Vernor operated a drug store and soda fountain on Woodward Avenue near what is now known as the Boston-Edison historic district, the main thoroughfare being Boston Boulevard, hence the seemingly disconnected name. Though houses weren’t built and occupied in the area until the early 1900s, the mixture of vanilla ice cream and Vernor’s ginger soda was popular as far back as 1880.

As the name suggests, a Boston Cooler is fantastic on a hot summer day when you might want the weight of plain ice cream balanced out with the mild heat of ginger soda. But it’s plenty good enough as a year round treat. Enjoy one with another Detroit original named for somewhere else – the Coney Island hot dog.

The South Carolina Encyclopedia:

Despite a marketing push that began in the late 1990s and continues today, Blenheim ginger ale is not widely distributed outside the Carolinas. The spicy ale has, however, developed a cult following among food and wine aficionados. In a February 25, 1998 New York Times article, journalists Bill Grimes described the taste in this way: “The first swallow brings on a four-sneeze fit. The second one clears out the sinuses and leaves the tongue and throat throbbing with prickly heat.”