides, which is why though you could swap ginger beer with ginger ale when making a Moscow mule, the latter’s mellow ginger spice is not ideal in this scenario. It needs the additional punchiness of ginger beer. 

However, this shouldn’t stop you from mixing your favorite vodka with ginger ale for a refreshing sipper. To balance out the sweetness and give the drink a subtle sharpness, substitute half the ginger ale with club soda, which has a slightly salty, mineral taste. You can also take things in a sweeter direction by adding fresh fruits or berries to the cocktail.

With its affinity for cocktails that blend sweet and spicy notes, tequila is the perfect pairing for ginger ale. While other spirits are more often given the ginger ale treatment, don’t sleep on mixing together a Mexican mule — tequila, ginger ale, and lime. As with whiskey, tequila also has several varieties, and each of them results in a very different cocktail when combined with the mixer. A tequila blanco, which is barely aged and has a sprightly flavor, makes a great summer drink that’s light enough to sip during the day when paired with equally delicate ginger ale. On the flip side, aged reposado or añejo tequila, with their more complex and oaky notes, make for a more sophisticated drink when mixed with ginger ale.

Rum may be the most unexpected spirit on this list because it is so often seen in its Cuba Libre avatar with cola, simple syrup, and lime. However, ginger ale is a great mixer for balancing rum’s inherent sweetness while also blending well with the spirit’s faint spicy notes. White, dark, and spiced rum all work well with ginger ale, resulting in cocktails that are quite varied in character. The derivative Caribbean mule has several iterations, each with a different type of rum, including coconut rum. Each one is a delicious drink, with the light ginger flavor and a touch of lime adding just the right notes. You can even consider mixing different rums and adding a fresh fruit garnish like a pineapple wedge to give it even more of a tropical feel.

Of course, the popular dark and stormy is the quintessential rum and ginger combination. However, this cocktail is typically made with ginger beer for punchier spicy notes. Furthermore, for the cocktail’s name to be apt, a denser mixer like ginger beer is required so that the rum can float near the top of the glass, making the drink look like a stormy sky.

Perhaps the least explored ginger ale pairing is beer, which when combined in equal parts with a non-alcoholic mixer, is called a shandy. While the mixer is most often some form of lemonade, this low-alcohol cocktail can be made with a variety of other fizzy sodas, and ginger ale features high on this list. Again, this is a highly customizable cocktail where you can try various beer and ginger ale brands to see which pairs the best. 

In general, avoid dark beers and lean more towards fruity wheat beers and pale ales for a nice summery shandy. The ginger notes work better with the sprightly flavors of these lighter beers. This is also one of those cocktails where ginger ale is a better option than ginger beer as a mixer, since the latter tends to have a slightly fermented flavor, which could clash with the beer’s yeasty notes.