NE has a long and storied history with regional tonics – we sought out who was still producing and discovered some new ones.
We’re expected to start with that most New England of sodas, Moxie, so we won’t disappoint. Moxie Nerve Food was invented and patented in the late 1800s in Lowell, Massachusetts, by Dr. Augustine Thompson, originally from Union, Maine. It was produced in Boston during its heyday in the 1920s and 1930s, on up to its Ted Williams endorsement of the 1950s. Starting in the 1980s, Lisbon Falls, Maine, threw what would now be called Moxie-Con, effectively capitalizing on the nostalgia and uniqueness of the medicinal soda pop and birthing an annual Moxie Festival still being held today (usually July—wear orange). But there’s much more to weird, old New England sodas than Moxie. Growing up, I knew someone was sick if there was Chelmsford Ginger Ale in the fridge—a little warmer in flavor, a little sweeter, a little flatter—perfect for flu symptoms, a tonic in the original sense. And can we talk about half and half?
CONNECTICUT
Foxon Park Beverages
East Haven, 1922
Notable Flavors: Cherry, Cream, Diet Kola, Diet White Birch, Gassosa, Gingerale, Grape, Iron Brew, Kola Soda, Lemon Lime, Orange, Root Beer, White Birch, Tonic
Where to buy: Online, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Avery’s Beverages
New Britain, 1904
Notable Flavors: Cream, Birch Beer, Root Beer, Golden Ginger Ale, Half & Half, Korker Lime Rickey, Orange Cream, Sarsaparilla, Tonic
Where to buy: Company store, online, local delivery, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Hosmer Mountain Spring Bottling Works
Willimantic, 1912
Notable Flavors: Lime Ricky, Half and Half, Tonic, Peach, Chocolate Cream, ‘Dangerous’ Ginger Beer, Root Beer, Birch Beer, Cream, Sarsaparilla
Where to buy: Company stores, home delivery
MAINE
Green Bee Soda
Brunswick, 2010
Notable flavors: Lemon Sting, Ginger Buzz, Blueberry Dream, Half & Half, Love Potion
Where to buy: Online and throughout New England
Capt’n Eli’s Soda
Portland, 1996
Notable Flavors: Sea Dog Root Beer, Ginger Beer, Blueberry, Strawberry Pop, Orange Pop, Black Cherry
Where to buy: Online, Federal Jack’s Brew Pub, retail locations in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
MASSACHUSETTS
Chelmsford Ginger Ale
Worcester, 1901
Notable Flavors: Golden Ginger Ale
Where to buy: Market Basket Supermarkets
Harmony Springs
Ludlow, 1908
Notable Flavors: Birch Beer, Black Raspberry, Half & Half, Lemon, Orange, Peach, Pineapple, Quinine Water, Root Beer, Sarsaparilla
Where to buy: home delivery, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Polar Beverage Company
Worcester, 1882
Notable Products: Vichy Water, Lemon Sour, Half & Half, Bitter Lemon, Tom Collins
Where to buy: online, most convenience stores in the Northeast, some national markets
Simpson Spring
South Easton, 1878
Notable Flavors: Root Beer, Sarsaparilla, White Birch, Fruit Punch, Raspberry, Lime-Rickey Cola, Ginger Ale, Cream Soda, Coffee Soda
Where to buy: Company store, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Twin Lights Soda
Rockport, 1907
Notable Flavors: cola, orangeade, root beer, lemon-lime, grape, fruit punch, cream soda, birch beer, sarsaparilla, golden ginger ale
Where to buy: Company store
AJ Stephans
Fall River, 1980s
Notable Flavors: Black Cherry, Lemon & Lime, Cream Soda, Ginger Beer, Lime Rickey, Strawberry, Sarsaparilla, Birch Beer, Root Beer
Where to buy: Distributed throughout New England
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Squamscot Beverages
Newfields, 1863
Notable Flavors: Birch Beer, Cola, Cream Soda, Fruit Bowl, Ginger Beer, Half and Half, Root Beer, Yup, Maple Cream, Raspberry Lemonade, Creamy Orange
Where to buy: Company store
RHODE ISLAND
Empire Bottling Works
Bristol, 1930
Notable flavors: Banana, Spruce Cream Soda, Ginger Ale, Lemon Lime, Pineapple, Sarsaparilla, Olde Rhode Island Molasses Root Beer
Where to buy: specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Yacht Club
Centerdale, 1915
Notable flavors: Quinine Tonic, Ginger Beer, Birch Beer, Yacht Up!, Cream, Cola, Golden Ginger Ale, Sarsaparilla
Where to buy: Company store, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
VERMONT
Vermont Sweetwater Bottling Company
Poultney, 1993
Notable Flavors: Country Apple Jack, Kickin’ Cow Cola, Mango Moonshine, Maple Seltzer, Maple Soda, Raspberry Rhubarb Ramble, Rugged Mountain Boot, Tangerine Cream Twister, Back Country Blueberry Lemon
Where to buy: Online, specialty grocers, independent stores, small restaurants
Hosmer Mountain Spring Bottling Works
Willimantic, 1912
Notable Flavors: Lime Ricky, Half and Half, Tonic, Peach, Chocolate Cream, ‘Dangerous’ Ginger Beer, Root Beer, Birch Beer, Cream, Sarsaparilla
Where to buy: Company stores, home delivery
This article originally appeared in the February/March 2016 issue of Take.
