In Australia, standard Lemonade is very similar to Mountain Dew in taste. That's assuming that Mountain Dew here is the same as Mountain Dew in the US.
Most soda companies vary the formula for their beverages very widely in different countries, to reflect local tastes. In general, you probably can't assume that any soda [here] tastes the same as the same soda [there].
And on a slightly different note, I tried Canada Dry recently. Blech.
I do like ginger beer, though. All the better if it's the alcoholic version.
Ginger beer is great. I don't recall ever seeing an alcoholic version, though.
Canada Dry isn't a valid representative of ginger ale, on account of having no ginger, so if you see a different brand, give it another try.
The US-purchased bottle of Canada Dry sitting in front of me says "Made from Real Ginger" on the label. It doesn't actually say "ginger" on the ingredients list, though, so I suppose "natural flavors" must in this case mean "flavor extracted from ginger" assuming the label is truthful (which we have some fairly strict laws about in the US).
What Canada Dry and Seagrams call "ginger ale" seems to intended primarily as a mixer for drinks, which probably explains the low intensity of the ginger flavor.
Ugh, Vernors. Disgusting. (I believe it's a Michigan-and-surrounding-states thing.)
We've had Vernors here in California for decades.
By gingeriness, Vernors is roughly halfway between ginger ale (the mixer kind) and ginger beer. I discovered Vernors as a child -- my grandmother always had some on hand -- and since I love the taste of ginger, Vernors immediately became my favorite ginger ale. In high school I discovered ginger beer and that immediately replaced Vernors as my favorite.
Mind you, ginger beer itself can vary radically in its level of gingeriness, which is why "roughly halfway" is only a very approximate description of Vernors. I've had Jamaican ginger beers that were almost as hot as Jamaican
food, which is some of the hottest stuff I've ever eaten in my life. Not very thirst-quenching, but MAN what a flavor!