Thanks, I look forward to trying this one out!

You can add any liquid you’d prefer, wine or chicken broth come to mind first. I don’t think I’d prefer ginger ale, beer gives it a depth of flavor but you can just use more chicken broth to keep it simple. I fear the soda will be too sugary.

You can add egg, or egg yolk as a thickener to some milk and whisk it in, that works well. Alternatively, if you simmer cream soup on low temperature and evaporate more of the “water” it’ll thicken as well, but that takes about an hour. I often use egg to thicken and it gives the soup a rich flavor.