Ale-8-One celebrates 97 years of business

WINCHESTER, Ky. (WTVQ) — July 13, 1926, George Lee Wainscott introduced the now iconic Kentucky ginger-flavored soft drink — Ale-8-One — and 97 years later the city of Winchester is still celebrating.

In the early 1900s, Wainscott started a soft drink company out of a building on North Main Street in Winchester, but it wasn’t until a trip to Europe that he discovered ginger beer and knew he had to make it with his own twist.

Then came Ale-8-One.

Wainscott thought the 1926 Clark County Fair was the ideal place to introduce the new soda.

“To draw attention to his product tasting, Wainscott held a contest to name his new recipe. A young fairgoer thought the newest innovation in soft drinks should be called what it was, the latest thing. The entry, chosen above all others was ‘A Late One’, 1920s slang for ‘the latest thing’ in soft drinks,” according to the company’s website.

Now today, the company holds a line of products, including zero-sugar and caffeine-free versions of the original Ale-8-One flavor, a cherry and zero-sugar cherry version and an orange cream. New, temporary flavors include peach and blackberry.