What I am going to describe only occurs with Ginger Ale from Boylan Bottling Company. I have not been able to duplicate with any other type of pop that I have tried, although that is a somewhat limited variety, given that there aren't that many in glass bottled anymore. I like my pop as cold as possible, so I put it in the freezer, usually until after I can see that it is beginning to ice up. Sometimes I wait too long but that's another matter. With this particular brand of ginger ale, I can take it out of the freezer after what would seem like sufficient time for it to have begun to ice up. However, the bottles are glass and I can see clearly that there is no ice there at all. I can turn it upside down and see that the liquid will flow as liquid does. However, once I open the bottle, ice begins to form, starting at the top and working its way to the bottom of the bottle, eventually icing up to the point where I can turn the opened bottle upside down without the liquid flowing out. In other words, ice doesn't form until I open the bottle. That doesn't work with other types of ginger ale in glass bottles, and I don't get it. I don't know if it's the ingredients in the ginger ale or the construction of the bottle. The ingredients are fairly simple: carbonated water, cane sugar, ginger, lemon and lime oils, natural flavors, citric acid, caramel color. When I do leave it in too long, and it does freeze inside of the freezer, instead of exploding the cap as any other type of pop would do (trust me, I have done that a lot), it simply seeps out of the sides of the cap, or it remains intact. That's the only picture I can find online. The ones that I buy are very much like that, only the label reads: BOYLAN BOTTLING CO rather than BOYLAN BOTTLEWORKS, and the center part reads: Est. 1891 GINGER ALE Cane Sugar
@Ken Anderson "However, once I open the bottle, ice begins to form, starting at the top and working its way to the bottom of the bottle, eventually icing up to the point where I can turn the opened bottle upside down without the liquid flowing out." I've seen it, but rarely. An explanation of why it happens, does not explain why only that ONE brand or type does this, though. Has to be ingredients-caused, IMO. Freezing point of a liquid is defined as the temperature at which the liquid becomes solid. FP varies with the stuff mixed in with the liquid, so, plain water FP of 32` F is lowered by adding dissolved stuff like sugar and essences. Alcohol, especially! Second, pressure exerted on the liquid lowers it's FP below that existing at atmospheric pressure. Plenty of dissolved CO2 in the liquid lowers it's freezing point, in your case, below that temperature within your fridge, so it stays liquid in there. Suddenly releasing that pressure by uncapping a bottle, changes the FP to a value high enough to freeze, and it does. IMO. Frank
I don't know all the scientific jargon but I have had many a Pepsi get slivers of ice when they were opened. From top to bottom. Boy, them things were good on a hot summer day out in the tobacco patch.
Having done a little experimentation, I have learned that the Boylan brand of Creme Soda also does that, but their Birch Beer and Root Beer will not. I have tried it with three other brands of ginger ale, and only the Boylan product does that. Great excuse for drinking pop, right? Hey, it's for the sake of science.