Ginger Ale turns Pink

[Groo]

I've been trying to make a very lemon heavy ginger ale for a couple of weeks and am getting close to the flavor I like. The problem I'm having is that the solution keeps turning pink instead of bright yellow.

I'm using a lemon:ginger ratio of slightly more than 2:1.

I peel the ginger and blend it with water in a blender. Strain the juice out then repeat this process. At this point the ginger juice is a murky yellow.

Next I add the lemon juice, ginger juice and sugar together. At this point I've stirred to dissolve the sugar and also heated to dissolve the sugar. Both methods have resulted in a pink ginger ale about 30 minutes after mixing together.

It's actually really pretty but I want it to be yellow or at least brownish. The pink makes you think you'll taste berries or something.

Anyone know what's going on or what I can do to keep it from turning pink?

 

[Mindsculptor]

Yeah, the citric acid and sugar are causing a chemical reaction in the ginger to turn it pink. It's basically the same process used to make gari (pickled sushi ginger).

 

[MrFoodScientist]

Have you tried using lemon zest along with your juice rather than just straight juice? You'll get a more lemon flavor and a little yellow color from the zest. You can probably cut your juice level and maybe keep more of a yellow color. You do sacrifice some tartness that way, though.