 By Brent Aliverti. Last updated 09 October 2002. Oct 09 2002: Just noticed that Blenheim was featured in the South Carolina episode of Food Finds on Food Network. I first discovered Blenheim a couple years back when the Seattle Restoration Hardware store stocked it one summer. I bought a six-pack ($6) and gave it a try. I was immediately hooked. The spicy flavor was unlike any ginger ale I had tried before. I continued to buy it throughout the summer. Alas, summer came to an end and as the weather turned cooler, the Blenheim disappeared. Turned out it was only a "seasonal" item. Drat! How would I find my ginger ale? I despaired for a few weeks until I discovered that Blenheim was available by the bottle ($1.25) at my local Larry's Market (an upscale grocery store chain in the Seattle area). In fact, they had two varieties...the one I was used to (known as "Not As Hot") and "Hot". Now I should mention that the "Not as Hot" is a bit of a misnomer...it is plenty hot and spicy. In Spinal Tap terms, if "Not as Hot" is a 10 on the hot and spicy scale, "Hot" would be 11. While I like "Hot" on occasion, I find "Not as Hot" to be my ongoing favorite. I decided to hunt around on the internet and see if I could find any more info on Blenheim. I found a fan-created site that mentioned an issue of Wired on which Penn Jillette was pictured wearing a Blenheim t-shirt. I checked my back issues and sure enough there was Penn on the cover. Turns out Blenheim is Penn's favorite soft drink as well. Well, if it's good enough for Penn Jillette...:-)
I also happened to find a 1-800 number for the bottler, located in South Carolina. Turns out they sell Blenheim by the case and will ship anywhere. Their old case prices included shipping anywhere in the US. I ordered a few cases and ended up getting a great price (about $.80/bottle). Soon after, they raised their prices. Turns out they were actually losing money when shipping across country. Fair enough, I don't want them to loose money...I want them to stay in business and feed my addiction. If you like interesting drinks, you really should try a bottle of Blenheim. You can get it by the case direct from Blenheim Bottlers at 1-800-270-9344.
Or, you can order it in smaller quantities from:
Summer '99 Update: Restoration Hardware is once again carrying Blehneim at $6/sixpack. I suspect they probably had a lot of requests for it after not carrying it last summer.
When I received my first order, Blenheim sent along a brochure detailing the history of their product. Here is the text of that brochure: Blenheim Bottlers
We make Ginger Ale Welcome to the oldest, smallest and some say best, independent bottling company in America. Located next to the Blenheim Artesian Mineral Springs, the bottling plant is today much as it was when it began production in 1903. The mineral springs were discovered in 1781 by James Spears, a Whig, who was trying to escape Tory troops. According to legend, Mr. Spears lost a shoe in a water hole. When he returned to retrieve his shoe, he tasted the water and noticed its strong mineral content. Word of the spring spread and soon people were coming to taste the cool refreshing water. Several wealthy plantation owners built summer homes in the vicinity of the springs. In the late 1800's Dr. C. R. May advised his patients with stomach problems to drink the mineral water. When these patients complained about the strong taste of the mineral water, Dr. May added Jamaican Ginger to it. In 1903, Dr. May and A. J. Matheson opened the Blenheim Bottling Company. The building which houses the bottling works today was constructed in 1920. While the Original Extra Pale was hot enough for some, our 1903 has surpassed it in popularity. In the spring of 1983, PM. Magazine featured our company in a national broadcast. Charles Kurault heard about us and we were honored to be the lead story in the premier On The Road summer series. BLENHEIM GINGER ALE was featured in the August, 1985 issue of Playboy magazine. The original issue of Carolina Lifestyles also "extolled the virtues" of our products. The publicity did wonders for our company. We expanded, slowly but steadily. We remain today what we have always been: a small, independent, progressive company intent on quality products. In 1993 the Blenheim Bottling Company was acquired by the Schafer Family, who also own Schafer Distributing Company, and South of the Border Tourist Complex. They immediately renovated the old plant to meet new standards, and began bottling this unique Ginger Ale. Within weeks, however, it was clear that the old plant could never meet the demand that existed for BLEN H El M GINGER ALE, so a new plant was built with larger capacity, while maintaining the quality and uniqueness of the old facility. The original Blenheim Plant still operates as a working Bottler's Museum, giving this company the Oldest and Newest bottling plants in the U.S.A. The new owners consider this investment a Labor of Love. They firmly believe there is a place in America for a small, but different, bottling company with a totally unique product and have, on that premise, embarked on this project to bring BLENHEIM GINGER ALE in all its 93 year old goodness to anyone in the U.S. who loves and appreciates real, Old Timey Ginger Ale.
Blenheim Ginger Ale is bottled in four (4) different types: [* Ed- The above is my correction of the brochure which for some reason says there are only 3 varieties, omitting my favorite: #5 Not as Hot.] All Blenheim products are now being bottled in 4/6 pack cases and shrink packed for safe and clean delivery. BLENHEIM GINGER ALE is bottled ONLY in GLASS BOTTLES--not in cans--assuring that it never tastes it "tinny". A national advertising campaign began in 1993 with an ad appearing in The New Yorker Magazine. This was a successful beginning to our ad campaign and we still advertise in The New Yorker, as well as Chile Pepper, an up and coming publication for individuals who love hot and spicy foods & beverages. Forbes Magazine's FYI featured Blenheim Ginger Ale as a selection in their "cream of the mail-order" section. The September 1994 issue of Wired magazine featured a cover shot of Penn Jillette (Penn & Teller) wearing a Blenheim T-Shirt! In January, 1995 New York magazine featured a restaurant sampler. Much to our surprise (and delight!) under the "Takeout" section, Blenheim Ginger Ale was touted as "best of the lot" and magnificently spicy". This article also featured a full color shot of a bottle of our 1903. If you have questions about BLENHEIM GINGER ALE, please call or write. All serious inquiries will receive a reply. You may call us at 1-800-270-9344 from anywhere in the U.S. to place an order (we accept Visa, Master Card, American Express and Discover) and we'll ship it out no later than the next business day. You may also fax orders to us at (803) 774-4018 If you are in South Carolina, on Interstate 95, you are welcome to come by South of the Border and visit one of the plants where Blenheim Ginger Ale is made. This plant is generally open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
Blenheim Bottlers
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