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Sodastream: Fantastic soda maker, terrible syrups
The Sodastream home soda maker will save you money and help keep plastic bottles out of the waste stream — just stay away from the company's Splenda-infused syrups.
Tue, Jun 22 2010 at 11:45 PM
 107

Related Topics:

High Fructose Corn Syrup, Eco-friendly Products
Sodastream maker

Photo: Sodastream USA

I admit to drinking a lot of soda in my younger days. I never really picked up the coffee-drinking habit in college, so I would rely on the enamel-eating scourge of Appalachia Mountain Dew for my late-night caffeine fixes. Thankfully my mainstream soda days are mostly over, though I still enjoy a Reed's Ginger Beer or a local Maine Root soda every now and then.
 
A friend turned me on to the Sodastream home soda machine, and I sent them an e-mail asking for a review unit. My biggest gripe with the soda most of us drink is the high-fructose corn syrups and other preservatives they contain, so I thought a Sodastream might be a good way to get my occasional soda fix without having to spend $2 on a natural soda at Whole Foods or having to ingest a bunch of yellow #5 or sodium benzoate.
 
The Sodastream PR people got back to me quickly and arranged for a review unit to be shipped to me along with a full selection of their soda syrups. I received the package last week and have been having a blast (of CO2) making my own fizzy sugar waters.
 
Carbon dioxide is amazingly tasty stuff.
 
Unfortunately, the Sodastream soda syrups are not. In fact I have a hard time even drinking a soda made with the official Sodastream syrups. Why? Blame Splenda, or to be more specific, blame the Sodastream taste engineers who decided to use the artificial sweetener in the entire line of syrups. This obviously comes down to personal preferences, but I find that Splenda, along with all the other artificial sweeteners, taste terrible. There's just something wrong about how they taste.
 
Look, soda is not healthy and never will be. It's just fizzy sugar water. Even the most all-natural soda found in the crunchiest natural foods store is a big bottle of empty calories. Yeah, it tastes great, but it will never be anything other than a diversion from the Healthy Eating Express. I really wish Sodastream would just embrace that fact and cut out the Splenda. Give us real soda syrups made with real sugar. Maybe keep the Splenda line for the people who don't mind its chemically cloying flavor, but give the rest of us some good old-fashioned sugared syrup.
 
Luckily, it's really easy to make your own syrups. You can follow any number of recipes for old-fashioned soda syrups or just simply mix lemon or lime juice with some maple syrup right before adding the freshly carbonated water. Orange juice is a nice additive, too; the right ratio of water to juice will make you swear that you're drinking an Orangina.
 
The Penguin soda machine itself is a beautifully engineered piece of kitchenware. It's easy to use, requires no cleanup, and looks stylish on the countertop. It's fun to operate and gives you store-quality soda in well under a minute. The Penguin is Sodastream's only model with glass carafes; the others use BPA-free plastic. Some of the company's other models allow you to see the CO2 being injected into the water, but the Penguin, by dint of its design, keeps that process hidden away.
 
All Sodastream makers use a standard CO2 bottle that's available online and at select kitchen stores. (10/28/12 Update: Read about how to save money refilling your CO2 tanks using the SodaMod).
 
If you drink soda, you should look into getting a Penguin. Sodastream says it costs about $.20 to gas up a liter of water, the same bottle bought at the store can costs five to 10 times that much. The cost of buying those bottles of soda adds up over the course of a year, and for some soda drinkers it wouldn't take terribly long for their savings to offset the ~$200 price for a Penguin Starter Kit. When you factor in all the plastic bottles you'd be saving, you start to see how, if you do drink soda, a Sodastream is the greenest choice available. It's not green, but it definitely is greener.
 
If you don't want to drop $200 on a soda maker, you can find other Sodastream models for less than half that price. They also make a version designed specifically for the green market — their Eco model is made using recycled plastic and packaged with greener packaging.
 
Which just makes me wonder: why don't they do the same with all their models? Why not package everything they sell in more eco-friendly packaging? Why not use recycled plastic whenever possible in all their products?
 
You can follow Sodastream USA on Twitter and read the corporate blog, Ms. Fizz.
 
UPDATE: I've been told by Sodastream that they have an "all-natural" line of syrups coming out that will be sweetened with simple sugar (no high-fructose corn syrup). I'm looking forward to trying them.
 
Again, in full disclosure, Sodastream sent me a free Penguin and a collection of flavors for review.
 
 
Are you on Twitter? Follow me (@sheagunther) there, I give good tweets.
 
And if you really like my writing, you can join my Facebook page.
 

The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.

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Comments: 107
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anonymous
colby Feb 21 2013 at 11:28 AM

whats the best flavor ?
how many one liter bottles can you get from one c02 can?

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anonymous
Noel Mar 04 2013 at 7:58 AM

One co2 bottle will do 60 liters or more depending on how much fizz you want. You swap the bottle at your nearest retailer for a full one and you can also buy spares to use.

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anonymous
oh those sweeteners Feb 14 2013 at 10:18 AM

I purchased a sodamaker, too. The taste of those "sweeteners" sticked to my mouth and maked me thirsty. I had to drink water to get rid of the thirst. The next day I felt like in a mild hangover. I had to drink a lot of SUGAR to cure the hangover.

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dodgeris
Dodger Feb 13 2013 at 3:09 PM

I would have to agree with what he said about the syrup I just got a soda stream I am a MT. Dew drinker and there Mt Dew substitute would be good if it didnt have the nasty spenda it leaves a taste in your mouth that you cant get rid of all they need is to get rid of the splenda and add real sugar and there syrup would be good....

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anonymous
gary Feb 11 2013 at 2:08 AM

I tried something new the other day. I placed a Celestial Seasonings wild berry tea bag in a charged bottle, left it overnight. Tasted pretty good. I do use Stevia since those artificial sweetners aggrevate my joints.

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anonymous
Robin Feb 05 2013 at 1:53 PM
Unfortunately, it appears to be a cost thing - not only is sugar expensive, but you need a larger volume of it to get the same sweetening power, so the packaging is more expensive. If you look at their Sparkling Naturals line, the syrups are twice as expensive, and make 25 servings as opposed to 50 servings of their other Splenda-containing syrups. I agree with the poster that suggests using Torani syrups as a cane sugar /natural flavor alternative. Personally, I make my own Root Beer, Tonic
.... More
Water, Ginger Ale, Cream and Orange Cream soda syrups - it's not that tough, and I know what goes into them. I even investigating producing them commercially, but it's tough to get the unit cost low enough to complete.
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anonymous
Rianna Feb 03 2013 at 9:11 PM

Hmm. I actually like all the flavors I've tried so far. Especially the Diet Orange and the Diet Cranberry, both with Splenda. No complaints here.

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anonymous
belle Jan 31 2013 at 5:37 AM

hate the syrups. they taste horrible. Ive never liked splenda .

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anonymous
Anna Jan 05 2013 at 10:41 PM
we received this product for Christmas and while everyone in my family thinks it's GREAT.... I Won't drink it. the initial taste isn't bad... then it hits you... the metalic aftertaste... or something. whatever it is... and then i find out they use Splenda.... well that explains it. So, I'm going to try to find other brands that use real sugar and keep my fingers crossed... but if I have to buy my fountain drinks from the store about a mile away, I will. 'cause if I can'
.... More
t drink this, I'm really not saving anything.
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anonymous
Garth Dec 16 2012 at 10:15 PM

Get the Wal Mart brand, Mio brand, or Dasani brand Liquid Enhancers. Sparkling lemonade, orange, mango, strawberry lemonade. Or go to CostPlus and get the Torrino's syrups. Make FUN sodas. Enjoy life and stop thinking in the box.

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anonymous
Skipernicus Dec 23 2012 at 2:11 PM

Mio contains a whole lot of chemicals - 2 artificial sweeteners, and 3 dyes. Pretty much, you're making a healthy glass of water into something toxic.

(I know, I was disappointed too - I used to be a big fan of Mio, til I read what was in it.)

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anonymous
Raven Dec 10 2012 at 10:55 PM

Ok, I can't even begin to explain properly just how disappointing this product is. To make it simple, they should have sweetened with corn syrup to keep costs low. The product will likely never take off like it should. Would have liked to see national drink vendors release authentic flavors, but that seems unlikely now.

Unless your willing to pay 3 times as much for terrible tasting substitutes avoid buying this product.

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anonymous
rick Jan 21 2013 at 10:35 PM

i just go directly to my local Pepsi co distributor and buy a 3 gallon bag in a box of my favorite products. works great in my soda stream. defiantly need to buy the 3rd party adapter to be able to use non proprietary co2 bottles 3 usd fills beats 20 dollar exchanges hands down.

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anonymous
larry Feb 08 2013 at 5:53 PM

Please , give us more info on this adapter that you mention, Thanks

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anonymous
Hnery Peterson Dec 01 2012 at 9:30 PM

desigh more flavors, this thing could end up in every kithen in America..

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anonymous
JLM a Texas gra... Nov 27 2012 at 3:04 PM
I purchased a sodastream for reasons other than soda pop - to have healthier snack drinks for my granddaughters, okay and myself. I'm 69 yrs young, and enlisted in the whole foods - natural lifestyle back in the 70's and never looked back. I was recently diagnosed with an advanced stage of a rare life alterating medical condition. Doctors credit this wholelistic lifestyle as the probable cause that I am remarkably healthy in spite of it. It has always been my experience that switching over to
.... More
any new way to "go natural" involved a little creativity. 1. The majority of sodas I make are flavored with healthy fruit juices or homemade ginger syrup, none of which contain artificial sweeteners, preservatives, or etc additives. 2. The manufacturer suggests to just rinse out the carbonating bottle. Think people. Do NOT mix the syrup into the carbonating bottle! Pour the soda gently into what you normally drink out of and THEN add the syrup or flavor to that container. Voila - rinsing the carbonating bottles per manufacturer's suggestion is now sufficient. I keep them full to th eline with water in the fridge so I always have a cold one ready to spritz. because I don't like to ice my drinks. 3. Use quality non-sweetened fruit juices, which should be diluted 50/50 anyway. Make your soda juice syrup to about that same dilution strength and then when you want it a little more "soda poppy" drink, add a shy serving of pure cane sugar (I use turbinado) 4. LOVE ginger ale - but make my own. This is a special treat because the base is 1 cup sugar to 2 cups water. Use about six inches of (this is important) YOUNG ginger root. Again with your sugar of choice, add to water, stir and simmer until sugar is fully dissolved, add the thin sliced ginger root, let steep to taste. Soda stream compliments my desire to be eco-friendly AND natural foods diet on my fixed income. Just gotta be a litte creative about it. Ahhh - I have bought the cola, and root beer natural syrups and love the resulting sodas. That these are the more pricey, helps control the consumption rate
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anonymous
DudeMcmann Nov 23 2012 at 8:35 PM

I've mixed it 50/50 w/ whiskey and it STILL tastes bad.

I suppose, if one lowered their standards, it might be a placebo, but NO MATTER WHAT you do, it DOES NOT mix well with Jack!

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anonymous
Marisa Oct 24 2012 at 9:31 PM
i have a soda stream too and had the same problems with my syrups and My Hubby messed with it a bit and got it to perfect taste i use a lid full and a half but when doing so it does make it go faster which really is horrible but it tastes like normal when i first got it i was like omg this is horrible the taste is awful and i even got sick after my first one due to the Co2 that came with my unit was leaking into the drink making my stomach hurt and sorta dizzy and u could taste Co2 i was about to
.... More
just take it back when i decided i had my heart set on this give it another shot and i gave them a call and they were wonderful they sent me a new Co2 tank out and i have to say no problem since i love it accually and yeah it doesnt have the real sugar but if you do as i did on the syrup then you will get a much better taste i cant tell the difference now :)
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anonymous
Scott Chamberlin Aug 28 2012 at 4:38 PM

I am a diabetic so sugared soda is a no-no. I think the Soda Stream Diet Root Beer, Cream Soda, and tonic are great. Lime juice with 2-3 crushed mint leaves and no sweetner at all is good too. Carbonated coffee is simply awful. I live in NM on my own water system, very, very hard. Makes great soda water straight out of the tap.

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anonymous
Janet Jul 10 2012 at 6:04 PM
I find that the sodastream diet syrups cause diarrhea. I called the company to complain and they said they never heard of that trouble. I don't have trouble with splenda nor any store bought diet sodas. My google search revealed it was the sodium citrate that caused the trouble. The cost of the co2 is crazy and there is no exchange in my area yet. You cannot sterilize the bottles and they have expiration dates which I don't like. The machine itself works well. I use mio, crystal light and
.... More
DaVinci Sugar free syrups also made with splenda. I sure hope sodastream re-vamps the diet line of syrups without sodium citrate.
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anonymous
Guest Jan 02 2013 at 9:21 PM

I get diarreha with all products that use splenda, I was given the soda stream as a gift from my roommate she didn't know I can't have anytihng with splenda, WOOPS. So now I am having to look every where for something to use with my soda stream that doesn't have splenda.

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anonymous
CarolS Jul 05 2012 at 3:10 PM

Has anyone tried the Sonoma Syrup company Cola Soda Syrup? I bought a bottle at Williams-Sonoma. It's not cheap, but it is really good. It is all-natural with nothing artificial and no sodium.

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anonymous
Guest Jun 22 2012 at 10:19 AM

A couple of things:
1. These things taste nasty, they taste too sweet for me.
2. Wasn't carbon dioxide bad for you anyway?
3. The design is terrible.

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jprozand's picture
jprozand Oct 29 2012 at 10:05 AM

I love the new flavours from Kraft. they taste great. and Carbon Dioxide is not poison. it occurs naturally in nature.Carbon Monoxide is poison and a by-product of combustion.

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anonymous
I got a Primo F... Jun 14 2012 at 10:38 AM

Don't have to use the proprietary refills for CO2. Can get filled for $4. Only downside is my model has 16.9oz bottles. Newer model has 1 liter bottles, but not compatible with the old model...bad biz.

Their diet cola flavor is pretty good and cheaper than Sodastreams. About $4 for 24 12oz servings. Diet Dew flavor is decent and tonic is pretty good. Not exactly the real deal, but close enough and no sodium I think.

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